# 2019 Missouri Tigers football team

The 2019 Missouri Tigers football team represented the University of Missouri in the 2019 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Tigers played their home games at Faurot Field as members of the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference. The Tigers were led by fourth-year head coach Barry Odom in his final season with the team.
On January 31, 2019, the Tigers received a postseason ban from the NCAA for the 2019 season due to academic misconduct and providing extra benefits. The school also was placed on three years' probation and had scholarships reduced. Missouri immediately appealed the decision, but the appeal was denied.
On November 30, 2019, a day after the Tigers' win against Arkansas, fourth-year head coach Barry Odom was fired. He finished at Missouri with a record of 25–25, going 13–19 in SEC play.

## Offseason
### Recruiting

College recruiting information (2019) :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Connor Bazelak QB-PP | Kettering, Ohio | Archbishop Alter High School | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 207 lb (94 kg) | Jun 17, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 82 |||||||
| Jalani Williams S | St. Louis, Missouri | Parkway North High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | Nov 16, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 80 |||||||
| Jack Buford OL | Chicago, Illinois | Luther High School North | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 300 lb (140 kg) | Jun 6, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 80 |||||||
| C. J. Boone WR | St. Louis, Missouri | Parkway North High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 173 lb (78 kg) | Sep 15, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 80 |||||||
| Anthony Watkins RB | Fort Worth, Texas | South Hills High School | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Jun 9, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 80 |||||||
| Ishmael Burdine S | Slidell, Louisiana | Slidell High School | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 177 lb (80 kg) | Oct 12, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 80 |||||||
| Isaiah McGuire DE | Tulsa, Oklahoma | Union High School | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 260 lb (120 kg) | Dec 18, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 78 |||||||
| Martez Manuel S | Columbia, Missouri | Rock Bridge High School | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | Jul 29, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 78 |||||||
| Luke Griffin OL | Chatsworth, Georgia | North Murray High School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 280 lb (130 kg) | Dec 3, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 78 |||||||
| Maurice Massey WR | Kirkwood, Missouri | Kirkwood High School | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | Aug 3, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 78 |||||||
| Darius Robinson DE | Canton, Michigan | Canton High School | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 249 lb (113 kg) | Dec 19, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 77 |||||||
| Jamie Pettway LB | Albany, Georgia | Westover High School | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 230 lb (100 kg) | Dec 19, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 77 |||||||
| Z'Core Brooks DE | Dallas, Texas | Woodrow Wilson High School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 218 lb (99 kg) | Feb 6, 2019 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 76 |||||||
| Stacy Brown S | Duncanville, Texas | Duncanville High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 194 lb (88 kg) | Oct 16, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 75 |||||||
| Aidan Harrison S | Flushing, Michigan | Flushing High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | Mar 20, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 75 |||||||
| Devin Nicholson LB | Detroit, Michigan | Cass Technical High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | Dec 19, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 74 |||||||
| Thalen Robinson OL | Arlington, Texas | Bowie High School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 315 lb (143 kg) | Aug 2, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 74 |||||||
| Chris Shearin CB | Bradenton, Florida | IMG Academy | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | 177 lb (80 kg) | Jul 16, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 74 |||||||
| Niko Hea TE | St. Louis, Missouri | Christian Brothers College High School | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 220 lb (100 kg) | Dec 17, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 73 |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Rivals: 35 247Sports: 37 ESPN: 33 |||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Rivals commits". Rivals.com. Retrieved April 19, 2019. "ESPN commits". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 19, 2019. "2019 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved April 19, 2019. "247Sports commits". 247sports.com. Retrieved April 19, 2019. |||||||
Incoming
| Name | No. | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Prev. school |
| Kelly Bryant | #7 | QB | 6'3" | 225 | 2019 | Calhoun Falls, South Carolina | Clemson |
| Chris Daniels | #13 | DT | 6'4" | 314 | 2019 | Euless, Texas | Texas |
| Jonathan Nance | #4 | WR | 6'0" | 190 | 2019 | Perkinston, Mississippi | Arkansas |
| Shawn Robinson | #3 | QB | 6'2" | 225 | 2019 | DeSoto, Texas | TCU |

