RECAP: No. 22 Mizzou looks to regroup in bye week, following loss to Ole Miss

OXFORD, Miss. (KMIZ)

Mizzou football had a chance to make a statement in Saturday's game against Ole Miss, but instead the Tigers suffered a 31-3 loss on the road. That result dropped the team to 5-2 on the season.

Despite quarterback Austin Simmons throwing for 339 yards in his highly anticipated return to his former school, MU struggled to turn its offensive production into points. The Tigers put just three points up on the scoreboard in Oxford, while the Rebels managed to pile up more than 400 yards in a dominant homecoming performance.

And Mizzou's struggles started early. Simmons and company moved the ball on their opening possession, but ended up stalling out in the red zone and settling for a field goal. That would end up being their only scoring drive of the game.

"We had some self-inflicted wounds. Of course, you know there are some penalties, but everything's fixable," Simmons said.

Meanwhile, Ole Miss found its rhythm early. Quarterback Trinidad Chambliss accounted for four total touchdowns in the game, as the home side built up a 21-3 lead at halftime and never looked back.

Head coach Eli Drinkwitz was asked about his team's slow start, after the game.

"We didn't stop anything [defensively] in the first half. We were out of sorts," Drinkwitz said.

Specifically, the Mizzou defensive front struggled to contain Ole Miss' rushing attack. The Rebs ran for 257 yards, while the Tigers managed just 39 rushing yards of their own.

"I think up front, just not a good enough job of passing off the movements, things like that, being able to get our double teams going," center Dominick Giudice said.

Even when the MU defense showed signs of improvement in the third quarter, the offense couldn't find a way to capitalize. A fumble recovery gave the Tigers an opportunity to build momentum, but they - once again - came away empty-handed/

"I thought our defense gave us a chance in the third quarter. They got that takeaway, you know, and we just didn't do anything with it offensively. So that's going to be really disappointing," Drinkwitz said.

In the closing quarters, it was a stalled drives, a scoreless half an a Simmons interception that sealed Mizzou's fate for the team's second loss of the season.

"It's just another game for me. Honestly, I wasn't thinking the whole environment thing like a bigger thing than what it was. It's just another football game," Simmons said of his return to Oxford.

Despite the lopsided result, No. 22 Mizzou is now looking to use the loss as motivation, rather than let it define the season.

"We lost, but all is not lost. We're 5-2 and got a chance to get healthy and get better. And then, you know, go play the next opponent. And that's really got to be our mindset," Drinkwitz said, after the game.

The Tigers now enter a crucial bye week with an opportunity to regroup, address their offensive struggles and get healthy before the final stretch of the regular season.

Sitting at 5-2, the margin for error in the College Football Playoff picture has narrowed. The team will need to respond quickly as it prepares for its next matchup.

Missouri returns to action Oct. 31 against rival Arkansas in Fayetteville for a Halloween showdown.

"There's a lot of really good football left to be played in, a lot of really good opportunities," Drinkwitz said. "So, I'm not going to wallow in this. I'm going to be disappointed, you know, because we had an opportunity and we didn't get it done."