Mizzou Football redshirt freshman QB Maty Mauk (Kenton, Ohio) has been named the Southeastern Conference’s Freshman Player of the Week, the league office announced on Monday. The honor is the third of Mauk’s debut season in the Tigers’ lineup, playing in relief of injured senior co-captain QB James Franklin (Corinth, Texas).

Mauk continued his high level of play in the 48-17 win at Kentucky, matching a feat only accomplished by all-time Mizzou great Chase Daniel. Mauk threw five touchdown passes against the Wildcats to match Daniel’s four five-TD pass games from his career (2005-08). The Tiger QB completed 17-of-28 passes (60.7 pct.) for 203 yards and helped sophomore WR Dorial Green-Beckham (Springfield, Mo.) set the school record for touchdown catches in a game with his four.

Mauk’s recognition is the 10th SEC honor for a Mizzou player in 2013, continuing to reset Mizzou’s best for conference honors in a season. Head coach Gary Pinkel’s 2007 squad brought home a total of eight individual honors.

The third honor for Mauk matches senior DE Michael Sam (Hitchcock, Texas) for the team-high in league honors this season. The two Tigers’ trio of honors are the first of their kind since 2007, when former Mizzou and current Kansas City Chiefs QB Chase Daniel was named Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week three times during the 2007 season (Oct. 8, Nov. 5, Nov. 26).

No. 9 Mizzou (9-1, 5-1) heads into an off week before a road trip to Ole Miss on Saturday, Nov. 23. The Tigers then close the regular season at home with Texas A&M on Nov. 30.

— MU Sports Information —

Missouri Basketball freshman guard Wes Clark was named the Southeastern Conference’s Freshman of the Week after a tremendous all-around effort in his collegiate debut last Friday vs. Southeastern Louisiana.

A native of Detroit, Mich., Clark scored 13 points, grabbed a game-high tying seven rebounds and dished four assists without committing a turnover in 26 minutes vs. the Lions.

Clark enjoyed extended playing time in the first half after starting point guard Jordan Clarkson was sidelined by early foul trouble. The 6-foot newcomer scored 10 of his 13 points in that opening half and finished the night a perfect 3-of-3 from three-point range.

One of the SEC’s top young players, Clark has not committed a turnover in his last 54 minutes of game action, which dates back to the second half of the exhibition-opening win against Oklahoma City on Oct. 25 at Hearnes Center.

Mizzou Basketball returns to action on Tuesday night at 8 p.m. against Southern Illinois at Mizzou Arena.

— MU Sports Information —

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Maty Mauk wanted simply to keep the offense rolling for No. 9 Missouri before turning the job back to James Franklin. Dorial Green-Beckham was merely trying to help the Tigers’ backup quarterback succeed.

Their goals helped both make program history Saturday.

Mauk threw five touchdown passes to tie Chase Daniel’s school record, Green-Beckham set another mark by catching four of them and Missouri cruised past Kentucky 48-17.

Making his fourth consecutive start in place of the injured Franklin, the Tigers’ redshirt freshman completed 17 of 28 attempts for 203 yards by taking full advantage of 6-foot-6 sophomore Green-Beckham.

Mauk added a 6-yard scoring pass to Henry Josey, who also rushed for two TDs, including an 86-yarder.

”With your name besides his, obviously it’s a tremendous honor,” Mauk said of his achievement. ”I couldn’t have done it without the five guys up front and the guys that made something happen after they caught the ball today.”

His achievement might not have been possible without Green-Beckham, whose previous best was a pair of two-TD games. Surprisingly finding himself covered by a single (and shorter) Kentucky defender, it was easy for him to go up and haul in Mauk’s jump-ball passes in the end zone.

”The safety was really rolling over most of the game,” said Green-Beckham, who had seven receptions for 100 yards. ”I just felt like I came out there and just beat their defense myself and just went out there and made plays.”

