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Join Mizzou beat writer Dave Matter for his live chat at 11 a.m. Thursday

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3rd & 7 37yd

How difficult is it to say/write what you really think while maintaining a good relationship with the coaches?

by MizzouDad2 1/12/2023 6:35:56 PM
It's not that hard. I'm not an opinion columnist, so outside of this forum I'm almost exclusively just reporting the news with some analysis sprinkled in here and there. But it's analysis backed by reporting, not just hot-take opinions. But I do know that MU coaches and administrators read this chat and listen to our podcast.
At the same rate, I've been covering Mizzou far longer than any current football or basketball coach has worked at Mizzou - and the administration for that matter, too. Once in a while I might know what I'm talking about.

by dmatter 1/12/2023 6:38:43 PM
Any QBs in the portal that make sense for us ?

by Boston Mizzoi 1/12/2023 6:38:47 PM
There aren't many appealing options right now. Oklahoma State's Spencer Sanders hasn't landed anywhere yet to my knowledge, nor has Boise State's Hank Bachmeier. Neither has been connected to Mizzou recruiting - at least not publicly.

by dmatter 1/12/2023 6:41:12 PM
Dave: What is your opinion of Burden's performance?

by HiltonHeadMatt 1/12/2023 6:41:16 PM
You can see the talent. You can't teach some of the things he does with the ball in his hands.
I think the move inside to the slot position will be good for him - just like it was for Lovett this past year. Like Barrett Banister said on our podcast last week, match him against slower linebackers or smaller nickelbacks and he'll be able to make bigger plays in space.
BUT, he's got to catch the ball more cleanly. He has to work on getting open against press-man coverage. You can work on those things. Huge offseason for him.

by dmatter 1/12/2023 6:43:19 PM
You've mentioned that Javon Foster is expected to return (would be huge). This new OT Drink got from Eastern Michigan is also a LT. Would you imagine Johnson (the transfer) would be asked to move to RT, now that Hyran White has moved on?

by Out of Towner 1/12/2023 6:43:28 PM
There are a few possibilities here. You've got Marcellus Johnson as an experienced tackle and you've also got Armand Membou, who just finished a solid freshman season at right tackle. I think you look at both Johnson and Membou at right tackle and right guard and see who fits better at each spot.

by dmatter 1/12/2023 6:44:43 PM
Which asst coaches in men’s bball are in charge of off and def? They seem to be doing a good job

by Boston Mizzoi 1/12/2023 6:44:47 PM
I'm not sure they break it down by offense and defense with this staff. Some staffs assign one guy to coach the bigs and one guy to coach the guards. Hard to say because they don't open practices to media.

by dmatter 1/12/2023 6:45:33 PM
We gonna see more or Diarra or Moseley this year ? Was hoping they would have an impact for the second half of the season

by Boston Mizzoi 1/12/2023 6:45:37 PM
Diarra just played a season-high minutes last night. Gates was high on him when I asked him about it after the game. No telling on Mosley. I guess it's a good sign he made the trip.

by dmatter 1/12/2023 6:46:13 PM
Besides a sec caliber qb, what are weaknesses for our football team next year ? Our defense looks to be better with many players coming back

by Boston Mizzoi 1/12/2023 6:48:33 PM
Not much experience or depth at defensive end.
O-line is still a question mark. Can Bolgar challenge Tollison for the center job? Where does the Eastern Michigan transfer fit in?
What's happening at tailback? Does Tavorus Jones get carries?
Does Mizzou have a tight end who can put a minimal scare into defenses?

by dmatter 1/12/2023 6:50:06 PM
Are you going to Maclins hof event ?

by Boston Mizzoi 1/12/2023 6:50:10 PM
We'll see. Let's figure out tonight's dinner first.

by dmatter 1/12/2023 6:50:32 PM
Any more men’s bball games you expect to be sold out this year ?

by Boston Mizzoi 1/12/2023 6:50:36 PM
Still tickets available for Arkansas.
If Mizzou loses Saturday and struggles with the Hogs-Tide homestand, I'm very curious to see how quickly some folks hop off the bandwagon. Saturday games always sell out faster than midweek games. After Iowa State, there's only two more home Saturday games against A&M and Ole Miss.

by dmatter 1/12/2023 6:52:09 PM
What is with Kobe’s fouls? His 4th was so terrible I couldn’t believe he would be doing that with 3 fouls already. Also the refs are insanely whistle happy when it comes to calling fouls against Mizzou and they don’t seem to give the other team the same treatment.

