# 2008 Missouri Tigers football team

The 2008 Missouri Tigers football team represented the University of Missouri in the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Gary Pinkel, who returned in his eighth season with Mizzou, and played their home games at Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium.
Quarterback Chase Daniel returned for his final year of eligibility and led the Tigers to a second appearance in the Big 12 Championship Game.

## Recruits

Key Losses:
* SS Cornelius "Pig" Brown
* WR William Franklin
* OT Tyler Luellen
* TE Martin Rucker
* C Adam Spieker
* RB Tony Temple
Five junior Tigers will return for the 2008 season after turning down the NFL Draft, including QB Chase Daniel, TE Chase Coffman, SS William Moore, Delaware Stryker Sulak and DT Ziggy Hood. The Tigers will have 16 returning starters, 10 on defense and six on offense.
Redshirt freshman DE John Stull was removed from the team on January 11, 2008, after being arrested on drug charges.
22 Recruits list.
College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | 40$^‡$ | Commit date |
| Jimmy Burge DT | Houston, Texas | Stratford HS | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 275 lb (125 kg) | 5.10 | Jun 19, 2007 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 71 |||||||
| Taylor Davis OT | Plano, Texas | Prestonwood Christian | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 261 lb (118 kg) | 5.66 | Aug 3, 2007 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 70 |||||||
| Will Ebner MLB | Friendswood, Texas | Friendswood HS | 6 ft 0.5 in (1.84 m) | 225 lb (102 kg) | 4.61 | Dec 17, 2007 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 40 |||||||
| Kip Edwards CB | Arlington, Texas | Bowie HS | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | 4.53 | Oct 27, 2007 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 40 |||||||
| Michael Egnew WR | Plainview, Texas | Plainview HS | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | N/A | Jun 10, 2007 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 40 |||||||
| Blaine Gabbert QB | Ballwin, Missouri | Parkway West HS | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 230 lb (100 kg) | 4.60 | Nov 10, 2007 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 82 |||||||
| Zaviar Gooden S | Pflugerville, Texas | Pflugerville HS | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | 4.50 | Jan 22, 2008 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 40 |||||||
| Dan Hoch OT | Harlan, Iowa | Harlan Community HS | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 315 lb (143 kg) | 5.21 | Jan 8, 2008 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 76 |||||||
| Kenji Jackson S | Mansfield, Texas | Mansfield HS | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | N/A | Dec 18, 2007 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 79 |||||||
| Daniel Jackson OT | Gilmer, Texas | Gilmer HS | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 270 lb (120 kg) | N/A | Sep 10, 2007 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 74 |||||||
| Andrew Jones TE | Smithville, Missouri | Smithville HS | 6 ft 4.5 in (1.94 m) | 234 lb (106 kg) | 4.78 | Mar 5, 2007 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 79 |||||||
| Wes Kemp WR | St. Louis, Missouri | DeSmet Jesuit HS | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 223 lb (101 kg) | 4.60 | Jan 7, 2008 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 73 |||||||
| Brad Madison DE | Bethany, Missouri | South Harrison HS | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 235 lb (107 kg) | N/A | Mar 12, 2007 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 75 |||||||
| Marcus Malbrough DE | Beaumont, Texas | West Brook Sr. HS | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 230 lb (100 kg) | N/A | Jan 28, 2008 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 40 |||||||
| Gahn McGaffie RB | Galena Park, Texas | Galena Park HS | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) | N/A | Jun 15, 2007 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 79 |||||||
| Travis Ruth DT | Jefferson City, Missouri | Jefferson City HS | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 280 lb (130 kg) | N/A | Feb 7, 2007 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 40 |||||||
