Keys to Victory: Missouri

The Hoosiers will wrap-up pre-conference play this week against the formidable Missouri Tigers. Although the Tigers went 5-7 last year, they played the nation's toughest schedule and are focused on starting 3-0 before SEC play resumes this year. The Indiana coaching staff is very familiar with that of the Tigers from their previous combined experiences in the Big 12. In fact, the last time Coach Wilson faced Missouri, his Oklahoma offense put up 62 points on the Tigers in the Big 12 championship game. That was years ago, however; and the Hoosiers aren't the Sooners. Here is what IU will have to do to take down the Tigers under the lights on Saturday:

#1 - Contain James Franklin

The Tiger offense is led by senior quarterback James Franklin. Franklin is a big, tough, dual-threat quarterback who's not afraid to lower his shoulder when he takes off running. Kevin WIlson recruited Franklin when he was coaching at Oklahoma and has stressed that Franklins has developed into a true dual-threat QB, just as capable of beating a team with his arm as he is with his legs.

Through two games this year (the Tigers were off last week), Franklin has thrown for 530 yards, 4 touchdowns, and 1 interception. He has also rushed 23 times for 121 yards.

Mizzou is undefeated in games when Franklin leads the team in passing and rushing yards so, clearly, limiting his production is paramount to a victory on Saturday.

#2 - Prove Navy was a Defensive Anomaly

Statistically, the Indiana defense isn't quite as bad as the Navy game would indicate. The Hoosiers are ranked 3rd in the conference in red zone defense, 4th in 3rd down defense, and Nick Mangieri's 2.5 sacks are the second most in the conference. In the backfield, cornerback Tim Bennett ranks 1st in the B1G and 3rd in the nation with seven passes defended. Cornerback Michael Hunter has also been exceptional and ranks 4th in the B1G and 19th nationally with five passes defended.

However, they will still need to show improvement against the nation's 17th ranked offense on Saturday. The Tigers have two running backs averaging over 6 yards per carry, and Indiana remains the 11th ranked rushing defense in the conference.

Mizzou also has a stellar receiving corps highlight by 6'6" 225 pound stud Dorial Green-Beckham. DGB was the consensus #1 overall prospect in the 2012 recruiting class and finished his high school career as the nation's all-time receiving leader with 2,233 yards and 24 touchdowns as senior. As a freshman last year, he led the Tigers in touchdown receptions despite missing time after a run-in with the law.

We will know after this weekend where the Indiana defense truly stands.

#3 - Win the Matchup against the Mizzou DBs

The matchup between the Missouri defensive backs and the Indiana receivers and quarterbacks quarterback should be fun to watch.

For the first time in history, the Hoosiers have four 1,000 receivers on the same team (Kofi Huges, Ted Bolser, Cody Latimer and, after last week, Shane Wynn).

Sudfeld has started to garner national attention as he leads the B1G in passing efficiency, yards, and touchdowns. While Purdue fans may quickly proclaim that those statistics are simply the result of how much Indiana throws the ball, Sudfeld actually only ranks 5th in the conference in passing attempts.

This weekend, the Indiana arial attack faces a tough defense with a knack for creating turnovers. Mizzou has forced a turnover in 32 straight games and has recorded 29 defensive touchdowns during head coach Gary Pinkel's tenure. This year, their secondary is averaging a gaudy three interception per game, and has been given extra motivation to perform against the Indiana receivers thanks to a menacing tweet from the IU realm.

#4 - Improve Special Teams Play

Between the blocked punt in last week's game and Laray Smith's fumbled kickoff against Indiana Sate, the Hoosier's special teams have become the source of endless laughs and entertainment for non-Hoosier fans.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2rM0ySOD-I

Not surprisingly, special teams was an area in which Coach Wilson stressed the need for improvement during this week's press conference. Through three games, the Hoosiers have had two punts blocked, two fumbled kickoffs, are one of only two B1G teams averaging below 20 yards per kick return, and rank last in the conference with an embarrassing 22.0 yards per punt.

They'll also have All-SEC and 2nd team All-American return man Marcus Murphy to worry about this week. Last year, Murphy returned four kicks for touchdowns, including one of 98 yards against the mighty Alabama Crimson Tide.

Missouri is a solid, well-coached football team, and as Kevin Wilson pointed out earlier this week, "They're not going to lose the game...you have to play well to beat teams like this." Indiana has survived poor special teams play thus far, but it could be the undoing of the Hoosiers in this week's matchup.

#5 - Don't Turn the Tigers into Gods

This will be the first opportunity for any of the current IU players to go up against a team from the illustrious SEC. It's a big deal, and the players are well-aware:

I've been here four years, and I've never played an SEC team. I've only watched them...It's going to be a really big opportunity.

-Kofi Hughes

I've been waiting on it [playing an SEC team], man. They've been taking too long. It's like they're scared or something. In all seriousness, this is a great challenge. It's a great opportunity, and we're going to seize the moment.

-Stephen Houston

Being excited about playing an SEC squad is fine, but the players can not get overwhelmed and turn the Tigers into something they're not. They are not Alabama. They are not Georgia. In reality, talent-wise the Missouri roster is much more similar to Indiana's than their SEC counterparts. According to recruiting ratings over the past four years from rivals.com, Missouri and Indiana are bringing in roughly the same talent.

MIZZOU INDIANA ALABAMA

5 Star Recruits - 1 0 11

4 Star Recruits - 9 6 56

3 Star Recruits - 66 54 31

Average Class Ranking - 35 63 2

The only number that appears to heavily favor the Tigers is the overall class ranking. However, that number is severely skewed by the 2010 IU recruiting class that was ranked an abysmal 92nd in the nation. In fact, last year Indiana's recruiting class was ranked #38 while Missouri's came in at #41.

Bottom line, Missouri is an "SEC" team in name only, and the Hoosiers shouldn't feel outmatched.

Prediction:

This game has the makings of an offensive shootout. Indiana enters as college football's 8th ranked offense while Missouri is ranked 17th. While discussing the game, Missouri head coach Gary Pinkel said, "They're going to make plays...We have to make more."

In the end, as long as the Indiana defense prevents James Franklin from having a career day, I think the Hoosier offense will make just enough big plays to win the game.

INDIANA 35 MIZZOU 31

Let's Go Hoosiers.