Takeaways as Mizzou football handily, not spectacularly, defeats South Dakota

If not dazzling, it was enough.

Mizzou football kicked off its season with a comfortable 35-10 win over South Dakota on Thursday at Memorial Stadium, never needing to turn on the jets against its overmatched FCS opposition.

Here are three takeaways from the win:

QBs get a half each

MU coach Eli Drinkwitz said he had a plan for the quarterback rotation.

That plan: One-half each.

Brady Cook put the game to bed with a weaving QB keeper from 15 yards near the end of the first half, capping off a successful two-minute drill and handing the Tigers a 28-3 lead. That followed a stunning 30-yard strike to Luther Burden III on a fly route, splitting two DBs.

The incumbent starting QB finished 17-of-21 with 172 yards and a touchdown. He added 17 yards on the ground.

Sam Horn took the second half with the game essentially out of sight but didn't enter until there was 6:35 left in the third quarter as the Coyotes chewed the clock.

On his second drive, he hit Mekhi Miller low, but the ball bounced out of the receiver's hands and into the opposition's for a pick

Horn's final action of the night: finding Burden, who dodged his way into the end zone from 15 yards.

The redshirt freshman QB mostly handed the ball off in his longest collegiate appearance, finishing 3-of-5 with 54 yards, one touchdown and an in-name-only pick.

Moore conservative in debut

New offensive coordinator Kirby Moore did not swing for the fences on his opening drive, and that resulted in sparse boos from the Memorial crowd after opting not to chance an early fourth-and-1.

But four of the next five possessions struck gold.

A six-play drive culminating in Cook finding Miller in the slot from 18 yards opened the scoring. The next three first-half scores all finished on running plays after being mostly created by pounding the ground.

Moore showed some of what his new scheme, constantly putting his receivers in motion and his running backs out wide, but stuck mostly to the Tigers’ tried and true.

The Tigers finished with 447 yards of offense, 226 of which rushing.

Defense starts strong

Missouri’s defense came out with a bang, as South Dakota failed to get a first down in all but one of its five first-half drives.

Defensive coordinator Blake Baker’s unit had a rare blip at the beginning of the second quarter, but facing a first and goal Missouri quickly made amends.

Linebacker Chuck Hicks tracked down a rush left for no gain; Kristian Williams forced a fumble 14 yards further back; Johnny Walker Jr. stuffed a QB keeper; and South Dakota settled for 3.

And so went the night.

Missouri flexed 19 different players with at least one tackle, holding the Coyotes to 194 yards of total offense.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Takeaways as Mizzou football handily, not spectacularly, defeats South Dakota