Missouri (9-1, 5-1 Southeastern Conference) allowed Kentucky (2-7, 0-5) two touchdowns in the third quarter but the Mauk-to-Green-Beckham connection answered both scores with TDs of 22 and seven yards.

”We were trying to play tight coverage, and we didn’t play it very well,” Kentucky coach Mark Stoops said.

The victory helped the Tigers stay a half-game ahead of idle South Carolina (5-2) atop the East division heading into their second bye and gave coach Gary Pinkel his fourth nine-win season in 13 years with Missouri.

Missouri outgained Kentucky 426-369, but its defense recorded 11 tackles for loss, seven sacks and recovered a fumble in handing the Wildcats their 13th straight SEC loss. The Tigers also extended their nation-leading streak of games with a takeaway to 40.

”We’re just trying to do our job and execute,” Tigers linebacker Andrew Wilson said.

Kentucky’s only consolation was scores on the opening possessions of both halves. Joe Mansour kicked a 21-yard field goal in the first quarter, while quarterback Jalen Whitlow ran for a 1-yard TD to start the second half.

Raymond Sanders’ 1-yard TD run brought the Wildcats within 35-17, but the Tigers tacked on two more TDs to cap a day in which they scored four consecutive times in the first half and three straight times in the second.

Mauk ended up matching his season TD total in one game before giving way to Franklin in the fourth quarter, his first action since injuring his shoulder against Georgia.

”We’re fortunate to get him (Franklin) back, but we’re also fortunate to have a backup quarterback that can plays like Maty Mauk’s playing,” Pinkel said. ”He’s got a long way before he’s doing all the things right, but obviously the guy can make some plays.”

Josey finished with 113 yards rushing on 11 carries.

Dominant as the Tigers were, their timing seemed off during the first two series after the early start. But then they caught a huge break when Kentucky punter Landon Foster shanked a 13-yard kick to the Wildcats 39.

Back-to-back runs of 6 and 27 yards by Marcus Murphy moved the Tigers to Kentucky’s 8 and set up Mauk’s floater in the left corner of the end zone, where Green-Beckham effortlessly went up over 6-foot cornerback Nate Willis to snag the touchdown pass.

Missouri special teamer Levi Copeland made Foster’s day even worse on the next drive by blocking his attempted punt inside the 10. It was recovered by the punter at the 4. Josey ran it in on the next play, and like that the Tigers were up 14-3.

The Tigers’ next touchdown was nearly identical to the first, as Green-Beckham out-jumped Willis again on the left side of the other end zone for a 7-yard score to cap the Tigers’ first sustained drive, 67 yards and 10 plays.

Missouri was just as methodical on its final scoring drive of the half. The Tigers went 87 yards and 15 plays and ended with Mauk’s 6-yard pass to Josey, who stretched to hit the pylon as he was knocked out of bounds.

Kentucky controlled the ball for more than 37 minutes, but it didn’t matter as Missouri scored quickly in bunches. Josey’s 86-yard run early in the fourth quarter provided the exclamation point.

— Associated Press —

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Jabari Brown scored 19 points and Jordan Clarkson added 14 to help Missouri cruise to an 89-53 win over Southeastern Louisiana in the season opener for both teams Friday night.

The Tigers (1-0) showed no signs of distress without coach Frank Haith, who started serving a five-game suspension levied by the NCAA last month.

Missouri won its 19th consecutive game at Mizzou Arena and hasn’t lost to a non-conference opponent on its own floor since the 2005-06 opener. The team used 11-0 and 14-0 runs in the first half to break the game open.

JaMichael Hawkins led Southeastern Louisiana (0-1) with 14 points, while Jeffery Ricard added nine. Ricard and Dre Evans are the only returned starters for the Lions, who were picked to finish sixth out of 12 teams in the Southland Conference.

Missouri interim head coach Tim Fuller said this week he couldn’t sleep Tuesday night after Haith told him he would be taking over. Fuller, who had no previous head coaching experience, paced the length of his bench throughout the night despite his team never being in danger.