| Aldon Smith DE | Raytown, Missouri | Raytown HS | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 230 lb (100 kg) | N/A | Oct 7, 2007 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 65 |||||||
| Jacquies Smith DE | Dallas, Texas | South Oak Cliff HS | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 225 lb (102 kg) | N/A | Jan 24, 2008 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 75 |||||||
| Robert Steeples CB | St. Louis, Missouri | DeSmet Jesuit HS | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | 4.53 | Jun 16, 2007 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 77 |||||||
| Drew Temple RB | Kansas City, Missouri | Rockhurst HS | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | N/A | Jul 20, 2007 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 69 |||||||
| George White MLB | Cincinnati, Ohio | Harmony Community School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 252 lb (114 kg) | N/A | Dec 18, 2007 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 75 |||||||
| Rolandis Woodland WR | Cincinnati, Ohio | Harmony Community School | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | N/A | Feb 7, 2007 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 40 |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 31 Rivals: 25 |||||||
| ‡ Refers to 40 yard dash Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height, weight and 40 time. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Missouri 2008 Football Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 1, 2009. "2008 Missouri Commits". Scout.com. Retrieved August 1, 2009. "2008 Player Commitments – Missouri". ESPN.com. Retrieved August 1, 2009. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved August 1, 2009. "2008 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 1, 2009. |||||||
Following their Cotton Bowl Classic victory, Mizzou landed a number of previously committed recruits from the state of Missouri. QB Blaine Gabbert from Ballwin, Missouri is the No. 1 rated prep player in the state of Missouri, and No. 1 rated pro-style quarterback in his recruiting class. and the Tigers landed him after he had previously committed to Nebraska. According to Rivals rankings, the Tigers also landed WR Wes Kemp (#5), TE Andrew Jones (#3), DE Alden Smith (#6) and RB Drew Temple (#11), brother of former Tigers player Tony Temple all from in-state high schools.
From out of state, the Tigers landed OT Dan Hoch, who like Gabbert previously committed to Nebraska.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| August 30 | 7:30 p.m. | vs. No. 20 Illinois* | No. 6 | Edward Jones DomeSt. Louis, MO (rivalry) | ESPN | W 52–42 | 66,441 |
| September 6 | 6:00 p.m. | Southeast Missouri State* | No. 6 | Faurot FieldColumbia, Missouri | FSN PPV | W 52–3 | 62,305 |
| September 13 | 11:30 a.m. | Nevada* | No. 6 | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO | FSN | W 69–17 | 54,202 |
| September 20 | 1:00 p.m. | Buffalo* | No. 5 | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO | | W 42–21 | 65,556 |
| October 4 | 8:00 p.m. | at Nebraska | No. 4 | Memorial StadiumLincoln, NE (rivalry) | ESPN | W 52–17 | 85,372 |
| October 11 | 7:00 p.m. | No. 17 Oklahoma State | No. 3 | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO | ESPN2 | L 23–28 | 68,349 |
| October 18 | 7:00 p.m. | at No. 1 Texas | No. 11 | Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial StadiumAustin, TX (College GameDay) | ABC | L 31–56 | 98,383 |
| October 25 | 5:30 p.m. | Colorado | No. 16 | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO | FSN | W 58–0 | 68,349 |
| November 1 | 2:00 p.m. | at Baylor | No. 14 | Floyd Casey StadiumWaco, TX | | W 31–28 | 35,142 |
| November 8 | 6:00 p.m. | Kansas State | No. 13 | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO (Senior Night) | FSN | W 41–24 | 68,349 |
| November 15 | 5:30 p.m. | at Iowa State | No. 12 | Jack Trice StadiumAmes, IA (rivalry) | FSN | W 52–20 | 46,013 |
| November 29 | 11:30 a.m. | vs. Kansas | No. 12 | Arrowhead StadiumKansas City, MO (Border War) | FSN | L 37–40 | 79,123 |
| December 6 | 7:00 p.m. | vs. No. 4 Oklahoma | No. 19 | Arrowhead StadiumKansas City, MO (Big 12 Championship Game) (rivalry) | ABC | L 21–62 | 71,004 |
| December 29 | 7:00 p.m. | vs. No. 22 Northwestern* | No. 25 | AlamodomeSan Antonio, TX (Alamo Bowl) | ESPN | W 30–23 $^{OT}$ | 55,986 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Central time ||||||||

