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Under Blake Baker's watch, Mizzou football's reborn defense soars among SEC's best

COLUMBIA, Mo. — Eli Drinkwitz’s offensive play-calling comes under scrutiny all the time, but Missouri’s head coach might have helped salvage the Tigers’ homecoming victory with a rare defensive call.

With 78 seconds left Saturday, Vanderbilt trailed by a field goal and faced fourth and less than a yard just inside Mizzou territory. The Tigers lined up with their base defensive unit on the field: four down linemen, two linebackers and five defensive backs. Until … timeout, Missouri.

On the sideline, Drinkwitz made a suggestion to defensive coordinator Blake Baker.

“He said, ‘Hey, you want to put in your Rhino defense?