Earnest Ross opened the game with consecutive 3-pointers to give the Tigers a lead they would never relinquish. He then assisted on a layup by Johnathan Williams III, who became the first freshman to start a season opener for the Tigers since 2004.

Brown is the Tigers’ lone returning starter from a 23-11 campaign last season. The team lost more than 60 percent of its scoring, rebounding, assists and steals, much of which left when Phil Pressey decided to forego his senior season and join the NBA.

Ricard’s 3-pointer with 7:06 remaining in the first half broke up Missouri’s big runs, but the Lions shot just 26 percent from the floor before the break and didn’t reach the free throw line. They did score the final five points in the half, capped by a thunderous alley-oop dunk by Devonte Upson from Hawkins with 43 seconds left.

Coach Jim Yarbrough said this week he hoped to see some consistency with his squad as it welcomes four junior college transfers and three freshmen. But other than an 8-0 run capped by Ricard’s traditional three-point play 15 seconds into the second half, Southeastern Louisiana struggled to establish any rhythm against the Tigers.

A crowd of 7,926 watched the Tigers shoot 54.4 percent from the field but only 55.6 percent from the charity stripe. A 12-1 run that ended with a free throw by Brown gave Missouri a 72-33 lead with 8:22 remaining in the game. The teams then traded baskets until the final buzzer.

— Associated Press —

Mizzou Basketball had two players named to the Southeastern Conference’s 10th annual men’s basketball coaches preseason All-SEC first and second teams on Friday. Junior guard Jabari Brown was one of eight players named to the SEC’s first team, while senior guard Earnest Ross was a second team selection.

Missouri was one of five schools with multiple players represented on the two squads, with the Oakland, Calif., native, Brown, leading the way.

The 6-foot-5 shooting guard is Mizzou’s lone returning starter from last season’s 23-11 campaign. Brown averaged 13.7 points and 3.4 rebounds and started the season’s final 23 games after becoming eligible following his transfer from the University of Oregon. In SEC play, Brown was Missouri’s leading scorer (14.6 ppg) and ranked among league leaders in scoring (7th), free throw percentage (9th – .778) and three-point percentage (6th – .376) in conference games.

Overall the shooting guard topped 20 points five times in SEC action, including a career-high 23 points in wins at South Carolina and in the 2012-13 home finale vs. Arkansas. Missouri was 5-0 when Brown scored 20 points last season and the junior will help lead a new-look Tiger squad that opens regular-season play tonight vs. Southeastern Louisiana at 7 p.m.

Ross has been spectacular in the early season for the Tigers and enters his final collegiate campaign after averaging 10.3 points and 5.0 rebounds as a junior. The 6-foot-5 guard was the SEC’s top bench scorer a year ago averaging 11.0 points when coming off the pine. He is also Mizzou’s top returning rebounder and double-double producer (three) from 2012-13.

A native of Cary, N.C., Ross is quickly approaching 1,000 career points. He has scored 848 points in his college career and needs just 152 points starting tonight (vs. Southeastern Louisiana) to reach that exclusive scoring milestone.

Brown and Ross are Missouri’s second and third all-time representatives on the SEC’s preseason teams. Phil Pressey was Mizzou’s lone representative on the preseason coaches teams last year.

Seven different schools are represented on the two teams with Kentucky having five selections while Tennessee had three and Florida, LSU and Missouri each have two selections. In all, 37 different players received votes for the coaches’ teams.

The coaches’ preseason All-SEC first and second teams consist of a minimum of eight players on each squad, voted on by the SEC Head Men’s Basketball Coaches. No ties were broken and no predicted order of finish was made.