## Game summaries
### Illinois

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| #20/19 Illinois | 6 | 7 | 15 | 14 | 42 |
| #6/7 Missouri | 7 | 24 | 14 | 7 | 52 |
In a close contest where Missouri held a big lead for most of the game, Illinois cuts it to within 10 near the end but gets no closer.

### Southeast Missouri State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Southeast Missouri State | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| #6/7 Missouri | 21 | 21 | 3 | 7 | 52 |
Missouri takes a commanding 42–0 lead over their FCS competition in their best defensive performance of the year, the first half really showcased their offensive abilities. The second half was a mere formality as Missouri's backups played the entire second half.

### Nevada

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Nevada | 7 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
| #6/6 Missouri | 17 | 21 | 21 | 10 | 69 |
Derrick Washington, Jeremy Maclin, and Jeff Wolfert scored for Missouri, and Colin Kaepernick rushed for a 1-yard touchdown for Nevada in the first quarter.
Chase Daniel passed to Jared Perry for 27 yards for a 2nd-quarter touchdown. Brett Jaekle kicked a field goal for Nevada, followed by Washington's 2-yard touchdown for Missouri. Maclin caught a pass (14 yards) from Daniel for Missouri, followed by a Kaepernick pass (42 yards) to Marko Mitchell for a Nevada touchdown.
Third quarter was all Missouri. Daniel passed to Maclin for a 49-yard touchdown, Tommy Saunders passed to Chase Coffman for a 32-yard touchdown and then Chase Paton rushed for a 3-yard touchdown. Jeff Wolfert kicked a 24-yard field goal for Missouri.

### Buffalo

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Buffalo | 7 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 21 |
| #5/5 Missouri | 10 | 10 | 13 | 9 | 42 |
Missouri looked a bit flat at times against Buffalo but still won in commanding fashion.

### At Nebraska

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| #4/3 Missouri | 14 | 17 | 21 | 0 | 52 |
| Nebraska | 7 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
Chase Daniel threw three touchdown passes, Derrick Washington ran for 139 yards and scored three times, as Missouri mopped up Nebraska for their first road win against the Cornhuskers in 30 years (1978). The Tigers never had to punt all game.
The 35-point defeat was the Huskers' most lopsided home loss in 53 years.

### Oklahoma State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| #17/17 Oklahoma State | 7 | 0 | 14 | 7 | 28 |
| #3/2 Missouri | 3 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 23 |
Oklahoma State handed Missouri their first loss as well as forced their first three and outs all year, giving teams a blueprint on how to slow down the Tigers' "video game offense" which looked unstoppable up to that point.

### At Texas

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| #11/12 Missouri | 0 | 3 | 14 | 14 | 31 |
| #1/1 Texas | 14 | 21 | 7 | 14 | 56 |
Sportscasters touted the 2005 contest with the Missouri Tigers as a showcase between two of the best dual-threat quarterbacks playing in college football, pitting Missouri quarterback Brad Smith against Vince Young of Texas. The two players combined for 582 yards total offense. Both Young and Smith led their respective team in rushing yards. Young had 108 rushing yards while Smith had 57. Young had 236 passing yards compared to Smith's 181. Texas won the game 51–20 to extend its series lead over Missouri to 15–5. The two teams did not face each other in 2006 or 2007.
Like the 2005 game, the 2008 matchup was billed as a battle between two great quarterbacks, Colt McCoy of Texas and Chase Daniel of Missouri having both been mentioned as possible Heisman trophy candidates. Texas was playing their first home game as a number-one ranked team since 1977. Missouri won their first five games of 2008 and had moved into third place in the nation before they were upset at home by the Oklahoma State Cowboys and fell to eleventh place. The Tigers came into the game with a 0–10 record against number-one ranked teams, and they had not won a football game in Austin since 1896.
To help ensure that the Longhorns did not dwell on the emotional victory over the Sooners one week earlier, the UT coaching staff called the team together and buried the TX/OU game ball in the UT practice field on the Monday before the game. The morning of the game the betting line on the morning of the game was Texas by 4+1⁄2 points; the over/under was 65. The temperature was 72 °F (22 °C) at kickoff, with clear skies. ESPN College GameDay was in Austin for the game, which set a new attendance record (UT, state of Texas, Big12 Conference) of 98,383.
Missouri won the coin toss and elected to receive the kickoff. They returned the ball to their 40 yard-line. On the first play from scrimmage, Missouri tried a reverse, but Texas dropped them for a loss and Missouri went three-and-out. Missouri had gone without a three-and-out for the whole season until having two during their loss the previous week against Oklahoma State. The Missouri punt rolled to the Texas 5-yard line. Colt McCoy led the Longhorns 95-yards for a touchdown.
Texas had the ball 5-times in the first half and scored a touchdown each time, taking a 35–0 lead. Missouri scored a field goal at the end of the first half to make the score 35–3. Texas was forced to punt on their first possession of the second half and Missouri scored a touchdown to narrow the lead to 35–10. Texas rebounded with a touchdown and Missouri was never able to cut the lead to less than 25 points. The final score was Texas-56, Missouri-31.
McCoy completed the game with 337 yards on 29-of-32 passing with two touchdowns, rushed for two more and at one point completed a school-record 17 passes in a row. His completion ratio of 79% coming into the game improved as he completed 91% of his passes in this game. His four touchdowns put him in first place for the most career touchdowns scored at Texas (82), passing Vince Young (81).
ESPN's recap of the game said, "And when McCoy dribbled the ball on the ground only to pick it up and throw a strike that kept the last drive of the half alive, he created the 'Did you just see that?' moment of the season so far. With one half of near-perfect football, Texas buried not only the remnants of the Sooners and the Tigers, but any doubt about who deserves to be No. 1. For now."