by Dentgrs 1/12/2023 6:52:33 PM
It's been an issue for the last couple years. He's a physical player and he probably thinks he carries so much weight on his shoulders that sometimes those fouls are out of frustration more than anything else. He's a smart, conscientious player. Just needs to know when to dial down the physicality sometimes.

by dmatter 1/12/2023 6:54:25 PM
I frequently joke that watching Mizzou is watching the greatest Cleveland State team to ever take the court. I don't mind feeling like I'm watching a small school try to elbow it's way into the Power 5.
My problem is that usually the good small schools also play tenacious defense while trying to shoot lights out, and Mizzou doesn't play D to go along with their streaky shooting.

I am watching every game and I'm all in for watching a team that will run hot-and-cold, with an aggressive offense and steals, hoping to take more shots and make more shots (thus the Assist:Turnover ratio)--that's what I signed up for. Teams like that are primed for one good upset victory in the NCAA tournament.

Against Texas A&M we will talk about "cold shooting" when all you see is the box score (which also shows only 11 assists, low for MU this year). But the shooting was poor because the shots taken were poor. They weren't passing, they just weren't "running an offense."
When the team goes out there and does that for BOTH halves, midway through the season, that has to be on the coach.
And I like Gates!

Don't get me wrong, I'm sure it's hard to be the best player on the playground and on every court every year of your life until entering the SEC; the temptation is always going to be to take the ball and try to do it yourself, especially when you're a young man barely in his 20's.
But that's what the coach is there for, every practice and every game.

All year aside from KU, Gates has been able to go to his bench to look for help, or calm his starters (or sit them with foul trouble all too often).
Last night it seemed like the selfishness, lack of passing, poor shot selection AND lack of D was contagious.

This wasn't a game like Kansas where they didn't play smart but it was also obvious that up and down the lineup every player was just better or bigger or both.
Bad "luck" only accounts for a small part of the lack of scoring last night. I guess I don't have much of a question other than what can be blamed here except for coaching?

Even if the ranking, hype, and national attention went to their heads...that would still be the coach!

by Jeremy 1/12/2023 6:55:14 PM
I disagree somewhat. Last night I thought they were missing a lot of the same shots they had been making. The shots were within the framework of the offense. Mizzou has thrived off early 3s all year. It's one of the first things opposing coaches say about them. After the game Buzz said that 39% of Mizzou's shots come in the first six seconds of the shot clock and 59% come in the first 12 seconds. That's who they are. Last night's shots were mostly open; they just didn't fall. Hodge was getting good looks. Carter was missing 3s he's made all year. A&M's whole defense is predicated around giving open looks outside and creating a wall in the paint to cut off driving lanes.

by dmatter 1/12/2023 6:59:04 PM
I assume by your comment several weeks ago, "that's why they hired him," (Drinkwitz) you were surprised the program hired a OC?

by Tigerboz 1/12/2023 6:59:13 PM
More like several months ago. The situation changed midseason when Drinkwitz said he was open to hiring a coordinator and clearly wasn't enjoying calling plays that weren't working - to the point he handed off the duties to Hamdan. Also, the situation changed when Mizzou increased his staff salary pool so he could hire an OC.

by dmatter 1/12/2023 7:00:36 PM
MIZ leads the SEC in PPG, FG%, and FT%, all positives for a team that hasn’t played together very long. The team’s flaw is rebounding in which they are dead last which I guess isn’t surprising since they are the shortest team in the league? Looks like they will have to win most if not all of their home conference games to get to 20 wins and a tournament bid? Beating Illinois and Kentucky back to back was great, but coming up soon will be Alabama at home and Tennessee and Auburn on the road. It’s been a surprisingly good season so far, but a lot of obstacles are there on the road to 20 wins.

by Ric 1/12/2023 7:00:56 PM
There are winnable games on the road. Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Georgia, LSU. Heck, Saturday's game at Florida is winnable. I'd be shocked if Mizzou goes 0 for 5 in those games.

by dmatter 1/12/2023 7:01:56 PM
Any former mizzou players potential coaches for mizzou (like L. Washington) ?

by Boston Mizzoi 1/12/2023 7:02:02 PM
Mizzou doesn't have any openings, so until there's some staff turnover, there are no hires to make. Washington is headed to Western Kentucky, per some reports yesterday.

