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Mizzou wants to get more production out of special teams units
By Adam Spencer
Published:
Mizzou’s kick-return unit ranked an embarrassing 128th out of 128 FBS teams in return yardage in 2015.
This year, special teams (especially the two return units) were a focus heading into the season. First-year coach Barry Odom told The Kansas City Star that he’s been running the special teams this season:
“I wanted to take a lot of (special teams) off of our assistant coaches’ plates and, quite honestly, I wanted to really coach,” Odom said. “I knew going into this season that there were so many things that I needed to do as the head coach that I had to pick my moments on where and when I can be effective to give everything the needed time.”
“Kickoff return, absolutely not,” he said Monday during his weekly news conference. “We have not been good. We haven’t been very good at the front line getting our blocks. There’s been one or two opportunities that we had to really crease one and we missed it. … We’ve got to put our offense in a better situation starting the drive.”
The Tigers will need to be more productive in the return game against a strong Florida defense on Saturday afternoon.
Sophomore QB Drew Lock needs good field position if Mizzou is going to pull off a major upset.
Adam is a daily fantasy sports (DFS) and sports betting expert. A 2012 graduate of the University of Missouri, Adam now covers all 16 SEC football teams. He is the director of DFS, evergreen and newsletter content across all Saturday Football brands.