### Colorado

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Colorado | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| • Missouri | 21 | 13 | 14 | 10 | 58 |
The Tigers won their 600th game since their inception in 1890, in an overwhelming 58–0 shutout of the Buffaloes in the Tigers' Homecoming game at Faurot Field rolling up 491 total offensive yards. Chase Daniel passed for 302 yards, and the runners ran for another 189 yards. Daniel was 31-for-37 throwing five touchdowns, intercepted once. Jeremy Maclin had 11 pass receptions for 134 yards with two touchdowns. The defense was outstanding, holding Colorado to a mere 41 net yards rushing and 158 passing for only 199 total offensive yards.

### At Baylor

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| #14/14 Missouri | 14 | 7 | 0 | 10 | 31 |
| Baylor | 0 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 28 |
Missouri looked good early but barely scraped by Baylor for another flat performance in what was quickly becoming a disappointing season for the Tigers.

### Kansas State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Kansas State | 0 | 3 | 7 | 14 | 24 |
| #13/13 Missouri | 7 | 17 | 3 | 14 | 41 |
Getting back on track, Missouri routed Kansas State coasting on a commanding 24–3 halftime lead.

### At Iowa State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| #12/11 Missouri | 7 | 24 | 7 | 14 | 52 |
| Iowa State | 0 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 20 |
Iowa State put up very little resistance against the much better Missouri Tigers who played their backups for most of the second half.

### Kansas (Border Showdown in Kansas City, Missouri)

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Kansas | 3 | 16 | 7 | 14 | 40 |
| #12/11 Missouri | 0 | 10 | 13 | 14 | 37 |
On November 30, offensive coordinator Dave Christensen accepted the job as head coach for the Wyoming Cowboys in 2009.
Kansas also got their revenge for having their perfect season ruined the previous year by handing the Tigers their third loss and all but guaranteeing they wouldn't play in a BCS bowl game unless they got a win over Oklahoma.

### Oklahoma (Dr. Pepper Big 12 Championship in Kansas City, Missouri)

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| #19/17 Missouri | 0 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
| #2/4 Oklahoma | 10 | 28 | 3 | 21 | 62 |
QB Chase Daniel became the Missouri career total offense yardage leader with 13,256. He entered the game with 12,988 yards and had 268 total yards (255 passing, 13 rushing) in the game. He moved ahead of Brad Smith (13,088) and had 13,256 at halftime. Senior CB Tru Vaughns made his first career start. PK Jeff Wolfert improved his career PAT mark to a perfect 182 of 182. TE Chase Coffman recorded his 30th career touchdown reception. He was already Missouri's all-time touchdown reception leader. Former walk-on WR Tommy Saunders moved into sixth place on the MU career receptions list. He finished the game with 144 to pass current Kansas City Chiefs' Will Franklin.
Jeremy Maclin leads all of major-college football in all-purpose yards per game with 203.54 (2,646 yds. in 13 G), over 20 yards more than second-place Jahvid Best (California).
He has 1,221 receiving, 987 kickoff return, 250 rushing, and 188 punt returns yardage.
On December 11, TE Chase Coffman won the prestigious John Mackey Tight End Award as the nation's top tight end.
Through 13 games in 2008, MU's offense ranks 4th in the nation in passing (340.38 ypg), 6th in total offense (497.46 ypg), 6th in scoring (43.15 ppg) and 8th in pass efficiency (162.69 rating).
On December 12, Pinkel said the new offensive coordinator will be present quarterbacks' coach and recruiting coordinator, David Yost.

### Northwestern (16th Valero Alamo Bowl in San Antonio, Texas)

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
| #25/23 Missouri | 0 | 10 | 10 | 3 | 7 | 30 |
| #22/20 Northwestern | 7 | 3 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 23 |

