Maty Mauk Puts on Show in Homecoming for He and Pinkel
Sophomore quarterback Maty Mauk grew up just down the road from the University of Toledo, playing his high school ball at Kenton High School as he set numerous national records as the Wildcats’ signal caller. Saturday, he returned home and put up numbers similar to those at the Ohio high school.
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Mauk set career highs, albeit a rather short career, in yards and touchdowns Saturday as the Missouri Tigers beat the Toledo Rockets 49-24. Mauk threw for 325 yards along with five touchdowns, while adding another on the ground. Though Mauk had a great statistical day, he admitted after the game that he and the offense could have been more on point in Saturday’s win.
“We threw five (touchdowns), and if you look at it, there was really five more we could have thrown.”
Mauk was picked off twice in the game and looked uncomfortable at times in the pocket. With his ability and dominance at times, onlookers often forget that he’s only a sophomore and starting just his sixth career game. In his career Mauk has now thrown for 1,574 yards and 19 touchdowns with just 4 interceptions.
Mizzou has proven early that their receiving corp is capable of making plays just as it had a year ago with L’Damian Washington and Dorial Green-Beckham. Receivers Bud Sasser and Jimmy Hunt made small contributions a season ago, but both seem like prime candidates to break out in the Tigers’ high powered offense. Senior transfer Darius White has also been a big weapon for the Tigers after sitting out a season due to transfer rules after spurning the Texas Longhorns to join the Missouri football team. Together, the three have combined for 23 catches, 412 yards, and 7 touchdowns in the Tigers first two games.
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With the offense rolling, Toldeo was given multiple opportunities against a stout Missouri front line. Standout defensive ends Markus Golden and Shane Ray harassed Toledo QB’s all day and the two combined for three more sacks, giving them 5.5 on the season already. Despite losing Kony Ealy and Michael Sam, two of the top defensive ends in the country a season ago, Mizzou’s defensive line looks dominant.
It wasn’t all dominant, however, against Toledo. The Rockets were able to put up 24 points on the Tigers and ran the ball for more than 150 yards. Leading the way was sophomore Kareem Hunt, who ran for 48 yards and three scores on just 15 carries.
The Mizzou secondary also seemed a bit ineffective at times against the Rockets. With Golden and Rey dominating up front, the secondary played off coverage most of the game and could have given up multiple big plays if the Toledo receivers would have been able to hold onto the ball.
Coach Pinkel, who is the all-time wins leader for both Missouri and Toledo, seemed mostly happy with the performance and his return to Toledo.
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“I’m glad this day’s over with — coming here and playing and all the stuff that goes with that,” Pinkel said. “I’m glad the game’s over with and we get a chance to move on.”
Pinkel went 73-37-3 in ten seasons with Toledo before leaving for the Missouri job. Since joining the University in 2001, Pinkel has lead the Tigers to their most impressive span of football, going 103-63 with multiple top five finishes in the AP poll.
Pinkel and the Tigers return to action next Saturday against the UCF Knights at 12 ET and look to remain undefeated and in the hunt for the newly implemented college playoff system. If Mauk and the defensive line continue to carry Mizzou like they did Saturday, they just might climb into one of the top four spots.