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Welcome to the first year of the team of 12 College Football Playoffs.
In anticipation of the first four-round postseason in college football history, we’re counting down the playoff-bound teams as the season approaches. The top five conference champions as ranked by the CFP selection committee will make the playoffs, and the rest of the field will consist of seven teams that will make the at-large round. Who will hoist the national championship trophy on Jan. 20 in Atlanta?
Previous previews: issues 25-13, No. 12 Boise State, No. 11 Utah, No. 10 Florida State
Record 2023: 11-2, 6-2 SECOND
Last season in 100 words
The Tigers were one of the surprise teams of last season. A 61-yard field goal allowed the Tigers to win against Kansas State in September and Mizzou only lost to LSU and Georgia. For the second straight season, Missouri was Georgia’s toughest win in the SEC East.
After losing to Georgia, Missouri defeated Tennessee and then topped Florida thanks to a big fourth-down conversion. The Tigers then beat Ohio State 14-3 in the Cotton Bowl, the program’s first 11-win season since 2014 and the school’s first winning season since 2018.
Why Missouri can make the playoffs?
The Tigers return nine starters on an offense that was one of the most efficient in college football last season. Mizzou averaged 6.5 yards per play and quarterback Brady Cook had a breakout season. Cook threw for more than 3,300 yards and had 21 touchdowns against just five interceptions.
WR Luther Burden III may be the best wide receiver in the country and will move all over the field for the Tigers again in 2024. Burden had 86 receptions for 1,212 yards and nine touchdowns as a sophomore.
The running game needs to replace All-SEC running back Cody Schrader after the former Division II player rushed for 1,627 yards and 14 TDs. That’s no easy task and will likely be done by committee. Missouri added former Appalachian State running back Nate Noel and former Georgia State running back Marcus Carroll through the transfer portal. Each player has a 1,000-yard season to his name and Carroll had 1,350 yards last season.
Cook’s role in the running game should also remain significant. He rushed for just 319 yards (sacks count toward a college quarterback’s rushing yardage total), but he had eight rushing touchdowns. Missouri wasn’t afraid to call a designed quarterback run at key moments in 2023.
The biggest question mark for the Tigers is the defense following the departure of coordinator Blake Baker to LSU. Former South Alabama defensive coordinator Corey Batoon takes over a unit that allowed fewer than 21 points per game and had 39 sacks in 2023.
Finding replacements for draft picks Darius Robinson (8.5 sacks) and cornerbacks Ennis Rakestraw and Kris Abrams-Draine is critical to the defense matching its performance from last season. Players such as former Florida DL Chris McClellan, former Miami LB Corey Flagg and former Clemson cornerback Toriano Pride will be counted on as immediate contributors.
Key player
Burden will get the most attention from opposing defenses, but Wease’s ability as an outside receiver is almost as important to Missouri’s offense and also allows Burden to be just as effective out of the slot.
After spending four seasons at Oklahoma, Wease had the best season of his career in 2023 with 49 receptions for 682 yards and six touchdowns. After a brief flirtation with the NFL Draft, he decided to return for a sixth season in 2024.
Without Schrader to gain yardage, Missouri may rely more on its passing game. And Wease will need to be a more consistent contributor. He had two receptions or fewer in six of the Tigers’ 13 games last season.
The biggest game
Missouri’s schedule is one of the main reasons the Tigers are a playoff contender. Mizzou may have the easiest schedule of any SEC team and needs to take advantage of that.
The Tigers will visit Alabama on Oct. 26 after hosting Auburn at home. But we’re going to consider the trip to Texas A&M earlier this month the most important game because it could define Missouri’s season. With the first four games of the season at home against Murray State, Buffalo, Boston College and Vanderbilt, Missouri should have a 4-0 record heading into College Station.
A win there would give the Tigers a phenomenal chance to go 7-0 before the trip to Tuscaloosa and allow Missouri to lose to the Crimson Tide as well as Oklahoma, South Carolina, Mississippi State and Arkansas while still harboring serious playoff hopes with a second straight 10-2 season.
(The rest of the rankings will be revealed in the days leading up to the start of the season.)