No. No. 15 Alabama easily cruised past No. 21 Missouri, 34-0.
The Crimson Tide put the game away in the third quarter when Jalen Milroe bounced right and scored a nine-yard touchdown for a 20-0 lead.
To be fair, the game was probably over by halftime as Missouri’s offense once again struggled without QB Brady Cook. The senior entered the game despite suffering a high ankle sprain against Auburn a week ago, but he injured his right throwing hand during the first half when he hit that hand on a player’s helmet twice on a follow-up play.
Just as he was against Auburn, Cook was replaced by backup QB Drew Pyne. And Pyne struggled again. He threw an interception in the second quarter on his first pass of the game when he simply didn’t see Alabama’s Malachi Moore, then threw another pick after Milroe’s TD when safety Bray Hubbard read his eyes and made an easy interception.
The win was critical to Alabama’s hopes of returning to the SEC title game. A third conference loss would have placed Alabama behind 10 other teams in the conference standings.
Milroe finished the game 16 of 26 passing for 215 yards and had 11 carries for 50 yards and a TD. The Crimson Tide punished Missouri on the ground, rushing for four scores.
Missouri’s very, very slim CFP odds
Cook missed most of the first three quarters of the Auburn game before returning to lead the Tigers to a 21-17 win with two TD passes. In his absence, Pyne was just 10 of 21, good for 78 yards.
On Saturday Pyne was even worse. He threw three interceptions and relegated Missouri to keeping the ball on the ground in the fourth quarter.
Missouri, which also played without league leader Nate Noel, has a bye in Week 10, before a schedule that doesn’t feature ranked teams. There is a legitimate path to a 10-2 season, especially if Cook’s hand injury is not serious and he is healthy enough to play.
If he doesn’t, Missouri won’t go 10-2. And even if the Tigers win, do they have enough of a resume to make the expanded playoff? The offense didn’t exactly move the ball well when Cook was on the field Saturday. And the Tigers’ other loss was a blowout in College Station against No. 13 Texas A&M earlier this month.
Without a signature win and two big losses, it’s hard to imagine the playoff committee paying Missouri much attention even if the Tigers remain undefeated in October.