First Team All-SEC
Trevor Releford – Alabama, G, 6-0, 190, Sr., Kansas City, Mo.
Patric Young – Florida, C, 6-9, 240, Sr., Jacksonville, Fla.
Julius Randle – Kentucky, F, 6-9, 250, Fr., Dallas, Texas
Johnny O’Bryant III – LSU, F, 6-9, 256 , Jr. , Cleveland, Miss.
Marshall Henderson – Ole Miss, G, 6-2, 177, Sr., Hurst, Texas
Jabari Brown – Missouri, G, 6-5, 214, Jr., Oakland, Calif.
Jordan McRae – Tennessee, G, 6-6, 185, Sr., Midway, Ga.
Jarnell Stokes – Tennessee, F, 6-8, 260, Jr., Memphis, Tenn.

Second Team All-SEC
Scottie Wilbekin – Florida, G, 6-2, 176, Sr., Gainesville, Fla.
Willie Cauley-Stein – Kentucky, F, 7-0, 244, So., Olathe, Kan.
Andrew Harrison – Kentucky, G, 6-6, 215, Fr., Richmond, Texas
Alex Poythress – Kentucky, F, 6-8, 239, So., Clarksville, Tenn.
James Young – Kentucky, G, 6-6, 215, Fr., Rochester Hills, Mich.
Anthony Hickey – LSU, G, 5-11, 182, Jr., Hopkinsville, Ky.
Earnest Ross – Missouri, G, 6-5, 228, Sr., Cary, N.C.
Jeronne Maymon – Tennessee, F, 6-8, 260, Sr., Madison, Wis.

— SEC Sports Information —

Mizzou Football senior offensive lineman Justin Britt (Lebanon, Mo.) and redshirt freshman Maty Mauk (Kenton, Ohio) have been named the Southeastern Conference’s Offensive Line Player of the Week and Freshman Player of the Week, respectively, the league office announced on Monday.

Britt put together another all-star performance, as he helped pave and protect the way for a 502-yard night of total offense for Mizzou in its 31-3 win against Tennessee last Saturday. For the evening, Mizzou rushed for 339 yards against the Volunteers, marking its biggest rushing total in a conference game since 2003, when the Tigers ran for 376 yards in a 45-7 win over Iowa State on Nov. 29, 2003.

Britt’s award-worthy level of play has been a key reason why the Tigers are one of the best turn-around stories of the 2013 season.  Mizzou’s offense ranks in the Top 30 nationally in most major categories, a few of which include: first downs gained (10th), fewest turnovers lost (12th), scoring offense (13th), total offense (15th), rushing offense (16th), third down conversions (27th) and passing efficiency (28th).

Mauk continued to play at a high level in relief of injured senior co-captain QB James Franklin (Corinth, Texas), as he accounted for 277 yards of total offense in the victory over Tennessee. He became the first Mizzou quarterback since 2011 (Franklin vs. North Carolina) to throw and rush for 100 yards in a game. Mauk ended the night with 163 yards passing and three touchdowns throws against zero interceptions. He ran for a career-high 114 yards on 13 carries (an 8.8 avg. per attempt).

The weekly award for Mauk is the second time this season he has earned Freshman Player of the Week from the conference office.

The two recognitions mark the eighth and ninth weekly SEC honors earned by Tigers this season, resetting Mizzou’s best for conference honors in a season. Head coach Gary Pinkel’s 2007 squad brought home a total of eight individual honors.

No. 9 Mizzou (8-1, 4-1) hits the road for a matchup with conference foe Kentucky on Saturday, Nov. 9, with kickoff set for 11 a.m. CT on ESPNU.

— MU Sports Information —

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Maty Mauk threw three touchdown passes and ran for another, leading No. 10 Missouri’s dominant and resilient effort in a 31-3 victory over Tennessee Saturday night.

The Tigers (8-1, 4-1 SEC) responded smartly a week after squandering a 17-point cushion in the fourth quarter of a double-overtime loss to South Carolina. Andrew Baggett banged another chip-shot field goal attempt off the left goalpost, eerily similar to his game-ending misfire a week earlier, but instead of heartbreak they still took a 24-3 cushion into halftime.

