Alabama vs. Missouri: Assessing Matchups to Watch in SEC Championship 2014
Both the Missouri Tigers and Alabama Crimson Tide proved worthy of a spot in the SEC Championship Game after a couple of impressive showings during rivalry week.
Missouri showed a great deal of resilience in a 21-14 victory over Arkansas, and Alabama overcame early mistakes to defeat Auburn 55-44.
The Tigers and the Crimson Tide share plenty of similarities. They both run balanced offenses featuring bruising running backs and game-altering wide receivers, along with stout defenses that are capable of controlling field position and the pace of the game.
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Needless to say, there are several key matchups to keep an eye on in this impending clash.
Before these teams take the field on December 6 to crown this year's SEC champion, let's take a look at the matchups that will prove to be deciding factors in the game's outcome.
Missouri Secondary vs. Amari Cooper
By now, the nation knows exactly how dangerous Cooper can be on any given week. However, no one knows better than the Auburn Tigers.
The prolific wide receiver tore up the Iron Bowl, racking up 13 receptions for 224 yards and three touchdowns. Cooper was so dangerous, he set a new game record through just three quarters, via ESPN Stats & Info:
That game marked the third time this season Cooper went over the 200-yard mark and his fourth outing with multiple touchdowns. Missouri really needs to focus its attention on the junior wideout.
Luckily for the Tigers, they have the talent to contain Cooper as well as anyone. Through 12 games this season, Missouri is allowing an average of just 204.1 passing yards per game.
They've been burned at times, though. Josh Reynolds of Texas A&M caught five receptions for 125 yards and two scores in a November 15 clash.
The key for Missouri is to get pressure on quarterback Blake Sims. The Tigers have maintained one of the nation's best pass rushes this season, tallying 40 sacks. Conversely, Alabama has been one of the best teams against the rush, allowing just 10 entering Saturday's game.
Alabama Run Defense vs. Missouri Backfield
Missouri has been riding its talented running backs to wins for the majority of the season, as Russell Hansbrough and Marcus Murphy have combined to form a dangerous two-headed monster.
The duo was instrumental in defeating Arkansas on Friday, combining to carry 31 times for 149 yards and a touchdown.
Hansbrough has been the team's featured back this season; however, his status remains up in the air for the title game following an ankle injury late in the contest against the Razorbacks.
Fortunately, Pete Scantlebury of Rivals.com relayed a favorable message from Murphy about his counterpart:
Alabama continues to have one of the stingiest run defenses year after year, and 2014 was no exception. Heading into Saturday's clash against Auburn, the Crimson Tide were allowing an average of just 2.76 yards per carry and 85.3 yards per game, ranking second in the nation.
Auburn's attack did get to Alabama a bit, as the Tigers accumulated 174 rushing yards, but they were limited to just 3.7 yards per carry.
If the Crimson Tide can do the same against Missouri, it will be difficult for quarterback Maty Mauk to successfully orchestrate a one-dimensional defense.
Quarterbacks vs. Themselves
This may seem like a rather unusual category—and it is, but it will be one of the most decisive factors in the SEC Championship Game.
Sims has been extremely efficient for the Crimson Tide this season, throwing just four interceptions through the team's first 11 games. That took a big turn for the worse Saturday, as the quarterback tossed three early picks against Auburn.
In fact, head coach Nick Saban appeared to contemplate putting backup Jacob Coker in the game, via Jon Solomon of CBSSports.com:
The senior signal-caller was finally able to get it going later in the game thanks to the efforts of Cooper, but his confidence may be a bit down going forward. We'll see if he can rise above those mistakes against Missouri.
Mauk hasn't been the most consistent quarterback this season. He's completing just 53.5 percent of his passes and has thrown 11 interceptions to 22 touchdown passes.
He had one terrible showing earlier in the season against Georgia, throwing four picks and completing just nine of his 21 passing attempts in that contest.
Recently, he's fared better, throwing just two interceptions over his last five games. Mihir Bhagat of KOMU-TV tweeted the quarterback's progression prior to the team's contest against Arkansas:
He's certainly been looking more precise of late, but can he keep it up against an Alabama defense that recorded its 10th interception of the season on Saturday? The sophomore signal-caller will be heavily tested.
All team rankings and statistics courtesy of NCAA.com and current as of November 30 at 2:45 a.m. ET.
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