## Coaching staff

| Name | Position | Years at MU | Alma mater (Year) |
| Gary Pinkel | Head coach | 8 | Kent State (1975) |
| Dave Christensen | Assistant head coach Offensive coordinator Quarterbacks Offensive line | 8 | Western Washington (1985) |
| Matt Eberflus | Associate head coach Defensive coordinator Safeties | 8 | Toledo (1993) |
| Cornell Ford | Cornerbacks | 8 | Toledo (1991) |
| Andy Hill | Wide receivers | 13 | University of Missouri (1985) |
| Brian Jones | Running backs | 8 | Connecticut (1981) |
| Craig Kuligowski | Defensive line | 8 | Toledo (1991) |
| Dave Steckel | Linebackers | 8 | Kutztown (1982) |
| Bruce Walker | Tight ends Assistant offensive line | 8 | Central Washington (1983) |
| David Yost | Quarterbacks Recruiting coordinator | 8 | Kent State (1992) |
| Barry Odom | Assistant AD for football operations | 6 | University of Missouri (1999) |
| Nick Otterbacher | Director of football recruiting | 5 | Toledo (2002) |
Coaching staff from: "Missouri Tigers - 2008 Roster". CSTV.com. Archived from the original on January 1, 2008. Retrieved December 28, 2007.

## Rankings

(as of January 9, 2009)
Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking ( ) = First-place 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 | 6 | 6 (1) | 6 (1) | 5 | 6 | 4 (1) | 3 (1) | 11 | 16 | 14 | 14 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 19 | 25 | 19 |
| Coaches | 7 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 12 | 16 | 14 | 13 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 17 | 23 | 16 |
| Harris | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 4 (1) | 4 | 11 | 16 | 14 | 13 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 18 | 24 | Not released |
| BCS | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 15 | 14 | 14 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 20 | 21 | Not released |

## Statistics

Statistics from: "Missouri Tigers – Cumulative Season Statistics". CSTV.com. December 31, 2008. Archived from the original on February 11, 2009. Retrieved January 2, 2009.

### Team

(to December 29, 2008)
| | MU | Opp |
| SCORING | 591 | 381 |
| Points per Game | 42.2 | 27.2 |
| FIRST DOWNS | 358 | 327 |
| Rushing | 100 | 110 |
| Passing | 235 | 199 |
| Penalty | 23 | 18 |
| RUSHING YARDAGE | 2,153 | 1,748 |
| Gained | 2,407 | 2,219 |
| Lost | -254 | -471 |
| Attempts | 417 | 510 |
| Avg per Rush | 5.2 | 3.4 |
| Avg. per game | 153.8 | 124.9 |
| TDs Rushing | 28 | 19 |
| PASSING YARDAGE | 4,625 | 4,013 |
| Comp-Att-Int | 404-565-18 | 374-583-14 |
| Avg per Pass | 8.2 | 6.9 |
| Avg per Catch | 11.4 | 10.7 |
| Avg. per game | 330.4 | 286.6 |
| TDs Passing | 41 | 29 |
| | MU | Opp |
| TOTAL OFFENSE | 6,778 | 5,761 |
| Total plays | 982 | 1,093 |
| Avg. per play | 6.9 | 5.3 |
| Avg. per game | 484.1 | 411.5 |
| Fumbles-Lost | 13-8 | 19-8 |
| Penalties–yards | 58-524 | 98-827 |
| Avg. per game | 37.4 | 59.1 |
| Punts–yards | 34-1,397 | 72-2,788 |
| Avg per Punt | 41.1 | 38.7 |
| Net punt avg | 37.7 | 32.9 |
| Time of Possession/Game | 26:08 | 33:31 |
| 3rd down conversions | 87/163 (53%) | 106/230 (46%) |
| 4th down conversions | 6/14 (43%) | 14/27 (52%) |
| Sacks By–yards | 33-254 | 16-94 |
| Misc. Yards | 14 | 0 |
| Touchdowns Scored | 76 | 50 |
| Field goals–attempts-Long | 20-27 (74%) | 10-14 (71%) |
| On-Side Kicks | 0-0 | 1-1 |
| Red-Zone Scores | 58-65 (89%) | 36-50 (72%) |
| Red-Zone TDs | 46-65 (71%) | 29-50 (58%) |
| PAT–attempts | 73-73 (100%) | 47-49 (96%) |
| ATTENDANCE | 387,120 | 264,910 |
| Games / Avg. per game | 6 / 64,520 | 4 / 66,228 |
| Neutral Site | | 4 / 68,138 |

#### Scores by quarter

(through December 29, 2008)
| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
| Missouri | 121 | 191 | 147 | 125 | 7 | 591 |
| Opponents | 68 | 112 | 93 | 108 | 0 | 381 |

