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<\/a><\/p>\nYou know what\u2019s fun and also sucks, simultaneously? Having to batch cocktails for a tailgate\/party. Don\u2019t get me wrong, I love to host. But it\u2019s stressful as hell. As you know, liquor is expensive, and the potential of creating something really good but extremely pricey is daunting. Especially when you\u2019re making it for a crowd that\u2019s there to vibe and not extract the finer nuances of your mixed drink.<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re asking me, Homecoming should be about avoiding stress at all costs. Don\u2019t worry about the cost of liquor. Don\u2019t worry about doing some fancy punch that\u2019s gold tinted. Buy you a pack of Mizzou Brew from Boulevard Brewing Co. and call it a day.<\/p>\n
Buy Boulevard Mizzou Brew. Pour into mug\/glass. Drink.<\/p>\n It\u2019s Homecoming, y\u2019all. Don\u2019t work too hard now.<\/p>\n Mizzou looked OK on the road last weekend, but didn\u2019t have enough juice to come out on top. What was the main issue holding them back against Mississippi State?<\/p>\n Josh Matejka, Deputy Site Manager: I almost wrote a whole ass column about this, but there really isn\u2019t too much to say: Mizzou really misses Ahmad Hardy. When Eli Drinkwitz built this team, you have to think he knew the offensive line wouldn\u2019t be as strong. But that\u2019s OK when your running back can pick up chunk yardage after contact and your quarterback can get the ball out quickly and accurately. With Hardy, Mizzou is likely sporting one of the deadliest offenses in the country, one that can explode and hold onto the ball whenever it wants. That helps cover up some of the defensive lapses while Batoon irons out the new personnel.<\/p>\n I could go on. It may be a bit Pollyanna-ish, but I sincerely believe that, with Hardy, Mizzou is probably undefeated and somewhere near a Top 15 team right now. Without him they\u2019re fine. But fine doesn\u2019t win SEC road games.<\/p>\n Matthew Gustafson, Beat Writer: I\u2019m going to cheat slightly and list two things: penalties and allowing explosive plays in the secondary. Holding calls, along with some other penalties, ended up stopping a few promising offensive drives. Combine that with two long touchdown throws by Kamario Taylor alongside a few other long tosses that connected, and that\u2019s the difference in a tight contest on the road.<\/p>\n Nate Edwards, Football Analyst: Biggest issue is that they couldn\u2019t get Mississippi State off the field. They managed to limit State to only 6 scoring opportunities but gave up over 5 points per opportunity. Explosive plays, runs up the middle\u2026 all of it dragged the Tiger defense up and down the field for nearly 80 plays and they couldn\u2019t force enough stops to make a difference.<\/p>\n Sammy Stava, Staff Writer: Too many penalties and allowing too many big plays on the defensive end. That\u2019ll happen against a quarterback like Kamario Taylor, but once Mizzou took the lead they couldn\u2019t capitalize on momentum. Execution in crunch time failed.<\/p>\n Facing a Top 10 opponent for Homecoming can be a bit strange for Mizzou, but it does raise the question: Would you rather have a likely win for the Homecoming game or a marquee matchup?<\/p>\n Josh Matejka: I\u2019ll admit it, I don\u2019t really care if Mizzou is punking some non Power Two school on Homecoming weekend. Homecoming week, in my opinion, is a little bit bigger than the football game that it\u2019s building up to. But the possibility of feelings going sour based on a bad game are very real. I\u2019d much rather have a stress free day of enjoying the parade and tailgating knowing that the Tigers are going to waltz to a comfortable victory that night. Does playing better teams create the possibility of amazing memories like 2010 Oklahoma? No doubt. But those moments are few and far between. Give me the easy dub and let me enjoy the festivities in comfort.<\/p>\n Matthew Gustafson: I think you have to thread the needle a little bit. You still want to pick a likely win on the schedule, but I don\u2019t think you want it to be a buy game, either (like North Texas a few years ago). Mizzou tried to do that this year by choosing Florida, and it looked like a solid choice. The Gators had other plans, though.<\/p>\n Nate Edwards: I like watching my team win, especially on Homecoming. I\u2019m willing to admit that punishing some G6 school probably doesn\u2019t generate enough interest, even with the appeal of Homecoming, so I\u2019ll split the middle and say \u201cthe easiest conference game\u201d and book that every year.<\/p>\n Sammy Stava: Winning on Homecoming against a lesser team will always be nice, but playing a big-time program has more of an upside. Win or lose, this sets up to be a big recruiting weekend, and great atmosphere always helps with that.<\/p>\n Florida has become one of the SEC\u2019s punching bags in the past decade, but they seem to be recovering quickly under Jon Sumrall. Are the Gators back\u2026 or is this a false dawn?<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a>Mizzou\u2019s first Homecoming in 1911 came in the middle of a national moment for Columbia, Mo. At the time, Champ Clark had recently become Speaker of the House, representing the defunct 9th district of Missouri, which covered a large swath of the state\u2026 including Columbia!Eli Drinkwitz is still trying to figure the month of October out. Despite his overall 49-30 record at Mizzou, Drinkwitz is just 11-11 in the month of October. And of his four games against Florida, his two losses? Both have come in October.A lot has been made about Drinkwitz\u2019s struggles against ranked teams, so a bit of perspective: Gary Pinkel didn\u2019t get his second ranked win at Mizzou until his seventh season at the helm, a feat Drinkwitz achieved in year three. In 15 seasons at Mizzou, Pinkel logged exactly 15 wins over Top 25 opponents. In six years and change, Drinkwitz has seven. So if we\u2019re keeping track of rates, Drinkwitz is slightly ahead of schedule.<\/a><\/p>\n