Mizzou Links: Elite defenses, bubble screens, good health

What's On - Rock M Radio BONUS ROUND

Jack and Sam sat down with Rock M Nation's own HHKB Chris for a roundtable discussion about the upcoming basketball season.

Tune in for the Ebola jokes, stay for the professional hockey.

WE have a defense

I suspect there will be a "Grade the Defense" post up later. How convenient.

Stat Spotlight: Is This the Best MU Defense Gary Pinkel's Ever Had? David Morrison

This year's defense ranks in the top three of all Pinkel defenses in half of the categories that interest us: yards per game, sacks per game and passes per sack (all first), points per game and yards per pass (second) and yards per game and passer rating against (third).

Pinkel understands targeting call on Webb - David Morrison

Missouri Coach Gary Pinkel sent the play in which Braylon Webb, his senior starting safety, was ejected for targeting in the fourth quarter for his hit on Kentucky wideout Javess Blue on Saturday to the Southeastern Conference office for clarification.

PowerMizzou.com - Powered Up: Pinkel's Best Yet?

But the fact that I termed this Pinkel's best coaching job isn't just that his team has managed to come back from those calamities and lead the division. It's how they've done it. Pinkel's best teams at Missouri have been complete teams. Nearly all of his teams have been able to move the football and put up points. In the years where he's paired that with a good defense (2007, 2013, specifically), the Tigers have been among the nation's elite. The one season where the defense was decidedly better than the offense--the 2004 team led the Big 12 in total defense, but didn't score very often--ended in a losing record. This year is different.

PowerMizzou.com - Off the Edge with Brad Madison

Those that win in November will be remembered. I have heard those words come out of Coach Pinkel's mouth more times than I can remember, and they are true. He doesn't just preach that message when November gets here either, it is something you will hear from the beginning of camp.

Smart Football

I wanted to do more with this, and perhaps I still will, but I highly recommend checking this out if you want to learn a bit more about various terms and concepts in college football.

The Smart Football Glossary | Smart Football

Bubble Screen: A bubble screen is a screen pass thrown behind the line of scrimmage to a receiver who runs an "arc" or "bubble" path towards the sideline while one or more other receivers block for him. Bubble screens are constraint plays and thus should only be thrown if the offense has a numerical advantage — three receivers versus two defenders, for example. The bubble screen is not, however, every every quick receiver screen. If the receiver doesn’t "bubble" his route, it’s a different play — a "now" or "fast" screen — but it’s not a bubble screen.

Hoops: J3 Back, Searching for Scoring

Williams expected to play in exhibition against UMSL - Steve Walentik

Williams suffered a slight tear of the meniscus in his right knee in September, and the Tigers have been taking a cautious approach with his recovery, including holding him out of the team’s first exhibition game against William Jewell last week.

MU searching for scoring entering Anderson's first season - Steve Walentik

Mizzou continues focus on defense – The Maneater

Mizzou will mainly play man-to-man defense, according to Anderson, but the coach isn’t afraid to throw in some zone. Anderson said the Tigers have been working on a zone defense in practice, mainly for the offense to gain experience play against it, but he intends to use it at some point in the season. "We’re doing some multiple zone stuff, too," Anderson said. "Not just one zone, we have a couple (zone strategies) and some three-quarter court stuff. We’re still slow, but we’re moving. I think our guys have done a good job of catching on."

Report: NCAA Investigating Southern Miss During Tyndall Era - Rocky Top Talk

Tyndall landing Clarke was a great start to recruiting and what we hoped would be re-loading the Vol basketball program.  His loss hurts, to be sure, but there is the potential for even greater damage to be done here if Tyndall is found responsible in this investigation.  Tennessee just danced with the NCAA at the end of Bruce Pearl's tenure, which ultimately and famously cost Pearl his job.  Now Pearl is at Auburn, Cuonzo Martin is at Cal, and Donnie Tyndall could be in trouble and he hasn't coached a game yet.

Women's Hoops

Eye's first-half surge helps MU women win exhibition - Blake Toppmeyer

Morgan Eye’s left knee is improving. Her 3-point shot, as evidenced Wednesday night, is as good as ever.

Notes:

Check back frequently today as we have another SEC team preview, another Mizzou player preview, part two of our Wrestling review and at some point Bill will want you to grade Mizzou's defense through these first nine games.