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Fun week leaves five ranked teams with losses – Eye of the Tiger, Week 9

Fun week leaves five ranked teams with losses – Eye of the Tiger, Week 9

A loss by the Missouri Tigers in Week 9 caused them to fall in both national polls in another entertaining stretch of college football.

Again, the Tigers weren't the only ranked team to lose, as four other ranked programs lost games, all against other ranked opponents. The most notable loser was the LSU Tigers, who fell on the road to Texas A&M. The Aggies surpassed the Tigers in the national polls and walked away with arguably their best win of the week.

Several teams prior to the Tigers' schedule played meaningful football consistent with Missouri's skill level, including the Aggies and Vanderbilt.

Oklahoma: 26-14 loss to No. 19 Ole Miss
South Carolina: Bye week
Mississippi State: 58:25 loss to Arkansas
Arkansas: 58-25 win over Arkansas

Only three of the Tigers' future opponents were in action in Week 9, two of them facing each other. Arkansas, the TIgers' final regular season game of the 2024 season, went smoothly against Mississippi State. The Bulldogs have struggled since losing starting quarterback Blake Shapen and have drafted true freshman Michael Van Buren into the role. Although he is showing flashes, he hasn't put in a great performance yet.

On the other hand, Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green had arguably his best game of the season so far. He finished the game with six total touchdowns and nearly 400 yards of total offense. Along with true freshman Braylen Russell, who rushed for 175 yards, the Razorbacks' offense sailed to victory.

Oklahoma continued to struggle in SEC play, with its fourth conference loss of the season coming as a result of Saturday's tussle with Ole Miss. It's a challenge to pinpoint the Sooner's problems, as statistically speaking nothing stands out as overly negative. Quarterback Jackson Arnold was reinstated into the starting lineup and threw for 182 yards and two touchdowns. The biggest problem was the offensive line, which allowed Arnold 10 sacks.

The Aggie's 15-point home win over LSU may have come as a surprise to some, especially given the way they did it. Two quarterbacks came into the game for the Aggies, one of whom the Tigers had prepared three weeks ago. Freshman Marcel Reed came in and punished LSU on the ground. Texas A&M has risen in the rankings and now has a shot not only at the SEC Championship, but also at the College Football Playoff.

No. 21 Army: Bye week
No. 22 Washington State: 29-26 win over San Diego State
No. 23 Colorado: 34-23 win over Cincinnati
No. 24 Illinois: 38-9 loss to No. 1 Oregon

The Illini were one of five ranked teams to suffer losses over the weekend. The second loss of the season was a stunning away defeat for the country's top-ranked team. Despite Illinois' surprising success this season, the matchup with the Ducks was never really within reach.

The previously ranked Navy Midshipmen had a chance to shock the college football world on home soil and beat Notre Dame, but the Irish dashed any hopes of that pretty quickly.

Other than Navy, no other ranked team outside the SEC has lost. Two other AAC teams, Tulane and Memphis, are on the outside of the top 25 and if either gets a big win, they could oust the Tigers.

Where Mizzou Football is ranked after Week 9
“Snap Counts for Mizzou at Alabama, Season Tracker”
Mizzou backup Drew Pyne remains resilient after poor performance in loss

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