### Offense
#### Rushing

(to December 29, 2008)
| Name | GP-GS | Att | Gain | Loss | Net | Avg | TD | Long | Avg/G |
| Derrick Washington | 14 | 177 | 1,078 | 42 | 1,036 | 5.9 | 17 | 59 | 74.0 |
| Jeremy Maclin | 14 | 40 | 306 | 13 | 293 | 7.3 | 2 | 56 | 20.9 |
| Chase Daniel | 14 | 69 | 384 | 103 | 281 | 4.1 | 1 | 48 | 20.1 |
| Jimmy Jackson | 14 | 59 | 275 | 28 | 247 | 4.2 | 6 | 37 | 17.6 |
| De'Vion Moore | 13 | 41 | 251 | 20 | 231 | 5.6 | 1 | 55 | 17.8 |
| Blaine Gabbert | 5 | 6 | 37 | 15 | 22 | 3.7 | 0 | 30 | 4.4 |
| Shawn Scott | 3 | 4 | 23 | 1 | 22 | 5.5 | 0 | 8 | 7.3 |
| Tommy Saunders | 14 | 3 | 14 | 0 | 14 | 4.7 | 0 | 8 | 1.0 |
| Jerrell Jackson | 13 | 2 | 11 | 1 | 10 | 5.0 | 0 | 11 | 0.8 |
| Chase Patton | 8 | 5 | 19 | 10 | 9 | 1.8 | 1 | 11 | 1.1 |
| Danario Alexander | 12 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 3.0 | 0 | 3 | 0.5 |
| Tyrone Reece | 2 | 3 | 3 | 5 | -2 | -0.7 | 0 | 3 | -1.0 |
| TEAM | 11 | 4 | 0 | 8 | -8 | -2.0 | 0 | 0 | -0.7 |
| Jared Perry | 14 | 2 | 0 | 8 | -8 | -4.0 | 0 | 0 | -0.6 |
| TOTAL | 14 | 417 | 2,407 | 254 | 2,153 | 5.2 | 28 | 59 | 153.8 |
| Opponents | 14 | 510 | 2,219 | 471 | 1,748 | 3.4 | 19 | 93 | 124.9 |

#### Passing

(to December 29, 2008)
| Name (G) | Effic | Cmp-Att-Int | Pct | Yds | TD | Lng | Avg/G |
| Chase Daniel (14) | 159.44 | 385-528-18 | 72.9 | 4,335 | 39 | 80 | 309.6 |
| Chase Patton (8) | 176.47 | 12-18-0 | 66.7 | 196 | 1 | 48 | 24.5 |
| Blaine Gabbert (5) | 66.25 | 5-13-0 | 38.5 | 43 | 0 | 14 | 8.6 |
| Tommy Saunders (14) | 479.20 | 2-2-0 | 100.0 | 51 | 1 | 32 | 5.1 |
| Chase Coffman (12) | 0.00 | 0-1-0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| Danario Alexander (12) | 0.00 | 0-1-0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| TEAM (11) | 0.00 | 0-2-0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| TOTAL (14) | 157.84 | 404-565-18 | 71.5 | 4,625 | 41 | 80 | 330.4 |
| Opponents (14) | 133.58 | 374-583-14 | 64.2 | 4,013 | 29 | 65 | 286.6 |

#### Receiving

(to December 29, 2008)
| Name | GP | No. | Yds | Avg | TD | Long | Avg/G |
| Jeremy Maclin | 14 | 102 | 1,260 | 12.4 | 13 | 80 | 90.0 |
| Chase Coffman | 12 | 90 | 987 | 11.0 | 10 | 48 | 82.2 |
| Tommy Saunders | 14 | 72 | 833 | 11.6 | 7 | 69 | 59.5 |
| Jared Perry | 14 | 41 | 567 | 13.8 | 4 | 38 | 40.5 |
| Derrick Washington | 14 | 29 | 277 | 9.6 | 2 | 28 | 19.8 |
| Danario Alexander | 12 | 26 | 329 | 12.7 | 5 | 39 | 27.4 |
| Andrew Jones | 13 | 20 | 146 | 7.3 | 0 | 15 | 11.2 |
| Jerrell Jackson | 13 | 9 | 98 | 10.9 | 0 | 15 | 7.5 |
| Earl Goldsmith | 13 | 5 | 58 | 11.6 | 0 | 17 | 4.5 |
| Michael Egnew | 13 | 4 | 22 | 5.5 | 0 | 7 | 1.7 |
| Jimmy Jackson | 14 | 3 | 26 | 8.7 | 0 | 13 | 1.9 |
| Wes Kemp | 7 | 1 | 15 | 15.0 | 0 | 15 | 2.1 |
| Jon Gissinger | 14 | 1 | 10 | 10.0 | 0 | 10 | 0.7 |
| Colin Brown | 14 | 1 | -3 | -3.0 | 0 | 0 | -0.2 |
| TOTAL | 14 | 404 | 4,625 | 11.4 | 41 | 80 | 330.4 |
| Opponents | 14 | 374 | 4,013 | 10.7 | 29 | 65 | 286.6 |

