Mizzou’s week three depth chart takeaways

Missouri released its third unofficial depth chart Tuesday following a nail-biting victory over Middle Tennessee State. The first depth, of course, is always huge as it is the first one. The second depth chart wrapped up a quarterbacks battle, so what does week three provide us? Drumroll....

That’s right, the depth chart for this week see’s no changes heading into a tough matchup against No. 15 Kansas State, but let’s dive into it.

No offensive line changes despite concerns, but they could still be coming

After Missouri’s victory over MTSU, Eli Drinkwitz, despite being victorious, was not really impressed with the offensive performance. He specifically noted that “there’s a good probability there’s gonna be some personal changes,” after giving up multiple sacks to the Blue Raiders defense.

But, on Tuesday, Drinkwitz seemed to contradict that statement, as shown on the depth chart. He is actually encouraged by four of five of his five starting offensive linemen Connor Tollison, Javon Foster, and Xavier Delgado, while being impressed with the progression of Armand Membou. The only position along the front five that is up for competition is at the right guard competition, where Marcellus Johnson will likely get an opportunity, as well as E.J Ndoma-Ogar and Logan Reichert down the line, but as of now, the starting position still belongs to Houston transfer Cam’Ron Johnson.

No special team changes despite struggles

Through two weeks, Harrison Mevis has missed two field goals, an extra point, and another extra point that was saved by a defensive penalty on South Dakota. While it’s quick to blame the kicker for the miscues, Drinkwitz notes that it’s not entirely on Mevis.

“A lot went wrong,” Drinkwitz said. “Our holder double-clutched the hold, which I think was the No. 1 issue. We had penetration on the right side, but I think if we have a clean hold it’s a non-factor.”

Despite this, Luke Bauer remains the holder. If Mevis continues to struggle, it will be interesting to see if changes are eventually made. Brady Cook originally started off as the first team placeholder to start fall camp.

Chad Bailey update

At the middle or mike linebacker position, Chuck Hicks and Dameon Wilson sill are listed at the top of the depth chart. This means that Chad Bailey will likely not see action this week against Kansas State. But, the progress for Bailey is positive, according to Drinkwitz. He got back into individual drills on Thursday and Friday and went through the pregame routine against MTSU. He fully participated in today’s practice to test and see where he’s at.

“We’ll never put our players in jeopardy,” Drinkwitz said. “But, if he’s ready then we’ll see if he can give us a couple of series.”

Offensive staff sticking with Cody Schrader as the No. 1 running back

The offensive staff is still committed to Cody Schrader managing most of the workload at the running back position. Schrader leads the Tigers in carries and yards, but it leads to the question of if whether Nathaniel Peat will ever get the “or” designation. Peat totaled 100 yards and a score on just 11 touches last Saturday, and postgame, Drinkwitz said that the offensive staff needs to find ways for him to get more involved after he didn’t have a single carry in the second half.