Missouri forced three turnovers and committed none in Mauk’s best game in three starts in place of injured James Franklin. Mauk had 114 yards on 13 carries, and threw touchdown passes to Dorial Green-Beckham, L’Damian Washington and Marcus Lucas in the first half. Franklin (shoulder sprain) warmed up before the game.

Tennessee (4-5, 1-4) is 0-4 on the road, all but one of them blowouts.

— Associated Press —

Mizzou Football senior defensive end Michael Sam (Hitchcock, Texas) has been announced as a semifinalist for the 19th Chuck Bednarik Award for the Outstanding Defensive Player of the Year. Currently the Southeastern Conference and national sacks leader with 10.0 to his credit, Sam was one of 16 candidates picked by the Maxwell Football Club National Selection Committee.

Sam’s outstanding All-America caliber season has included three multi-sack games, first with 3.0 sacks against Arkansas State (Sept. 28) and then following with two more 3.0-sack performances in Mizzou wins at Vanderbilt (Oct. 5) and vs. Florida (Oct. 19). The 3.0-sack stat line has only been accomplished 23 total times across the Football Bowl Subdivision. Sam also leads the SEC and nation in tackles-for-loss with his 16.0 total (2.00 per game).

League recognition has come in steadily for the Tiger defender, with Sam earning two SEC Defensive Line Player of the Week awards (Sept. 28, Oct. 5) and one SEC Defensive Player of the Week honor (Oct. 19). Sam is one of just two players from the SEC to be named a semifinalist.

The winner of the 19th Chuck Bednarik Award will be announced as part of the Home Depot College Football Awards Show which will be broadcast on ESPN on Dec. 12. Three finalists will be announced on Nov. 25, and a second round of voting will take place at that time. The formal presentation of the award will be made at the Maxwell Football Club’s Awards Dinner on Feb. 28, 2014 in Atlantic City, N.J.

Semifinalist voting will begin on Wednesday, Oct. 30, and close on Sunday, Nov. 24. Eligible voters include Maxwell Football Club members, NCAA head football coaches, sports information directors and selected national media.

No. 10 Mizzou (7-1, 3-1) continues at home with SEC foe Tennessee (4-4, 1-3) on Saturday, Nov. 2, with kickoff at 6 p.m. on ESPN.

— MU Sports Information —

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Connor Shaw came off the bench in the second half to lead a 17-point rally, throwing for 201 yards and three touchdowns, and Elliott Fry kicked the go-ahead field goal in the second overtime to help No. 20 South Carolina stun No. 5 Missouri 27-24 on Saturday night.

After Fry put the Gamecocks ahead from 40 yards out, Missouri’s Andrew Baggett missed a 24-yard attempt off the left goal post.

Missouri (7-1, 3-1) could have all but locked up the SEC East with a victory, instead South Carolina (6-2, 4-2 SEC) moves to within one game of the Tigers for the division lead, with home games against Mississippi State and Florida remaining.

A sprain left knee kept Shaw from starting, but he entered the game in the third quarter and helped the Gamecocks score the final 17 points of regulation. He also threw a 15-yard touchdown pass on fourth down in the Gamecocks’ first overtime to match the Tigers’ Marcus Murphy’s 1-yard scamper.

Shaw engineered fourth-quarter scoring drives of 65, 69 and 63 yards, and the Gamecocks knotted the score at 17 on a two-yard reception by Nick Jones with 42 seconds remaining. Ellington scored his first touchdown on a 6-yard catch with 12:13 remaining, and Elliott Fry added a 20-yard field goal with 5:03 left.

Mike Davis caught three screen passes on South Carolina’s final scoring drive in regulation, partly making up for two fumbles in the first half. The Gamecocks turned the ball over three consecutive times in the second quarter, helping Missouri take a 14-0 halftime lead.

