OTF staff score predictions: Texas-Mizzou

Bobby Burton

Will Muschamp, with a defense lacking at least a couple of starters, will slow the Mizzou run game just enough. The Texas offense moves the ball reasonably well. Texas wins utilizing Arch’s legs in the red zone. ... Texas 20, Missouri 17

Rod Babers

Texas needs to play clean football on offense to beat Missouri. They need to cut down on the penalties, win the turnover margin and reduce the negative plays; that's the formula on the road. They need to be comfortable grinding it out on offense, even if it's 3-5 yards at a time to avoid the dreaded 3 and out. Play clean on offense and special teams and win with defense. ... Texas 27, Missouri 23

Marcus Myers

I could see this one being ugly, and that's fine. Texas is banged up, with Smothers done for the year and two starting DBs on the report, so I expect Missouri to find a couple of scores through the air. But Mizzou struggles to finish drives and get off the field on third down, and Texas has been one of the best in the country at holding teams to field goals once they get close. That's the game. On offense, the key is sustaining drives. Arch has to live in the quick game, stay on schedule, get Emmett Mosley V and Jermaine Bishop Jr. the ball in space, and take the play-action shot when it's there, because this Missouri defense rarely bends but gives up the big one when it breaks. Texas doesn't get into scoring range often, but it cashes in when it does. Two touchdowns, three field goals, and a defense that makes Mizzou kick. Longhorns go to 7-2. ... Texas 23, Missouri 17

Jeff Howe

I don’t trust the Texas offense. Whether it’s establishing and sticking with the run or protecting the football, there’s no reason to believe the Longhorns will be anything close to a well-oiled machine on that side of the ball. With that said, I’m hopeful that Steve Sarkisian has come around to the realization that this Texas squad is a defense-first outfit. If Sarkisian leans into that and prioritizes field position and moving the chains to limit the defense’s exposure to unfavorable situations, the offense can do enough for the Longhorns to get an SEC road win. ... Texas 17, Missouri 16

Hank South

Texas in the month of November has been pretty good with its back against the wall (ignore the Georgia game last year). The Longhorns defense rises to the occasion, makes Austin Simmons uncomfortable, and limits the Mizzou rushing attack. The Texas offense does just enough to put UT over the finish line. ... Texas 23, Missouri 16

CJ Vogel

Texas has scored 21 points or more just once in true road games with Arch Manning as the quarterback. I don’t mean that to dog Arch, but more to provide context to how difficult points have been to find over the last year and a half away from DKR. Will Texas find 21 points Saturday against Missouri? I’m not banking on it. But I am banking on the Texas defense to continue carrying this team. ... Texas 17, Missouri 14

Jordan Scruggs

Though they’ve had two better weeks against Ole Miss and Miss. St., I’m still not confident in the offense putting up a lot of points on the board. The defense is where the confidence in Texas is and Will Muschamp’s unit will likely have to force multiple turnovers for Texas to come away victorious. Either way, I like this one to be low scoring with Texas’ experience in these ugly rock-fight-type games showing up in a positive way on Saturday. ... Texas 24, Missouri 23