Missouri loses to Georgia, hosts Idaho for Homecoming next

When you’re a fan of a bad team, you don’t need a three-hour reminder of the gap between your team and the best team in the division, but sometimes you get one anyway.

Missouri fans had that experience Saturday night, as No. 4 Georgia beat the Tigers 53-28 “Between the Hedges” at Sanford Stadium.

Missouri (1-5, 0-4 in SEC) showed its occasional big play offensive ability, with Drew Lock hitting receiver Emanuel Hall for two 63-yard touchdown passes in the first half, the second of which tied the game 21-21 in the second quarter and quieted the big crowd at Sanford for a bit.

But Georgia’s offense just kept hammering away at Missouri’s beleaguered defense, running out to a 34-21 halftime lead and a 47-21 advantage after three quarters. The Bulldogs (7-0, 4-0 in SEC) racked up 696 yards of offense, including 326 passing yards and 370 rushing yards on 51 carries, an average of 7.3 yards per carry.

Nick Chubb and Sony Michel, who have seemingly been piling up yards against Missouri for a decade, were key contributors to that rushing onslaught, as was freshman D’Andre Swift.

The Bulldogs, now ranked No. 3 in the country, are rolling under second-year coach Kirby Smart. This was Missouri’s toughest game of the year, and the Tigers showed some fight, so that’s something. Lock had a pretty good game against a good defense.

But the biggest reason for Tiger fans to be excited this week is the upcoming game on Saturday, when the Tigers host Idaho (11 a.m. on SEC Network). Missouri is a big favorite, and it might be the Tigers’ first win in a month and a half. Idaho (2-4) is coming off a narrow loss to a decent Appalachian State team, but even with Missouri’s struggles, the Vandals are a team they should beat.

Also, it’s Homecoming at Ol’ Mizzou, and that’s a big deal at Missouri, bigger than it is at many schools.

Missouri credits itself with inventing Homecoming, with a football coach in 1911 asking alumni to “come home” to cheer on the Tigers in a big game with Kansas. With that tradition of using extra Homecoming support in big games, it’s a shame Missouri has recently shown the trend of scheduling nonconference teams from non-Power 5 conferences for Homecoming.

But it’s still the same special weekend in Columbia, the town that never seems to age. There’ll be decorations all over downtown and the fraternity and sorority houses, the parade, and the coronation at halftime. There might also be a much-needed Tiger win.

On Sunday, Missouri’s much-anticipated basketball team will scrimmage with old rival Kansas in a charity exhibition game in Kansas City, a great way to raise money for hurricane relief. The two haven’t played since 2012, when the two split a pair of epic games in Missouri’s final Big 12 season.

With the Homecoming festivities and that scrimmage, it should be entertaining to be a Tiger fan this weekend.