Before the start of the game, Eli Drinkwitz said whoever had the better run scheme was going to win the game. Judging by South Carolina’s -9 rushing yards, that looks to have been a fair assessment.
Ahmad Hardy once again displayed the power in his legs, somehow finding extra ground after everyone thought he was down. Including a pivotal play with five minutes left in the third quarter where both his feet went in the air, but Hardy still managed to find the endzone. His reaction also makes the play ten
times better.
“Honestly, I didn’t even know I was off the ground until I started spinning,” said Hardy. “My legs started kicking, so I’m like, oh, well, I’m not down. I got excited, so I just kept running.”
Eli Drinkwitz says Hardy has been better than he ever could have imagined.
“I didn’t think he was gonna be this good,” Drinkwitz said. “I mean, let’s be honest. I mean the dude is running through people like he’s a dump truck. I mean, he’s a Clydesdale amongst a bunch of Fillies, it’s unbelievable.”
Quarterback Beau Pribula also had high praise for his go-to back.
“It’s every week now, ” Pribula said. “I told somebody, I’ll never be mad when Ahmad runs a hundred yards each week. Getting a run game going, especially just ending the game at the end with the run game being so dominant up front, it’s just huge.”
With 22 carries, Hardy recorded 138 yards rushing and a touchdown. He holds a comfortable lead in the battle for most rushing yards by an SEC player with 600. Jeremiah Cobb from Auburn slides in at number two with 375 yards.
Who’s at number six on that list? Oh, look, it’s Mizzou’s RB #2, Jamal Roberts. Over four games Roberts has tallied 298 yards, with 76 of them coming against the Gamecocks.
It’s a dynamic duo, a partnership one could compare to Batman & Robin or Han Solo & Chewbacca. The pair is electric, dangerous even, in every sense of the word.
“In the first half, we were trying to run inside zone and some gap scheme, and they were wide enough, they did a great job,” Drinkwitz said of the run attack. “And we made the adjustment at halftime to get to our outside zone scheme … and ultimately they weren’t able to stop it.”
Besides the running back duo, Beau Pribula also displayed his speed. Drinkwitz noted that the quarterback was crucial in helping the team find key first downs with his feet on unscheduled plays. When Pribula was on the move, he tallied an average of 8 yards per rush. He ended the night with 72 yards rushing.
On the flip side, the Mizzou rush defense was also spectacular. Against South Carolina, the Tigers defense forced the Gamecocks to record -9 rushing yards. Against Louisiana? 117 yards, but 86 of them came from a touchdown run from Zylan Perry. And kansas? 31 rushing yards.
Zion Young and Josiah Trotter have consistently led a stellar defense all year that looks like they could stop just about anyone. Trotter also caught some high praise from jealous South Carolina HC Shane Beamer.
“I mean, Josiah Trotter is a really good player,” Beamer said. “They spent a lot of money in the portal to get him there, and he was hard to block. There were times where he just recognized the play and got to the ball carrier before we could get there for sure.”
Sounds like someone is frustrated that Trotter threw absolute chaos at the Gamecocks offensive line, but the former Big 12 Defensive Freshman of the Year is going to do what he does best: dominate. When the team can shut down an offense like that, especially against a mobile quarterback, it sets a major tone.
Chris McClellan mentioned that the rush defense was key as the Tigers move into future conference play.
“I feel like this is a good building block for us to build off of and keep going and keep pursuing higher heights,” said McClellan.
Ahmad Hardy and the running game will look to explode once again this Saturday at UMass with the defense looking to find big sacks, but the job isn’t finished and there is still work to be done.
