Best Mizzou Duos: We might never see a better deep ball than Drew Lock to Emanuel Hall

There aren’t many things in sports that bring me more joy than watching a quarterback throw the perfect deep ball to an explosive wide receiver who knows how to track the ball in the air.

We saw that exact scenario play out repeatedly in Drew Lock’s final two years at Mizzou with Emanuel Hall.

There are more productive quarterback to wide receiver duos in Mizzou history. And it’s hard to argue this was a “consistent” duo, given Hall’s injury history.

But would be hard pressed to find a more explosive duo than Lock to Hall.

Emanuel Hall in his final two years on campus:

• 70 receptions
• 1,645 yards (23.5 yards per reception)
• 14 receiving touchdowns

The only SEC receiver in the last 20 years to average more yards per reception than Emanuel Hall is former Auburn wide receiver Sammie Coates (min. 60 receptions).

It’s not just Hall’s impressive productivity, though. It’s also the way Lock performed when Hall was in the lineup vs. when Hall was out of the lineup.

• 17 games in 2017-2018 with Emanuel Hall: 363/564 (64%), 5,527 passing yards (9.8 YPA), 61 touchdowns, 12 interceptions
• 9 games in 2017-2018 without Emanuel Hall: 154/292 (53%), 1,935 passing yards (6.6 YPA), 11 touchdowns, 9 interceptions

With Hall in the lineup, Lock was one of the most productive quarterbacks in the country. When he was sidelined, he became human.

It’s rare for such a perfect blend of skills to arrive on campus at the same time. Lock arrived at Mizzou with a legitimate blue chip skill; he had a cannon for an arm, and he wasn’t afraid to use it. Pair that with one of the best deep threats in the country, and what you saw was beautiful to watch.

We have seen and will continue to see quarterback and wide receiver combinations who post bigger numbers than Lock and Hall. But I’m not sure I’ll ever see a quarterback, wide receiver combination in a Mizzou uniform who put together more big plays than Lock to Hall.