Davis, who led the conference with 125.6 rushing yards per game entering the night, committed his first miscue at the Missouri 29-yard line with 12:30 remaining in the half, and his second halted a 71-yard drive at the Tigers’ 2-yard line with 5:46 left. He finished the night with 51 rushing yards and 99 receiving yards while backup Shon Carson added 27 on the ground and 14 through the air.

Davis’ second fumble set the stage for a 96-yard touchdown pass from Mauk to L’Damian Washington on Missouri’s ensuing drive. Two yards deep in his own end zone, Mauk found Washington streaking toward the middle of the field for an easy first down, and then the receiver eluded two tackles at his 45-yard line before being untouched the rest of the way. The pass was Missouri’s longest since a 98-yarder from Pete Woods to Joe Stewart at Nebraska in 1976.

Mauk struggled out of the gate, throwing a pass dropped by defender Sharrod Golightly and then an interception to Kaiwan Lewis, a far cry from the 41-yard pass and 20-yard touchdown toss he threw in his opening attempts last week in a 36-17 win against Florida. But Mauk then completed three of his next four to set up Missouri’s first touchdown, an 11-yard scamper by Murphy with 1:23 left in the first quarter.

The Tigers added a 27-yard field goal by Baggett with 6:46 left in the third quarter before he missed a 46-yarder in the fourth quarter wide left.

— Associated Press —

The Missouri Men’s Basketball Team got the 2013-14 season rolling with a convincing 73-48 exhibition win over Oklahoma City Friday night (Oct. 25) at Center.

Mizzou Athletics honored the 1993-94 undefeated Big Eight Conference Championship team during the game, which took place at the historic Hearnes Center. Legendary Missouri coach Norm Stewart and nearly every member of his championship team attended the game.

Admission was free and fans were encouraged to arrive early for pregame festivities that included autographs and a ceremonial jersey presentation to the 1993-94 players and coaches. Coach Frank Haith’s squad wore uniforms from the championship season and Stewart addressed Mizzou nation at halftime.

“On behalf of Missouri basketball, the 1993-94 team, players, coaches and staff, we want to thank you for coming out,” Stewart said. “I know that you came out to see the basketball game and I know that you came to see the great team of 1993-94. We’ve got great fans. We always have and I think we always will.”

Redshirt junior Jabari Brown, who started nearly every game for the Tigers during the second half of the 2012-13 season, returned to the starting lineup alongside senior Earnest Ross. Ross, a native of Cary, N.C., made 10 starts last year for the Tigers and was a crucial player off the bench. Jonathan Williams, III, a freshman from Memphis, Tenn., and transfers Jordan Clarkson and Keanau Post made their first starts in a Tiger uniform.

Brown gave the Tigers an early lead after hitting his first shot beyond the arc and the Tigers never looked back. Mizzou held a commanding lead over Oklahoma City throughout the entirety of the game and played in various combinations constructed by Haith and his staff.

The Tigers led Oklahoma City by 19 (43-24) at half and shot an impressive 53.8 percent from the floor during the first half.

Mizzou got off to a bit of a lethargic start in the second half as Oklahoma City cut the lead to 10 (51-41). The Tigers soon got back on track and went on a 14-0 run in six minutes as the trio of Clarkson, Brown and Ross showed flashes of greatness with well-timed and well-executed plays throughout the remainder of the game.

As a team, Mizzou shot 52 percent from the floor and 31 percent from beyond the arc as well as recording 46 rebounds. Brown led the team in scoring with 15 points and five assists. Ross was just behind Brown and recorded a double-double by scoring 13 points and 12 rebounds. Williams had an impressive freshman debut, scoring 10 points. Leading the scoring for Oklahoma City was senior Kaleb Smith who tallied 15 points.

The Tigers return to action, next Friday, Nov. 1, when they take on Central Missouri in their second and final exhibition game of the season. The game begins at 7:30 p.m. at Mizzou Arena.

— MU Sports Information —