Why Week 6 Marks Crucial Point for Mizzou's 2024 Season

With a matchup with Texas A&M on the horizon, the Missouri Tigers are set to face their toughest test up to this point.

Joey Van Zummeren | Sep 30, 2024

Sep 21, 2024; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Missouri Tigers head coach Eliah Drinkwitz looks on during a timeout during the first half against the Vanderbilt Commodores at Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images / Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

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Missouri Tigers

Shortly after the Missouri Tigers wrap up warmups at each Tuesday practice, Kanye West's "Power" blares through the speakers. The same song once synonymous with Texas A&M during the glory days behind quarterback Johnny Manziel is the soundtrack to the first set of drills for Missouri.

Whether the song choice is coincidental or not, Missouri has kept Texas A&M in mind in preparation all season.

More specifically, the test of Kyle Field.

“We've been doing stuff since day one of fall camp when it comes to noise," Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz said when asked about preparing for the Texas A&M matchup.

With a capacity of 102,733, the iconic stadium seats the fourth most in all of college football. The last time Missouri played at Kyle Field, November of 2014, 104,756 fans witnessed the Tigers pull off a 34-27 win.

Nov 15, 2014; College Station, TX, USA; Missouri Tigers running back Russell Hansbrough (32) celebrates with teammates after scoring a touchdown during the third quarter against the Texas A&M Aggies at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images / Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

Returning to Kyle Field for the first time in just short of a decade, the Tigers walk into a key matchup that will likely act as a crucial point in their 2024 campaign.

With Missouri's start to SEC play in Week 4 featuring more bumps than most expected, competing with Vanderbilt until securing a 30-27 win in double overtime, the Tigers are looking for some momentum.

With the opportunity to play in one of the toughest environments in the country, Missouri has a chance to silence any doubts created from its close match with Vanderbilt. If Missouri were to pull off the win over Texas A&M, the Tigers would join Alabama as the only SEC team to beat the Aggies at Kyle Field in the past two seasons.

For all the momentum Missouri has built over the past two seasons, it is yet to win a test in as tough of an environment as Kyle Field in recent history. The Tigers' toughest road test in 2023 was against then-No. 1 Georgia at Sanford Stadium, where Missouri fell 30-21.

Missouri has not won in the top five stadiums with the highest capacity in the SEC (Texas A&M, LSU, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia) since its 2018 victory over Tennessee.

With all that Missouri has proved to claw itself up the SEC ranks, coming away with a win at Kyle Field would put the Tigers in a good place near the halfway point of the season.

It would even be labeled as an upset, with Missouri listed as 1.5-point underdogs in opening lines for the game. It will also be the only SEC matchup with two ranked teams during Week 6.

A win would mark the second for the Tigers over a team who was ranked at the time of the matchup, also winning over then-No. 24 Boston College in Week 3.

The matchup with Texas A&M begins what is expected to be the most important and challenging five-week stretch of Missouri's season. Missouri should be heavy favorites in Week 7 over UMass, however, it then hosts Auburn, travel to Alabama, and host Oklahoma.

The games over Alabama and Oklahoma are expected to be the two most significant factors for Missouri's playoff chances.

Entering that stretch with momentum leaning the right way will be cruical for the Tigers.

Even with an ugly win on the record sheet, Missouri is still undefeated. The Tigers still have the power to determine the fate for their 2024 season.

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