## NCAA investigation

On January 31, 2019, the NCAA gave the Tigers a postseason ban for the 2019 season. The Tigers' baseball and softball teams were also declared ineligible for postseason play. The NCAA found that a former University of Missouri tutor violated NCAA bylaws by completing coursework for 12 student athletes in football, baseball, and softball. The tutor or any of the athletes involved in the investigation were not named in the NCAA's report. The tutor received a 10-year show-cause for her involvement in the penalties. The NCAA issued the following penalties:
* three years of probation.
* a 10-year show-cause order for the former tutor. During that period, any NCAA member school employing the tutor must restrict her from any athletically related duties.
* a 2018–19 postseason ban for the baseball and softball programs.
* a 2019–20 postseason ban for the football program.
* a vacation of records in which football, baseball and, softball student-athletes competed while ineligible. The university must provide a written report containing the matches impacted to the NCAA media coordination and statistics staff within 45 days of the public decision release.
* a five percent reduction in the amount of scholarships in each of the football, baseball, and softball programs during the 2019–20 academic year.
* Recruiting restrictions for each of the football, baseball, and softball programs during the 2019–20 academic year, including: a seven-week ban on unofficial visits, a 12.5 percent reduction in official visits, a seven-week ban on recruiting communications, a seven-week ban on all off-campus recruiting contacts and evaluations, a 12.5 percent reduction in recruiting-person or evaluation days.
* a disassociation of the tutor.
* a fine of $5,000 plus one percent of each of the football, baseball, and softball budgets.
The penalties were upheld after an appeal by Missouri.

## Preseason
### SEC media poll

The 2019 SEC Media Days were held July 15–18 in Birmingham, Alabama. In the preseason media poll, Missouri was projected to finish in third in the East Division.
Media poll (East Division) :
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
| 1 | Georgia | 1789 (233) |
| 2 | Florida | 1499 (21) |
| 3 | Missouri | 1149 (3) |
| 4 | South Carolina | 883 (1) |
| 5 | Tennessee | 804 (1) |
| 6 | Kentucky | 798 (1) |
| 7 | Vanderbilt | 358 |

### Preseason All-SEC teams

The Tigers had five players selected to the preseason all-SEC teams.

### Spring game

The 2019 Tigers football spring game took place in Columbia, Missouri on April 13, 2019, at 3 p.m. CST with the Mizzou Black beating the Mizzou Gold 21–3. The leading rusher for the game was Larry Rountree III with 53 rushing yards and 1 touchdown. Kelly Bryant was the leading passer, completing 12 of 17 passes for 150 yards.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| August 31 | 6:30 p.m. | at Wyoming* | | War Memorial StadiumLaramie, WY | CBSSN | L 31–37 | 30,037 |
| September 7 | 11:00 a.m. | West Virginia* | | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO (SEC Nation) | ESPN2 | W 38–7 | 51,215 |
| September 14 | 6:30 p.m. | No. 19 (FCS) Southeast Missouri State* | | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO | SECN Alt. | W 50–0 | 56,620 |
| September 21 | 3:00 p.m. | South Carolina | | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO | SECN Alt. | W 34–14 | 52,012 |
| October 5 | 3:00 p.m. | Troy* | | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO | SECN | W 42–10 | 50,023 |
| October 12 | 6:00 p.m. | Ole Miss | | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO | ESPN2 | W 38–27 | 62,621 |
| October 19 | 3:00 p.m. | at Vanderbilt | No. 22 | Vanderbilt StadiumNashville, TN | SECN | L 14–21 | 23,900 |
| October 26 | 6:30 p.m. | at Kentucky | | Kroger FieldLexington, KY | SECN | L 7–29 | 48,446 |
| November 9 | 6:30 p.m. | at No. 6 Georgia | | Sanford StadiumAthens, GA | ESPN | L 0–27 | 92,746 |
| November 16 | 11:00 a.m. | No. 11 Florida | | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO | CBS | L 6–23 | 57,280 |
| November 23 | 6:30 p.m. | Tennessee | | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO | SECN | L 20–24 | 49,348 |
| November 29 | 1:30 p.m. | at Arkansas | | War Memorial StadiumLittle Rock, AR (Battle Line Rivalry) | CBS | W 24–14 | 33,961 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll and CFP Rankings after November 5 released prior to gameAll times are in Central time ||||||||
    Schedule Source:

## Game summaries
### At Wyoming

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Tigers | 14 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 31 |
| Cowboys | 0 | 27 | 7 | 3 | 37 |
Scoring summary :
| Quarter | Time | Drive | Drive | Drive | Team | Scoring information | Score | Score |
| Quarter | Time | Plays | Yards | TOP | Team | Scoring information | MIZ | WYO |
| 1 | 9:04 | 12 | 65 | 4:31 | MIZ | Jonathan Nance 3-yard touchdown reception from Kelly Bryant, Tucker McCann kick good | 7 | 0 |
| 1 | 3:19 | 11 | 74 | 4:27 | MIZ | Larry Rountree III 2-yard touchdown run, Tucker McCann kick good | 14 | 0 |
| 2 | 9:09 | 12 | 53 | 5:37 | WYO | 19-yard field goal by Cooper Rothe | 14 | 3 |
| 2 | 7:54 | 3 | 5 | 1:15 | WYO | Fumble recovery returned 30 yards for touchdown by C.J. Coldon, Cooper Rothe kick good | 14 | 10 |
| 2 | 6:15 | 2 | 61 | 0:14 | WYO | Xazavian Valladay 61-yard touchdown run, Cooper Rothe kick good | 14 | 17 |
| 2 | 2:11 | 13 | 70 | 4:04 | MIZ | 22-yard field goal by Tucker McCann | 17 | 17 |
| 2 | 1:58 | 1 | 75 | 0:13 | WYO | Sean Chambers 75-yard touchdown run, Cooper Rothe kick good | 17 | 24 |
| 2 | 0:00 | 1 | 0 | 0:00 | WYO | 23-yard field goal by Cooper Rothe | 17 | 27 |
| 3 | 4:21 | 11 | 80 | 5:43 | WYO | Trey Smith 1-yard touchdown run, Cooper Rothe kick good | 17 | 34 |
| 4 | 13:29 | 4 | 29 | 1:10 | MIZ | Tyler Badie 1-yard touchdown run, Tucker McCann kick good | 24 | 34 |
| 4 | 7:01 | 9 | 38 | 3:24 | WYO | 20-yard field goal by Cooper Rothe | 24 | 37 |
| 4 | 6:19 | 3 | 75 | 0:42 | MIZ | Jonathan Nance 53-yard touchdown reception from Kelly Bryant, Tucker McCann kick good | 31 | 37 |
| "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | 31 | 37 |
* Passing leaders: Sean Chambers (WYO): 6–16, 92 YDS; Kelly Bryant (MIZ): 31–48, 423 YDS, 2 TD, 1 INT
* Rushing leaders: Sean Chambers (WYO): 12 CAR, 120 YDS, 1 TD; Tyler Badie (MIZ): 16 CAR, 53 YDS, 1 TD
* Receiving leaders: Raghib Ismail Jr. (WYO): 2 REC, 42 YDS; Albert Okwuegbunam (MIZ): 3 REC, 72 YDS

### West Virginia

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Mountaineers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Tigers | 10 | 21 | 0 | 7 | 38 |

### Southeast Missouri State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 19 Redhawks | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tigers | 27 | 10 | 10 | 3 | 50 |

### South Carolina

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Gamecocks | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
| Tigers | 7 | 10 | 14 | 3 | 34 |

### Troy

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Trojans | 7 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10 |
| Tigers | 21 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 42 |

