WELCOME BACK TO PREGAMIN’, HERE’S YOUR JAM OF THE WEEK
KEEP THAT ENERGY HIGH, FOLKS, WE NEED ALL WE CAN GET THIS WEEKEND
Rock M-ixology
If I’ve learned anything about this season based on when Rock M-ixology came back,
it’s that as the drink goes, so goes Mizzou. That’s scientific, right?
We’ve been hit or miss with our menu this season, and sometimes I tend to overcomplicate things in the home bar. We’ve got a road game this week, and it’s always best to keep things simple when you’re facing adverse conditions away from home. So let’s do as Drinkwitz should do and simplify, simplify, simplify. Give the ball to Ahmad, Kirby. And, in honor of the long lost Peace Pipe, let’s make a Busted Pipe.
1.5 oz bourbon, 1.5 oz Amaro Nonino, 1 luxardo cherry, lemon peel
combine bourbon and Amaro in mixing glass. stir until chilled and strain into chilled rocks glass. garnish with cherry and lemon peel.
Do you like an Old Fashioned? This one’s for you. Do you like a Paper Plane? This one’s for you. It’s scaleable based on what you like in a bourbon drink, and I thought some smooth Angel’s Envy was perfect against the Amaro Nonino, which I really wanted to taste in the final product.
And while I’m notoriously anti-frill when it comes to cocktails, I love a good citrus peel and Luxardo cherry in these types of drinks. Just enough sweetness and aroma, with a nice, boozy treat waiting for you at the bottom of the glass.
- Norman has something of a sordid history, as it was both settled during the Land Run of 1889 before eventually becoming a sundown town until the 1960’s. At least the city council issued a formal apology… in 2020. Cool stuff, Norman!
- Mizzou and Oklahoma’s rivalry has been decidedly dominated by the Sooners, but the Tigers have won two of the last three meetings between the programs. That’s the best stretch the Tigers have had against OU since the 1980s, when Mizzou won two of three from 1981-1983.
- If you’re still in a haunted mood a few weeks after Halloween, maybe a trip to Norma would scratch the itch? Oklahoma’s campus is rife with ghost stories.
We’ll never get tired of typing, “Ahmad Hardy rushed for 300 yards and 3 touchdowns in one game.” That was the single best Mizzou performance you’ve seen since…
Josh Matejka, Deputy Site Manager: It’s the Danario game against Kansas State, right? It’s the last time I can remember being lost for words on a singular performance. Cody Schrader’s game against Tennessee comes close, but these are the only two in the past 20 years where I can remember a Tiger getting the ball and doing seemingly whatever they wanted.
True Deck, Football Writer: I’ll be honest, I wasn’t a big Missouri fan prior to coming in 2022, but I think this is the best Mizzou performance I have ever seen. Cody Schrader vs. Tennessee was awesome but this was utter domination. It felt like every time he touched the ball, no matter what the oline did, he was going to make a play.
Nathan Hurst, Football Writer: There are a lot of options here. I could mention DGB’s seven-catch, 100-yard, four touchdown performance against Kentucky in 2013. Or Danario Alexander’s 10-catch, 200-yard, three touchdown game against Kansas State in 2009. But what I finally landed on was Brad Smith’s absurd 2003 game against Texas Tech in Columbia. Beyond throwing for 128 yards, Smith has what is now the third most rushing yards in a game for Mizzou all-time (previously was second) when he ran for 291 yards on only 19 carries and five touchdowns. He averaged 15.3 yards per carry. Brad Smith was silly.
Sammy Stava, Staff Writer: As mentioned, Danario Alexander had some pretty big performances in his career, but since we’re shouting out Ahmad Hardy let’s go with the running backs. Cody Schrader’s game against Tennessee in 2023 and Tony Temple in the Cotton Bowl win over Arkansas come to mind.
Nate Edwards, Football Writer/Podcaster: It’s the Danario game against Kansas State. But Mizzou is not absent of standout performances! I’ll add some that haven’t been mentioned yet: Brock Olivo against Iowa State, Chase Daniel in Armageddon at Arrowhead, Kentrell Brothers against Georgia, and the entire Missouri football team against Nevada in ‘08.
Mizzou obviously has quite a bit of history with the Sooners, which begs the question. Other than kU, who’s your favorite Mizzou rival to hate?
