This summer, in the lobby of a hotel in Oklahoma City, of all places, I ran into a Georgia fan. We chatted about the upcoming football season, and eventually I told him I’m from Missouri.
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“I hate you,” he said, smiling.
It was all very good natured, but the underlying point was clear: Missouri has rattled Georgia and the rest of the SEC East by winning the division two years in a row.
Can the Tigers make it a third straight trip to Atlanta to play in the SEC Championship Game? Missouri enters the season with plenty of questions, but the SEC East is a division full of unknowns. Georgia is breaking in a new quarterback. Tennessee looks to be improving but hasn’t won more than seven games since 2007. South Carolina is coming off a disappointing season, and Florida is trying to rebuild with a new coach. Kentucky and Vanderbilt, until further notice, remain Kentucky and Vanderbilt.
Missouri has plenty of key contributors back to fuel that good old August optimism, but questions at receiver and defensive line remain.
Offense
Junior quarterback Maty Mauk has made 18 starts, going 14-4. Mauk has proved to be a tenacious competitor, but also showed some inconsistency last year, maybe due to youth and maybe due to a nagging shoulder injury. He needs to improve on last year’s 53.4 percent completion percentage, but Missouri is in good shape at the game’s most important position.
A veteran offensive line, anchored by senior center Evan Boehm and his 40 consecutive starts, should provide good protection for Mauk. Senior Russell Hansbrough, a 1,000-yard rusher last year, leads the ground game.
But who will catch Mauk’s passes? Tight end Sean Culkin had 20 receptions last year, but no wide receiver on this year’s team caught more than five passes last year. Missouri could use big steps forward by sophomores Nate Brown and J’Mon Moore.
Defense
Missouri’s linebackers, led by Kentrell Brothers and Michael Scherer, and secondary return a lot of experience and should be steady.
The defensive line already faced the tall task of replacing Shane Ray and Markus Golden, but then projected starter Harold Brantley was lost for the season due to injuries sustained in a car accident. (He plans to return for the 2016 season.) Charles Harris, far under the radar as a recruit, is one candidate to emerge as a needed playmaker on the line. The massive Josh Augusta, nicknamed “Big Bear,” should provide some size on the interior of the line. Much of Missouri’s success in recent years was tied to great defensive line play, so this will be a position to watch closely.
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For coach Gary Pinkel’s 15th season, the schedule is fairly manageable. The SEC West is brutal, but you could do a lot worse than Missouri’s SEC West games of Mississippi State and Arkansas.
Georgia is probably the most talented team in the SEC East, but Missouri’s competitiveness and coaching were the difference last year. Georgia is the favorite, but Missouri could absolutely win the division for a third year in a row.
Editor’s note: Benjamin Herrold grew up in Daviess County and graduated from Gilman City High School. He then graduated from the University of Missouri School of Journalism and now writes as the field editor for Missouri Farmer Today and is based in Columbia. He visits home frequently and owns a farm in Daviess County.