COLUMBIA, Mo. - Bob Shoop offered a diagnosis of his Tennessee defense this past week that now seems especially apt.
"When you look at it, we're efficient in the run game," the second-year defensive coordinator said Monday night, "but we give up long runs. That's our problem."
Now he can add long passes to the mix.
Missouri had nine plays of 20 yards or more - four of them passes that resulted in touchdowns - as the Tigers pulled away from a wounded Tennessee team for a 50-17 blowout victory in front of 50,637 fans at Faurot Field on Saturday night.
The loss gives Tennessee (4-6, 0-6) a losing streak to every other team in the Southeastern Conference and brings the Volunteers within a loss of failing to qualify for a bowl game. They must beat both LSU and Vanderbilt the next two weeks to finish 6-6.
"The message is the same," embattled fifth-year coach Butch Jones said. "We have two games left. It's all about this football team and how we finish. It's about these seniors, these players. It ain't about the coach or anything else. It's about how we finish."
Freshman quarterback Will McBride showed grit in his first career start. Just a week after an injury to Jarrett Guarantano forced Tennessee's coaches to burn McBride's redshirt, he led the Vols on a 15-play scoring drive to tie the game at 17 with 1:15 left in the first half.
Just after McBride hit senior tight Ethan Wolf for Tennessee's first passing touchdown since Sept. 23 for the tying touchdown, the defense gave up one of the costliest plays of the game.
Tennessee was set to receive the third-quarter kickoff and Missouri appeared content to run out the remaining seconds of the first-half clock when freshman running back Larry Rountree ran for 64 yards on a third-down play. It set up a first-and-goal, and the Tigers went ahead 24-17 when Rountree scored from a yard out with 18 seconds left in the half.
The game was never tied again.
After going two straight games without a turnover, Tennessee turned it over four times in the second half, and the Tigers (5-5, 2-5) pounced to earn their fourth consecutive victory.
By game's end the Vols had given up 659 yards to Missouri a year after allowing a school-record 740 yards to the Tigers.
It all started much differently. Missouri went three-and-out on the game's first series. Tennessee picked up a first down on its opening series when McBride completed a swing pass to Ty Chandler for 7 yards.
At one point in the first half, Tennessee's offense included seven freshmen. That was before senior center Coleman Thomas left the game with an injury and forced the Vols to play a fourth freshman - Riley Locklear - on the offensive line.
"It is what it is," Jones said. "That's not an excuse."
A heavy dose of senior running back Ish Witter on Missouri's second drive carried the Tigers 82 yards for the game's first score. Witter finished with a career-high 216 yards in just three quarters of action.
Missouri's passing offense is among the best in the nation statistically. Quarterback Drew Lock increased his season total from 31 to 35 against the Vols. His four throws for scores covered 124 yards. His other nine completions covered 93.
Shoop said this past week that he wasn't sure how tested his defense had been, especially against the pass, through its first nine games. He said Monday that this week would be a test.
"We'll know a little more about ourselves after this game," he said.
Injuries
Sophomore receiver Marquez Callaway went through warmups but did not play. Jones said it became evident during practice this past week that Guarantano probably would not be able to start. The redshirt freshman threw during warmups and would have been available in an emergency, Jones said.
Contact David Cobb at dcobb@timesfreepress.com.