The 19th-ranked Missouri Tigers (6-0 overall, 2-0 in Big 12 play) make a return trip to the Lone Star State for the second straight week, this time to take on the upstart Texas A&M Aggies (5-1, 1-1) at venerable Kyle Field in College Station, Texas. The game, set for a 3:30 p.m. kickoff, will be televised on ABC.
The Tigers, off to just the 4th 6-0 start in school history, look to follow up a strong overall outing that saw them win a 38-21 decision last Saturday at Texas Tech. In that game, the Tiger defense forced 5 Red Raider turnovers, and converted them into 28 points – with the defense scoring twice on the night.
Texas A&M has won 5-of-6 games to begin the season, with the only setback a last-second heartbreaking 31-27 home loss to the same Texas Tech squad two weeks ago. The Aggies rebounded last week by pulling out their own last-minute comeback win, as they won at Kansas by a 21-18 count after scoring a TD in the final minute.
The Tigers will be the seventh undefeated team (4-0 or better) to visit Kyle Field since 1990. The Aggies are 3-3 in the six previous games with an average score of 31.0-29.8 in favor of A&M.
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The Aggies will be seeking their sixth win of the season against Missouri, which would make A&M bowl eligible for the 19th time in the last 22 seasons. Since 1985, the Aggies have played in 15 bowl games, including nine New Year's Day bowls.
Led by first-year quarterback Stephen McGee, the Aggies have done a good job of using a variety of receiving targets in 2006. The Aggies have used 11 different receivers, a school record, in two games this season. A total of 15 receivers have at least one catch in 2006, which is one off the school record.
In a strong return to the lineup, senior wide receiver Chad Schroeder has grabbed a team-high 21 catches for 371 yards and produced first downs on 15 of his 21 catches. Schroeder missed the final three games of 2005 after suffering a broken leg in game eight against Iowa State.
Schroeder now has 11 receiving touchdowns on just 53 career catches, which is tied for fourth-most in school history. Schroeder's touchdown to catch ratio of 1-to-4.8 is the highest of any Aggie with seven or more career touchdowns.
While A&M has outscored the opposition in every quarter, the Aggies have the biggest advantage in the third quarter. A&M has scored 65 points in the third quarter, while allowing just 15 points.
The only touchdown allowed by the Aggie defense in the third quarter came against Army when a fumbled punt return set up the Black Knights at the Aggie 37.
Mizzou’s historic beginning to its season took yet another step last Saturday in Lubbock, Texas, as the Tigers improved to 6-0 to start a season for the first time since 1973 with a 38-21 win over Texas Tech. The win by Missouri broke an 11-game home winning streak by the Red Raiders.
Entering the game as underdogs for the first time this season, the Tigers took care of business on both sides of the ball, getting key plays all night long from both its offense and defense.
The Tiger defense allowed a season-high 456 yards of offense, but it was still disruptive enough to force the high-flying Red Raider attack into committing 5 turnovers which MU converted into 28 points, including 14 directly by the defense itself, on a pair of interception returns by defensive end Xavier Jackson (17 yards) and free safety William Moore (22 yards) on consecutive plays in the 2nd quarter. Those big plays gave Mizzou a commanding 24-0 lead at the 11:20 mark of the quarter.
The Red Raiders rebounded to score a pair of touchdown late in the 2nd quarter, and pulled to within 3 points as they took the opening possession after halftime for their 3rd straight touchdown. With Tech’s Homecoming crowd in full furor, Tiger quarterback Chase Daniel engineered perhaps the biggest drive of Missouri’s season to this point, as Mizzou marched 73 yards in 10 plays, and answered with a touchdown pass from Daniel to tight end Chase Coffman from 6 yards out that extended Missouri’s lead back to 31-21, breaking Tech’s momentum.
It was the defense’s turn again to put its stamp on the game, as it forced the 4th of 5 Tech turnovers, when defensive tackle Lorenzo Williams sacked the Tech quarterback, forcing a fumble that was recovered by Moore. It took the Tiger offense only 2 plays to convert the opportunity into points, as Daniel hit wide receiver Will Franklin on the first play for 36 yards over the middle, and then tail back Tony Temple scored from 8 yards out (his 2nd touchdown of the night) to make it 38-21 and effectively ice the game.
Missouri has been installed as a –2.0 favorite by most Las Vegas Sportsbooks with a 51 point total.