### Ole Miss

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Rebels | 7 | 0 | 7 | 13 | 27 |
| Tigers | 3 | 9 | 23 | 3 | 38 |

### At Vanderbilt

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 22 Tigers | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
| Commodores | 0 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 21 |

### At Kentucky

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Tigers | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| Wildcats | 0 | 22 | 0 | 7 | 29 |

### At Georgia

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Tigers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| No. 6 Bulldogs | 7 | 9 | 3 | 8 | 27 |

### Florida

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 11 Florida | 3 | 3 | 14 | 3 | 23 |
| Missouri | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 6 |
Scoring summary :
| Quarter | Time | Drive | Drive | Drive | Team | Scoring information | Score | Score |
| Quarter | Time | Plays | Yards | TOP | Team | Scoring information | Florida | Missouri |
| 1 | 12:11 | 7 | 45 | 2:49 | Florida | 47-yard field goal by Evan McPherson | 3 | 0 |
| 2 | 9:36 | 6 | 71 | 2:33 | Missouri | 37-yard field goal by Tucker McCann | 3 | 3 |
| 2 | 7:34 | 6 | 53 | 2:02 | Florida | 39-yard field goal by Evan McPherson | 6 | 3 |
| 3 | 11:56 | 3 | 60 | 1:06 | Florida | Josh Hammond 34-yard touchdown reception from Kyle Trask, Evan McPherson kick good | 13 | 3 |
| 3 | 6:49 | 7 | 36 | 2:22 | Missouri | 28-yard field goal by Tucker McCann | 13 | 6 |
| 3 | 2:58 | 8 | 75 | 3:51 | Florida | La'Mical Perine 15-yard touchdown reception from Kyle Trask, Evan McPherson kick good | 20 | 6 |
| 4 | 10:37 | 8 | 61 | 3:03 | Florida | 22-yard field goal by Evan McPherson | 23 | 6 |
| "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | 23 | 6 |

### Tennessee

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Tennessee | 0 | 17 | 7 | 0 | 24 |
| Missouri | 3 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 20 |

### At Arkansas

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Tigers | 0 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 24 |
| Razorbacks | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
at War Memorial Stadium • Little Rock, Arkansas
* Date: Friday, November 29, 2019
* Game time: 1:30 p.m. CDT
* Game weather: Cloudy • Temperature: 49 °F (9 °C) • Wind: E 6 mph
* Game attendance: 33,961
* Referee: John McDaid
* TV announcers (CBS): Carter Blackburn (play-by-play), Aaron Taylor and Rick Neuheisel (color), John Schriffen (sideline)
* Pregame line: Missouri –14½ • Odds to win: Missouri 82.5%
| Statistics | MIZ | ARK |
| First downs | 20 | 16 |
| Total yards | 329 | 242 |
| Rushes–yards | 47–144 | 31–165 |
| Passing yards | 185 | 77 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 15–23–1 | 11–31–0 |
| Time of possession | 31:30 | 29:30 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Missouri | Passing | Taylor Powell | 8/14, 105 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT |
| Missouri | Rushing | Larry Rountree III | 24 carries, 88 yards |
| Missouri | Receiving | Barre Banister | 6 receptions, 60 yards |
| Arkansas | Passing | Jack Lindsey | 10/26, 75 yards, 2 TD |
| Arkansas | Rushing | Rakeem Boyd | 21 carries, 95 yards |
| Arkansas | Receiving | Michael Woods II | 2 receptions, 26 yards |

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | Final |
| AP | RV | — | — | — | RV | RV | RV | 22 | RV | — | — | — | — | — | — | | |
| Coaches | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | |
| CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | — | — | — | — | — | | Not released |

## Players drafted into the NFL

| Round | Pick | Player | Position | NFL Club |
| 3 | 88 | Jordan Elliott | DT | Cleveland Browns |
| 4 | 118 | Albert Okwuegbunam | TE | Denver Broncos |