Missouri's first taste of life in the SEC comes against Georgia, and the Tigers are ready to live it up. Said head coach Gary Pinkel,"Our fans have been talking about it since March." Added offensive lineman Max Copeland,"We put that SEC sign up at the beginning of winter conditioning. And you know what, we had some fire when we would go to work man because we knew where we were going." Said Pinkel,"I'm glad we are playing are first game in the "Zoo". Shoot. That place is going to be wild." Said Copeland,"We've all got the butterflies. We're all itching to go. You're looking at guys around. Everyone is kind of twitchy, and everyone is getting ready to go." Said Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray,"Looking forward to playing a new team. Going to a new location. So pretty much, we're ready to go."
Missouri is anxious to prove they can hang with the Big Dawgs in the SEC. Said Pinkel,"But also when you are new, you have to prove yourself. And you have to earn respect." Said Missouri receiver T.J. Moe,"We have already discovered that this team doesn't get intimidated too easy. Got a lot of guys that are excited about this game. We just have to do a lot of preparation this week."
Missouri's speedy, spread offense worries Georgia, especially since the Dawgs gave up 200-yards rushing last week to Buffalo. Said head coach Mark Richt,"We better stop the run better than we did a week ago, especially the QB run. If we let (James) Franklin run wild, we're in trouble."
And since this is Georgia's SEC opener, they want to start the league schedule on a winning note. Said Richt,"The race is to get to Atlanta. You don't want to be lagging behind from the very beginning. You want to be able to control your destiny throughout."
