Q & A with RT from Every True Son

I recently had a Q &A session with RT from Every True Son, a Missouri Blogger. Below are his answers to my quesitons:

(1) Reading the Missouri message Boards it doesn't seem your fans are that excited about our game this year. Is this true or am I not finding the right message boards?

RT: It's hard to say because Missouri fans generally fall into two categories: 1) The eternal pessimist (who will tell you Missouri is walking into a MAJOR trap in Oxford, which, perhaps they are) and 2) the Mizzou kool-aid binge drinker, who debuted this year now that the team is expected to be halfway decent. I think the fans are less excited because this seems like a no-win situation. Missouri fans, myself included, think the Missouri should beat Ole Miss. If Mizzou wins, everything is like it should be. If Mizzou loses, it's "here we go again." I think there is less excitement this year than last because Mizzou felt like they had something to prove against a BCS-conference opponent last year. This year, I think Mizzou fans think the point has been made, and the Tigers have only something to lose.

(2) What did you think of Tyler Luellen's comments on Chris Strong?

RT: As much as Missouri did NOT need to throw out any bulletin board material before a road game in the SEC, Luellen might have a point. Last week, the Mizzou offense spread out and wore out an underrated Illinois defense. However, Illinois MLB J Leman had one hell of a game against Missouri, finishing the day with 20 tackles. But, even with 20 tackles, he did not have that big of an impact on the Mizzou offense. Missouri went four- or five-wide on nearly every play and ran hooks and outs to death, forcing linebackers all over the field. I fully expect this to happen in Oxford. But again, I'm not particularly happy Luellen gave a 280-pound MLB even MORE reason to want to decapitate Chase Daniel.

(3) How do you think your close win against Illinois will affect you this week?

RT:It's hard to say, because you never know which Mizzou team will show up and for how long. Hopefully, last week's escape forced the team to focus on running the ball, stopping the run, wrapping up on defense and improving the red zone offense. If Ole Miss dominates the line of scrimmage the way Illinois did last week, BenJarvus Green-Ellis is going to rip apart this defense and the Mizzou running game will once again be worthless. However, traditionally Missouri finds a way to choke away games like the one last week, so maybe holding on for that win is one small step and one small sign that this is a different Missouri Tiger football team.

(4) Your offensive seems to be your strong point this year, tells us about your special teams and defense.

RT: No doubt the offense is the team's strength, but don't look at Mizzou's 40 points last week and think it was all on one side of the ball. In fact, 13 points came from a 66-yard punt return for touchdown and a 100-plus-yard fumble return for touchdown. Throw in three points off a special teams fumble recovery that led to a half-ending FG on a two-play drive, and the Missouri offense attributed for about 24 points. On special teams, the aforementioned Maclin is a burner and a threat every time he touches the ball, one year removed from a devestating ACL injury in camp that cost him his freshman season last year. Jeff Wolfert is an outstanding kicker, and Adam Crossett has one of the strongest legs in the conference - but can never control it. Throw in poor blocking, bad snaps, Crossett's inconsistency, and the punting game is an adventure every time out.
The MU defense is quite an enigma. The squad allowed Illinois and its backup, redshirt freshman quarterback to run ALL over the defense in the second half. The linemen got blown off the line of scrimmage and there were massive gaps for runs and large seams for passes. The linebacking corps is athletic but inexperienced, and can follow an outstanding play with a blown coverage that kills momentum. The secondary played fairly well against Illinois, especially considering the amount of time Illinois had to throw the ball. I would tell your fans to keep an eye on LB Sean Weatherspoon and DB Pig Brown, who was recently named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week
But for MU to meet any expectations this year, they MUST find a way to stop the run and wrap up rather than trying to tackle the ball. How Mizzou adjusts to Ole Miss should be very telling.

(5) How many Missouri fans do you expect to make the trip to Oxford?

RT: To be honest, I really do not know. The Alumni Association has been organizing trips and tailgates to bus people down and back because they know what an amazing experience a game in The Grove is for college football fans. I've tried to get a feel for the numbers, but any number I could give you would be a complete guess. There will be a decent presence, but don't expect an avalanche of black and gold come Saturday.

(6) What is your prediction for the game?

RT: Mizzou 31, Ole Miss 17 - Green-Ellis has a big day, but it doesn't matter once Mizzou takes the lead and the game is in the hands of Seth Adams.

To view my responses to his questions, click here.