There’s changes galore at the stadium and Mike Kelly is impressed

Happy Friday, friends. Can you believe we’re almost to Game Day? Who would have thought we’d finally be here? I must say, things looked real bleak for a while in terms of returning to play, and I still have my doubts, but alas, here we are!

Things are going to look different for Game Day, and that should come as no surprise to anyone. No tailgating. Only 11,700 will be in attendance this game, which includes 1000 students, 500 visiting fans, and season tickets holders, but hey, it’s SOLD OUT, and when was the last time we could say that?!? Depending upon how it goes and the path the virus takes, Mizzou Athletic Director Jim Sterk said it’s possible more fans could be allowed in the future.

As for other changes, Dave Matter wrote an informative piece for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch about what fans can expect.

First off, you probably knew this, but NO TAILGATING. Leave your grills and tents and coolers full of cheap beer at home, y’all. And there’s no need to get to the lot at 8am, because parking will not open til 3 hours prior to kickoff.

How this will be enforced? (not well, I’m guessing)

“Someone said it’s like the no smoking rule,” Sterk said. “You give them one warning and say, ‘Hey, put that away.’ Obviously, people will talk and families will be together. We want it to be a safe environment. Where we can really dictate is no tents, no grills, those kinds of things where people then would gather. There’ll be smaller groups and at any certain time that might happen but ... if we see something we will encourage them to to break up and move along.”

To encourage people to move it along and get inside the stadium, they will be offering some half-priced concession items to get people moving along. One question- does this include beer? Will they be selling beer this season?

To prevent possible cross-contamination of crowds, attendees will enter and exit the stadium through specific zones listed on their tickets, and are asked to only use the restrooms and concession stands that correspond to their zone. Again, is there beer being sold in my zone?

I’ll report back next week with how different it feels this year! I’m not a football season ticket holder, by the way. A friend of mine (Hi, Robert!) is a season ticket holder and lives out of state and very graciously offers his tickets to me when he’s not using them or no one else has claimed them. Lucky me!

In other football news, Mike Kelly, voice of the Tigers, made an appearance on 101 ESPN’s Karakker & Smallmon on Wednesday, and he had some great things to say about Drink and his staff, calling them a really solid teaching staff. He also mentioned that they will not be outworked, especially in regards to recruiting. Check it out. Mike is always a pleasure to listen to, and it’s a short interview— about 12 minutes.

On to the links! Happy Game Day Eve to you all!

No “other” news this week. Since we’re getting into actual sports season around here, I might cut back on that or eliminate it going forward. We’ll see how my life schedule works out and if I have time to add the other stuff in when I find something I especially liked.

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Yesterday at Rock M

• Sammy did a Q&A with Roll Bama Roll’s Brent Taylor, who did not hold back in terms of throwing shade at other blue bloods.
• Number 1 in the 20 for 20 is here, and Nate wrote about 2007’s Armageddon at Arrowhead. Poor kansas... LOL.
• Aaron analyzed three matchups he’s looking at in the game this weekend. I’m excited about this series, as he’s going to do it for each game.
• Coming up: A LOT! We’ll have uniform reveals, pregamin’ (featuring ME.. and others), and so much more.

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More Links:

Football/SEC/CFB Landscape

• St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Dave said Mizzou’s defense is braced for impact with Alabama’s passing attack. With a bit of Mizzou history for you, Bennett Durando wrote about the last time Missouri DID beat Bama... 1975.
• KC Star: Souichi wrote about how Mizzou’s O-Line has gotten close despite Covid concerns.
• Columbia Tribune: In Blum’s Banter, Eric Blum wrote about how the Tigers face a tall order against the Crimson tide.
• Saturday Down South: Christian McDonald wrote about how Faurot Field will host two of the nation’s best linebackers on Saturday, and one of them is a Tiger... The other is Dylan Moses.
• PowerMizzou (free): Mitchell detailed how Kobie Whiteside is working to enact change. Gabe & Mitchell were back with new hot taeks in their Blowing Smoke Presented by Weston Tobacco series.
• Going to the game on Saturday? Or a game this season? If so, listen to this podcast from Associate AD for Facility Operation Tony Wirkus!
• The Maneater: Jack Soble took care of conducting an opponent scout on Alabama. Verdict? They’re good.
• WELL... I think Alabama is prepared.

• Welcome back, PAC-12. (Link to story from ESPN)
• USA Today: Dan Wolken wrote an opinion piece about expanding the College Football Playoff in this unprecedented season.
• Damn, Mizzou Athletics’ photographers are awesome, and this definitely gets me hyped up for the game.

Other Mizzou Sports/Mizzou-centric News

• St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Dave was back with a new weekly chat (which I haven’t read yet), so let me know how it is, Dad.. I know you always read them the same day.
• Can’t wait for some hoops!!! We’ve got a lot of returning production, and I think this year is going to be a good one; don’t @ me.

• Wednesday was a beautiful day for a baseball scrimmage!

• Robin Pingeton’s squad would like to remind you that there is only one week left to request and renew your season tickets!

• Welcome back, Mike Middleton, who is stepping into a new role in the UM system. (more on this in the press release)

Mizzou in the Pros News

• Love to see this specifically. Don’t love to see the loss though, Nuggets. They are now down 3-1... AGAIN... and I’m not sure I see them getting out of the this one. Mike played 21 minutes, shooting 5-8 from the field, including 50% from three, with 8 defensive rebounds.

• Chad Jensen of Sports Illustrated said the Broncos will not place QB Few Lock on the Injured Reserve list. I like that they are optimistic about his injury. (crosses fingers)
• Pete Smith of Sports Illustrated wrote about Sheldon Richardson’s dominance against the Bengals and asked, will he keep it up?
• InsidetheStar.com’s staff asked if the Cowboys’ Aldon Smith will win the Comeback Player of the Year award, and analyzed his early competition.
• If you’re looking to sign up for ESPN+, Rock M Nation now has an affiliate link: click Here for ESPN+ Now! (** RockMNation has affiliate partnerships. These do not influence editorial content, though RockMNation may earn commissions for products purchased via affiliate links.**)