### Field Goals / PAT

(to December 29, 2008)
| Name | FG-FGA | Pct | 01-19 | 20-29 | 30-39 | 40-49 | 50-99 | Lng | Blkd | PAT | Pts. |
| Jeff Wolfert | 20-27 | 74.1 | 1-1 | 5-5 | 6-7 | 7-9 | 1-5 | 51 | 2 | 73-73 | 133 |

### Special teams

(to December 29, 2008)
| Name | Punting | Punting | Punting | Punting | Punting | Punting | Punting | Punting | Kickoffs | Kickoffs | Kickoffs | Kickoffs | Kickoffs |
| Name | No. | Yds | Avg | Long | TB | FC | I20 | Blkd | No. | Yds | Avg | TB | OB |
| Jeff Wolfert | 7 | 297 | 42.4 | 54 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 103 | 6,550 | 63.6 | 15 | 1 |
| Jake Harry | 26 | 1,057 | 40.7 | 55 | 3 | 5 | 10 | 0 | | | | | |
| Grant Ressel | 1 | 43 | 43.0 | 43 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | | | | | |
| Tanner Mills | | | | | | | | | 3 | 203 | 67.7 | 0 | 0 |
| TOTAL | 34 | 1,397 | 41.1 | 55 | 4 | 6 | 13 | 0 | 106 | 6,753 | 63.7 | 15 | 1 |
| Opponents | 72 | 2,788 | 38.7 | 69 | 6 | 20 | 23 | 1 | 70 | 3,903 | 55.8 | 4 | 1 |
| Name | Punt Returns | Punt Returns | Punt Returns | Punt Returns | Punt Returns | Kick Returns | Kick Returns | Kick Returns | Kick Returns | Kick Returns |
| Name | No. | Yds | Avg | TD | Long | No. | Yds | Avg | TD | Long |
| Jeremy Maclin | 23 | 270 | 11.7 | 1 | 75 | 42 | 1,010 | 24.0 | 1 | 99 |
| Tommy Saunders | 2 | 24 | 12.0 | 0 | 15 | | | | | |
| Will Ebner | 2 | 6 | 3.0 | 0 | 0 | | | | | |
| Jimmy Jackson | | | | | | 10 | 119 | 11.9 | 0 | 22 |
| Tru Vaughns | | | | | | 3 | 67 | 22.3 | 0 | 24 |
| Jon Gissinger | | | | | | 3 | 26 | 8.7 | 0 | 12 |
| Earl Goldsmith | | | | | | 2 | 22 | 11.0 | 0 | 15 |
| Jeff Gettys | | | | | | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 1 |
| TOTAL | 27 | 300 | 11.1 | 1 | 75 | 61 | 1,245 | 20.4 | 1 | 99 |
| Opponents | 11 | 35 | 3.2 | 0 | 11 | 88 | 2,018 | 22.9 | 1 | 97 |

### Interceptions

(to December 29, 2008)
| Name | No. | Yds | Avg | TD | Long |
| Sean Weatherspoon | 3 | 100 | 33.3 | 2 | 65 |
| Brock Christopher | 3 | 39 | 13.0 | 1 | 22 |
| Kenji Jackson | 2 | 34 | 17.0 | 0 | 25 |
| Jaron Baston | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 0 | 5 |
| Castine Bridges | 1 | 7 | 7.0 | 0 | 7 |
| Kevin Rutland | 1 | 12 | 12.0 | 0 | 12 |
| Jeff Gettys | 1 | 27 | 27.0 | 1 | 27 |
| William Moore | 1 | 17 | 17.0 | 1 | 17 |
| Carl Gettis | 1 | 27 | 27.0 | 0 | 27 |
| TOTAL | 14 | 268 | 19.1 | 5 | 65 |
| Opponents | 18 | 158 | 8.8 | 1 | 39 |

### Fumble Returns

(to December 29, 2008)
| Name | No. | Yds | Avg | TD | Long |
| Jaron Baston | 1 | 18 | 18.0 | 0 | 18 |
| TOTAL | 1 | 18 | 18.0 | 0 | 18 |
| Opponents | 1 | 23 | 23.0 | 0 | 23 |