Josh Matejka: It’s not an active rivalry right now, but my years of growing up a Mizzou fan have taught me that nothing redeemable has ever come out of Champaign, Illinois. Want proof? Would we have Bill Self and kU basketball dominance if not for Illinois? Exactly. Get bent, Illini.
True Deck: For me, it’s gotta be Arkansas. Being super close distance-wise, I have a bunch of hometown friends there. And the rivalry is awesome. I will say it’s easy to say you like a rivalry when you dominate it but I think Arkansas-Missouri always brings a fun match up.
Nathan Hurst: This dates me, definitely, but I hate hate hate Nebraska and want nothing good to come to that university and their fans ever again. Thankfully that has been the case for the last 10+ years. Here’s to more decades of Husker failure. Oklahoma is a pretty close third though.
Sammy Stava: In basketball I hate the Illini especially on Braggin’ Rights gameday. In football let’s go with South Carolina. The Mayor’s Cup games kind of determines how your season is going to go and Shane Beamer has become incredibly unlikable.
Nate Edwards: kansas is the only one I truly hate. Like at a microscopic, woven-into-the-fiber-of-my-being sort of hate. Illinois is the only one that really comes close to that and that’s mostly due to proximity and repetition. Wins over Oklahoma feel good because they didn’t happen often as a kid, Nebraska is more schadenfreude at this point, Arkansas is a rivalry for rivalry’s sake and more performative. But South Carolina would probably be second if we were able to carry on the consistent, yearly football matchups.
Oklahoma is riding an incredible high after beating Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Is there potential for a letdown game from the Sooners?
Josh Matejka: Never say never in the SEC, which has been even more cannibalistic this season than those prior. But Oklahoma has a solid foundation on defense and they can probably smell that CFP berth just around the corner. Add in the fact that there’s still bad blood percolating from the Big XII days and I don’t think Oklahoma comes out flat. They’ll want this one bad.
True Deck: I feel like with the SEC, it’s really hard to win consecutive games. That being said, Vandy came into the Missouri matchup off a big win from LSU, and still won, Bama was coming off a big win against Vandy, and still won. These hot teams have been staying hot against Missouri. I don’t see too much of a chance at a let down.
Nathan Hurst: I don’t think so. The win over Alabama puts the Sooners back in the playoff picture. All they have to do is win out. Not to mention there has to be a bit of a revenge factor for them after how last year’s game played out. I don’t necessarily expect them to have circled this date on the calendar all season, but they have to beat Mizzou to reach their goals so I expect to get their best shot Saturday.
Sammy Stava: The Sooners are back in the playoff picture, and they will have the revenge factor in mind after losing to Mizzou last season. I guess they can have a letdown game after an emotional win, but Brent Venables will have his players ready for this one.
Nate Edwards: Of course there is, it’s college football, teams can vary wildly week to week. And don’t forget Oklahoma did not play well against Alabama and won with a 5% post-game win expectancy. Still… it’s a Top 10 team on the road, even if they stink out the joint Oklahoma will still win.
PICK ‘EM! Oklahoma is a 7.5-point favorite over the Tigers and are playing to solidify their CFP status. What does Mizzou need to pull off the upset?
Josh Matejka: Could I interest you in some more turnover differential luck? Mizzou’s defense is good enough to keep them in the game, but there’s no way the Tigers win this game without at least two momentum-swinging turnovers, with at least one of them going for a score. Matt Zollers isn’t at the point where you can expect him to reasonably move the ball against the Sooners defense. I think Oklahoma coasts, if not all that comfortably, to a 27-17 win.
True Deck: I’m going to have to go with Oklahoma here. I think that Missouri needs more time adjusting to a new quarterback and it ultimately is going to show, similar to A&M. I’ll take the Sooners to win and cover, 28-19.
Nathan Hurst: The Tigers need to be at least +2 in the turnover battle to have a chance. Oklahoma’s defense is too good to expect this offense to move the ball effectively, so they will have to be given short fields by the Mizzou defense to steal a some points.
Sammy Stava: Maybe I’m too optimistic but I think Missouri has a chance in this one and the Tigers will keep this competitive. Not enough for a win, however. 24-20 OU as John Mateer and the Sooners make the winning plays.
Nate Edwards: limit possessions, have an absurd time-of-possession skew in favor of Mizzou, force a turnover, and hope to break off 5-6 explosive plays to generate at least 5 scoring opportunities and then score touchdowns on all of them. TL;DR: be perfect. But I think it’s 21-17 OU.
