The addition of Texas and Oklahoma to the conference paired with the removal of divisions has the SEC slate looking completely different heading into the 2024 college football season. This year, the two best records in the league will duke it out in Atlanta for the conference title regardless of whether they were in the SEC East or West last season.
Not all schedules have been created equally when looking ahead at the season, and because of that, college football analyst Joel Klatt believes that Missouri‘s Week 9 matchup against Alabama could firmly put the Tigers in the SEC Championship game for the first time since 2014. Recently, Klatt tabbed it as one of the 10 that will shape the 2024 college football season on The Joel Klatt Show.
“They do not play in their conference Georgia, they do not play Texas, they do not play Ole Miss, they do not play LSU, and they do not play Tennessee. This is their toughest SEC game,” Klatt said. “If they can beat Alabama they’re gonna be in Atlanta. So wrap your minds around that.”
Missouri has not defeated Alabama since joining the SEC in 2016. But with the Tigers coming off an incredible and unexpected 11-2 season and Alabama head coach Nick Saban retiring this offseason, this year could be Mizzou’s best shot to get an impactful win over the Crimson Tide.
“If they beat, let’s say, A&M in their fifth game, they should be 7-0 when they go to Tuscaloosa. I think they should beat Texas A&M. A win against Bama and they’re in a good position to be what, third in the country? Second in the country at that point at 8-0?” Klatt asked.
The Tigers return key players like quarterbackBrady Cook and wide receiver Luther Burden, which paired with the remainder of their schedule could lead to them not just appearing in the conference title game, but also the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff.
“And then their final four games after Alabama are as follows. They are at home to OU, they’re at South Carolina, they’re at Mississippi State, and then they’ve got Arkansas at home. Folks that is an incredibly manageable schedule and that’s why I think Missouri could be a sneaky team that gets to Atlanta and that’s why that game against Alabama is going to be so important,” Klatt concluded.
Mizzou visits Tuscaloosa to take on the Crimson Tide on October 26, and it will be fascinating to see the record of both teams and the stakes of the matchup once it arrives in three months.
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