### Defense

(to December 29, 2008)
| Name | GP | Tackles | Tackles | Tackles | Tackles | Sacks | Pass defense | Pass defense | Pass defense | Fumbles | Fumbles | Blkd Kick | Saf |
| Name | GP | Solo | Ast | Total | TFL-Yds | No.-Yds | Int-Yds. | BrUp | QBH | Rcv-Yds | FF | Blkd Kick | Saf |
| Sean Weatherspoon | 14 | 76 | 79 | 155 | 18.5-75 | 5.0-46 | 3-100 | 7 | 6 | - | 2 | - | - |
| Brock Christopher | 14 | 51 | 54 | 105 | 7.5-20 | 1.0-6 | 3-39 | 6 | 3 | 1-0 | - | - | - |
| Justin Garrett | 14 | 51 | 38 | 89 | 1.5-3 | - | - | 6 | 3 | - | - | - | - |
| William Moore | 12 | 55 | 31 | 86 | 6.5-19 | 1.0-10 | 1-17 | 6 | 1 | - | 3 | - | - |
| Carl Gettis | 14 | 52 | 26 | 78 | 4.0-8 | - | 1-27 | 4 | - | 1-0 | - | - | - |
| Castine Bridges | 12 | 49 | 20 | 69 | 4.5-8 | 0.5-2 | 1-7 | 7 | - | - | - | - | - |
| Kenji Jackson | 13 | 40 | 22 | 62 | - | - | 2-34 | 1 | - | - | 1 | - | - |
| Ziggy Hood | 14 | 31 | 31 | 62 | 7.0-42 | 5.0-37 | - | 2 | 12 | 2-0 | - | 1 | - |
| Luke Lambert | 14 | 30 | 28 | 58 | 3.5-7 | 1.0-2 | - | 1 | - | 1-0 | 1 | - | - |
| Stryker Sulak | 14 | 29 | 26 | 55 | 15.5-106 | 10.5-94 | - | 6 | 6 | - | 6 | 1 | - |
| Tru Vaughns | 14 | 26 | 23 | 49 | 2.5-5 | 1.0-4 | - | 3 | - | - | - | - | - |
| Jaron Baston | 14 | 17 | 32 | 49 | 8.0-22 | 1.0-8 | 1-5 | 1 | 1 | 2-18 | - | - | - |
| Jacquies Smith | 14 | 22 | 24 | 46 | 3.0-6 | 1.0-3 | - | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - |
| Tommy Chavis | 13 | 21 | 23 | 44 | 6.0-31 | 3.0-20 | - | 2 | 6 | - | 2 | - | - |
| Del Howard | 13 | 22 | 19 | 41 | - | - | - | 1 | - | - | - | - | - |
| Hardy Ricks | 14 | 26 | 13 | 39 | 1.5-6 | - | - | - | 1 | - | - | - | - |
| Brian Coulter | 12 | 13 | 16 | 29 | 6.5-44 | 3.0-22 | - | 2 | 1 | - | 2 | - | - |
| Andrew Gachkar | 14 | 13 | 15 | 28 | 1.0-2 | - | - | 1 | - | - | - | - | - |
| Kevin Rutland | 14 | 16 | 9 | 25 | - | - | 1-12 | 5 | - | 1-0 | - | - | - |
| Will Ebner | 14 | 15 | 6 | 21 | 3.0-20 | - | - | - | 1 | - | - | 1 | - |
| Dominique Hamilton | 13 | 8 | 10 | 18 | 0.5-0 | - | - | 1 | - | - | 1 | - | - |
| Chris Earnhardt | 7 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 1.0-4 | - | - | - | 2 | - | - | - | - |
| Trey Hobson | 12 | 10 | 6 | 16 | 1.0-1 | - | - | 1 | - | - | - | - | - |
| Terrell Resonno | 14 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 1.0-2 | - | - | - | 1 | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM | 11 | 4 | 7 | 11 | - | - | - | 1 | - | - | - | - | 1 |
| Van Alexander | 8 | 2 | 5 | 7 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Jeff Gettys | 14 | 5 | 1 | 6 | - | - | 1-27 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Others (17) | 14 | 11 | 13 | 24 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TOTAL | 14 | 709 | 593 | 1,302 | 103-431 | 33- 254 | 14-268 | 66 | 46 | 8-18 | 18 | 3 | 1 |
| Opponents | 14 | 510 | 526 | 1,036 | 77-250 | 16- 94 | 18-158 | 38 | 16 | 8-23 | 9 | 2 | 1 |