by dmatter 1/12/2023 7:02:57 PM
I'm a little surprised that Gabarri Johnson isn't on campus for spring ball. I know each kid is different and some have something holding them for that last semester - for Drew Lock, it was basketball; for Sam Horn, obviously, baseball - but the way GJohnson is described as such a great leader (and I don't doubt he is - he seems very impressive) I thought he'd want to be here to get started.

by Out of Towner 1/12/2023 7:03:10 PM
It's harder to graduate early at some schools. It might not be his choice. Or he might just want to enjoy his last semester of high school. Nobody's counting on him starting in 2023. You never get that last semester back. I'd probably want my son to finish with his HS class if I were in that position .

by dmatter 1/12/2023 7:04:50 PM
I saw some folks asking about Mo Diarra not playing. I would think, with him on the court, you have to play a significantly different style of ball, vs. what HCDG prefers. Having that big, somewhat immobile, player is sort of like when you go from a drop-back, excellent passing QB to a guy who throws it 7 times a game and runs 25 times ... entirely different concept.

by Out of Towner 1/12/2023 7:05:04 PM
I think some folks see his height and assume he's Jeremiah Tilmon. He's nowhere near that big and physical. He's 6-10 but listed at only 215 pounds - same weight as Gholston and far less than Carter, Brown and DeGray

by dmatter 1/12/2023 7:07:47 PM
Are you aware if the program has contacted and/or hosted any QB candidates from the portal? Drinnk's handling of the QB position seems his biggest issue since he's been here.

by Tigerboz 1/12/2023 7:07:55 PM
They want to add depth to the room but haven't hosted any QBs to my knowledge or anyone else's reporting

by dmatter 1/12/2023 7:08:18 PM
Excellent interview with Barrett Banister on the podcast, by the way. Could you elaborate on what he said about going right to Daylan Carnell as someone to watch? From the way he said it, it seems like he thinks Carnell will be better at that position than Martez Manual was, these past couple of years (which is a high standard). And me picked Tavorus Jones for the offensive side, which further emphasizes the mystery of why Drink didn't give him more opportunity this past year. I get it with a QB but an RB should have been able to have that - I think he looked pretty darn good in the few plays he had.

by Out of Towner 1/12/2023 7:08:36 PM
I think Carnell has more upside than Manuel. He played fewer snaps this year but made for more impact plays in terms of creating turnovers. Manuel also led the team in missed tackles and had a miss rate of 22%, compared to 16% for Carnell, per PFF.
As for Jones, he was hurt through most of camp and the first couple weeks of the season. But we've seen this with Drinkwitz before. He leans heavily on the running back he trusts most - RBs coach Curtis Luper has say in who plays, too - and rarely gives the backup a big chunk of touches.

by dmatter 1/12/2023 7:11:19 PM
Hi Dave, apologies if this has already been covered elsewhere, but do you plan to post season total snap counts for Mizzou football? This stats nerd always likes to see those numbers. Thanks.

by JonO 1/12/2023 7:11:28 PM
I have not yet. That might be something I do when previewing spring football.

by dmatter 1/12/2023 7:11:49 PM
Yes it was disappointing last night but every time you lose it is disappointing. At the same time, you have to have some perspective. Mizzou has shot the ball very well all season and last night could not hit the ocean. I would love to see us shoot 40%+ from 3 every night but it is not going to happen. I wish there was an obvious answer on how to rebound better but we are at a point that we know we are not a great rebounding team (well not even mediocre) This year to me has always been about building the foundation of what Gates vision is. So far that foundation has looked very promising. It is not fun to be down 20 to a team you should compete with but we are not going to shoot that bad on a regular basis. At least we haven't for the year. I looked forward to each game now.

by Andy 1/12/2023 7:12:04 PM
Arkansas and A&M both crashed more to the offensive boards instead of getting back on D to get extra possessions and prevent our transition O, and extended an aggressive perimeter D to prevent our passing/assist game and contest our 3 point shots. Someone needs to get into the paint, finish at the rim, and/or work the high/low post game (like Carter to Shaw dunk recently). Your thoughts on how to neutralize/adjust to opponents' extended pressure on perimeter and crashing the O boards, especially in road games where close foul calls tend to go against the visiting team?

by Dave 1/12/2023 7:12:27 PM