Missouri redshirt freshman quarterback Maty Mauk carved up Tennessee with his legs and took advantage of repeated coverage breakdowns in the passing game during a 31-3 victory Saturday at Memorial Stadium.
Fears that the Tigers, 8-1 overall and 4-1 in the SEC, would have difficulty bouncing back from the season’s first loss — a heartbreaking double-overtime defeat last week against South Carolina — proved unfounded.
Missouri dominated on the ground Saturday, racking up 339 yards in 54 carries.
Mauk, who completed 12 of 25 passes for 163 yards with three touchdowns, led the way to the delight of a crowd of 65,869 — roughly 1,300 shy of a third consecutive sellout.
He finished with 114 yards in 13 carries, while junior Henry Josey, who was listed as questionable throughout the week because of a concussion, added 74 yards in 16 carries.
When Missouri wasn’t chewing up Tennessee’s defense on the ground, the Tigers’ wide receivers were allowed to roam free deep downfield behind the Volunteers’ secondary.
It all added up to a lopsided win for Missouri, which maintained its one-game lead ahead of the Gamecocks in the SEC East.
Tennessee lost on the road for the 19th consecutive time against a ranked opponent, and the 12th consecutive time in conference play despite left tackle Antonio “Tiny” Richardson’s guarantee of a win.
Missouri got on the board with 2:20 remaining in the first quarter when Dorial Green-Beckham hauled in a short pass from Mauk and outraced the Tennessee defense — with an assist from umpire Russ Pulley, who got caught up in traffic — across the field the middle of the field for a 9-yard touchdown.
It took a while for the Tigers to get started, but midway through the second quarter everything seemed to click.
Sophomore kicker Andrew Baggett connected on a 24-yard field goal for a 10-0 lead, the first of Missouri’s 17 points in the final 6:58 before halftime.
On the next play from scrimmage, Tennessee freshman Justin Dobbs scrambled to his right and lobbed a wounded-duck pass down the sideline under pressure from junior defensive end Kony Ealy. Senior cornerback E.J. Gaines, who hadn’t played since straining his right quad Oct. 12 in the second quarter at Georgia, picked it off.
The very next play, there wasn’t a defender within 20 yards when L’Damian Washington hauled in Mauk’s 26-yard touchdown toss backpedaling in the end zone.
Trailing 17-0, Tennessee cut into Missouri’s lead on Michael Palardy’s 51-yard field goal — one play after freshman wide receiver Josh Smith dropped a possible touchdown on a wide-open post route.
The Tigers answered with an 85-yard drive capped by senior wide receiver Marcus Lucas’ 40-yard touchdown grab. Lucas, who finished with four catches for 75 yards, got behind double coverage for an easy pitch-and-catch.
Ahead 24-3, Missouri nearly padded its lead on the final play before halftime, but Baggett’s 29-yard try clanged off the left post. It was a different end zone, but eerily reminiscent of his miss on the final play against South Carolina.
No matter, the Tigers continued to dominate in the second half.
Sophomore Russell Hansbrough’s 26-yard touchdown run in the third quarter looked like a parting of the Red Sea as he burst up the middle and rumbled nearly untouched across the goal line.
