Here's something Missouri football fans can daydream about while they wait to see if the NCAA's postseason ban will be lifted by the end of graduate transfer quarterback Kelly Bryant's one-and-done season in CoMo.
Imagine if the Tigers are a perfect 8-0 headed into a road game at undefeated Georgia that will determine the SEC East. National broadcast. Two nationally ranked teams. Between the hedges, with national championship implications on the line.
It could happen.
No, it should happen.
If fourth-year coach Barry Odom's team is as good as we think it should be, the schedule is begging this to happen.
With Bryant taking the snaps, 13 players who started last season returning to the team, and the most desirable slate of games a member of the SEC could ask for, you should not have to squint to see a game with massive implications arriving on November 9.
Let's cruise through the reasons Mizzou should be 8-0 by the time it has Georgia on the mind.
1-0: Josh Allen isn't walking through Wyoming's door. The Tigers are 17-4-1 against current Mountain West teams. Wyoming is 3-13 against current SEC teams, with zero wins since it beat Tennessee in 2008. Odom is 7-1 against teams that are outside of the Power 5 conferences. This one is on the road, but MU should return with a win and a reward � five consecutive home games follow the season opener in Laramie.
2-0: Coach Dana Holgorsen is not the only notable departure from West Virginia. The Mountaineers move forward under new coach Neal Brown with just three returning starters on an offense that used to put up terrifying numbers. Heisman trophy contending quarterback Will Grier is gone, along with multiple top play-makers from last season. The strength of West Virginia could be its defense, which tells you plenty about how much bite the offense has lost.
3-0: FCS opponent Southeast Missouri State will collect a check with its thumping. Next.
4-0: South Carolina seems to be the biggest threat to spoiling Mizzou's march to an 8-0 record entering its game against UGA. The Gamecocks have won three in a row against the Tigers. Will Muschamp has had Odom's number. On top of that, the Tigers have dropped three consecutive SEC openers. It should help the Tigers that South Carolina's brutal schedule includes a game against Alabama the week before the trip to Mizzou. The departure of do-everything speedster Deebo Samuel also helps. He had tortured the Tigers in the past. If Mizzou's defense can force turnover-prone quarterback Jake Bentley into an interception or two, this is a game the Tigers can and should win. If so, Mizzou could be ranked and gaining national attention right around the time the NCAA could be releasing its verdict on the school's appeal of the postseason ban.
5-0: Troy remains the only Sun Belt Conference opponent to beat the Tigers. This edition of the team will not become the next. Mizzou's record will improve to 12-1 all-time against the SBC. Troy, like West Virginia, will be adjusting to a new coach, Chip Lindsey. The Trojans' old coach, Neil Brown, now coaches West Virginia. Including Troy's upset of LSU in 2017, the Trojans are 3-21 against the SEC. A rested Mizzou will take care of business at home after a bye week.
6-0: Ole Miss seems to be moving in the right direction under Matt Luke, who was given the tough job of cleaning up after Hugh Freeze. The Rebels are out from beneath their own postseason ban, with everything to play for once more. But they are betting on an inexperienced quarterback (Matt Corral) and new coordinators on offense (Rich Rodriguez) and defense (Mike MacIntyre). Only three starters return on offense. The Rebels' main competition will be against Arkansas to wind up not being the worst team in the SEC West. Mizzou has more SEC-tested talent, and the Tigers will be buzzing off of what should be a great Homecoming atmosphere.
7-0: If Vanderbilt has found a productive quarterback by the time the Tigers make their second road trip of the season on Oct. 19, then this could be a much bigger challenge. The Commodores have some of the league's most dangerous pieces in the three-headed offensive monster of running back Ke'Shawn Vaughn, tight end Jared Pinkney and receiver Kalija Lipscomb. Problem (at least for now) is that neither Ball State graduate transfer quarterback Riley Neal nor Deuce Wallace have separated themselves in the eyes of coach Derek Mason. Maybe he plays both. The offense could be scary either way. But the defense? Points should be there for Mizzou. Vandy brings back just five starters on that side after losing five of its top seven tacklers. Odom has never lost to Mason. He'll make it 4-0 this season.
8-0: Tennessee coach Jeremy Pruitt made some impressive hires this offseason, none bigger than former Georgia offensive coordinator Jim Chaney. Quarterback Jarrett Guarantano is better than people realize, and tougher than a $2 steak considering his offensive line has done him zero favors. It's that line and its defensive counterpart that are once again the big questions for UT. The staff recruited well in these capacities, but it's a lot to ask newcomers to hold their ground in the SEC trenches. The defensive line lost four starters. It's a line of scrimmage league, and Tennessee is still lacking on both fronts. The Tigers have thumped the Vols by a combined score of 100-34 the past two meetings. This one could be closer, but expect the same result.
9-0?
Doubtful. Georgia has become Alabama, East. But entering this game undefeated would be a big deal for Mizzou. "Mammoth," as former Tigers coach Gary Pinkel liked to say. And, who knows, perhaps an undefeated start from Mizzou would apply a gradually increasing pressure on the NCAA to make sure the Tigers have a postseason waiting for them at the end of the line. Don't make the mistake of thinking those kind of factors don't affect such decisions.
