University of Missouri football returns to Faurot Field to renew Southeastern Conference play Saturday, when the No. 19/16 Tigers host the Auburn Tigers in Mizzou's 113th Homecoming game.
Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. CT, and the game will be broadcast live on the ESPN and Tiger Radio Network.
Auburn enters Saturday's matchup with a 3-1 series edge against Mizzou, including a 2017 win over the Tigers in the only other meeting in Columbia. AU has won each of the last three games in the series since Mizzou's move to the SEC. MU's lone win over Auburn came in the 1973 Sun Bowl — a 34-17 victory in El Paso, Texas.
Saturday's ESPN broadcast will feature Dave Pasch, Dusty Dvoracek, and Taylor McGregor on the call. The game can also be heard on the Tiger Radio Network from LEARFIELD through the Varsity Network mobile app and Sirius XM channel 82.
GAME NOTES
Missouri brings a seven-game Homecoming winning streak into Saturday's game and will face off against Auburn on the special day for the first time in program history.
The Tigers are 67-40-5 all-time in Homecoming games, including a 4-0 mark under Eliah Drinkwitz.
Drinkwitz moved into a tie with Larry Smith for the No. 7 spot on Mizzou's all-time head coaching wins list last weekend with his 33rd win in just four and a half seasons; he needs four more victories to match Dan Devine's program record of 37 wins through his first five seasons at Mizzou.
Mizzou has won five of its first six games for the second-straight year.
The Tigers are riding a string of 19 consecutive weeks ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll, marking their longest such streak in a decade.
Mizzou's defense ranks 12th in the nation in total defense (270.8 ypg) and seventh in passing defense (154.5).
MU's offense has converted 24-of-25 (.960) red zone opportunities into points this season, which leads the SEC and ranks ninth nationally; the Tigers have scored on 80-of-81 (.988) combined trips to the red zone since the start of the 2023 season.
QB Brady Cook (7,822) ranks fourth on the Tigers' all-time passing yardage list and fifth on MU's career touchdown passes chart (45); he enters Saturday's game 977 yards behind Brad Smith in the No. 3 spot and six TD tosses shy of James Franklin in the No. 4 position, respectively, on those two charts.
K Blake Craig leads the SEC in field goals (13) and ranks 12th nationally in scoring (61 points).
WR Luther Burden III broke off a career-best 61-yard scoring run on the second play from scrimmage and reeled in five catches for 59 yards last week at UMass, extending his streak of games with at least one reception to 28 in a row (since Oct. 1, 2022).
Burden III ran his career total to 1,978 receiving yards, leaving the junior just 22 yards away from becoming the 12th Tiger receiver to top the 2,000-yard mark.
IN THE ZONE
Mizzou has been nearly unstoppable in the red zone, converting 24-of-25 (.960) trips inside of the opposition's 20-yard line into points this season.
The Tigers have found the end zone on 16 of those possessions overall (64%).
The Tigers red zone offense was one of the nation's best in 2023, putting points on the board in 56-of-58 (96.6%) trips inside the 20-yard line to rank third among all FBS offenses.
MU converted 36 red zone TDs, while Harrison Mevis booted 20 red zone FGs to rank second among all FBS kickers.
AUBURN CONNECTIONS
When Missouri and Auburn take the field Saturday there will be some familiarity between the programs.
Graduate student RB Nate Noel and senior BUCK Jalen McLeod played together last season at Appalachian State.
Missouri head coach Eliah Drinkwitz, special teams coordinator Erik Link and running backs coach Curtis Luper were all on staff at Auburn when the Tigers won the 2010 BCS National Championship with a 14-0 record.
Lastly, Auburn Athletic Director John Cohen received a master's degree in sports management from the University of Missouri in 1994. He served six years at Mizzou as a graduate assistant and assistant coach for baseball from 1992-97.
