4 statistical trends that have emerged from Mizzou's first 4 games of season
COLUMBIA, Mo. — The bye week is over, and Missouri is soon onto its next round of four games before another open weekend.
The No. 9 Tigers, (4-0, 1-0 Southeastern Conference) moved up in polls despite spending Saturday at their leisure, the byproduct of losses by teams such as Mississippi.
Mizzou's season is a third over already, which means some statistical trends should be starting to emerge. It's early for anything particularly definitive to stand out, and there's plenty of time for evolution. Nonetheless, here are four stat-based trends from the first four games of MU's campaign:
Staying in motion
While deep passing results haven't exactly carried over from offensive coordinator Kirby Moore's first season calling plays with Mizzou to his second, some of his concepts have. For one, the Tigers are utilizing pre-snap motion at almost the exact same rate as last year.
There's been some form of movement before the snap on 44.48% of MU's offensive plays this season, according to SEC StatCat's play tracking data. In 2023, that number wound up at 45.8%. The difference seems to be negligible at this point in the campaign.
Southeastern Conference teams vary greatly in how frequently they deploy pre-snap motion, from Kentucky above 60% to Tennessee around 12%. Mizzou uses motion the sixth-most of any team in the conference this season, sandwiched between South Carolina and Texas as teams in the 40%-50% window.
Last season, the Tigers had the fourth-most motion usage in the league, though rankings looked different with two fewer teams in the table at that point.
Points are in the red zone
Offensive operations inside opponents' 20-yard lines were a point of emphasis for Missouri entering the bye week. The red zone, logically, is an important spot to focus on scoring touchdowns, given its proximity to the end zone.
But the Tigers have been reliant on getting touchdowns from there. Only two of their 15 offensive touchdowns on the season have come from outside the red zone: quarterback Brady Cook's 31-yard scramble for a TD against Buffalo and wide receiver Luther Burden III's clutch receiving score in overtime against Vanderbilt.
Outside of those plays, MU's remaining 10 rushing and three passing touchdowns have all come from within the red zone.
Few 3-and-outs
For the most part, Mizzou's offensive drives haven't had problems with the ignition: The Tigers have gone three and out on just four possessions.
That would seemingly be among the best marks in the SEC, though stats sites' definitions of three-and-outs and whether penalties count toward that number vary. And flags were a factor in two of those quick trips on and off the field for Missouri.
The lone three-and-out against Murray State featured both a holding penalty and a delay of game on the offense. A circus of infractions led to both the infamous second-and-59 situation and a three-and-out against Boston College. The Tigers' two three-and-outs against Vanderbilt were penalty-free.
Prolific kicking
No team in the nation has attempted more field goals than Missouri — regardless of whether programs have played four or five games. The Tigers are pacing the country with 16 tries.
As a result, kicker Blake Craig is tied for 14th in the country in points scored, with 48: 33 from field goals and 15 from extra points.
Points scored is a metric that greatly favors kickers — Harrison Mevis is in the record books as MU's career leading scorer, for example — but nationally, it's Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty who has put the most points on the scoreboard, with 78 — the byproduct of an incredible 13 touchdowns scored already.
Elsewhere in the special teams universe, Mizzou is one of 29 programs getting 40 or more net yards per punt, thanks to punter Luke Bauer and its coverage unit.
Mizzou beat writer
