After falling 17-14 in overtime to the Auburn Tigers in a loss that probably couldn't have been more gut-wrenching than it was, the Missouri Tigers seemed positioned to take another potential loss on Monday.
Star freshman receiver Luther Burden III deleted all things related to Mizzou on social media, immediately causing a stir in the fanbase. Burden didn't have a touch on offense against Auburn and had just one punt return.
Of course, this was all noise that was eventually silenced by none other than Burden himself on social media late Monday evening.
"Mizzou fans: Please don't misunderstand my intentions. I'm always a TIGER! Just be patient, here we come!" Burden said in a tweet.
But still, the questions remain. Why didn't Mizzou coach Eli Drinkwitz choose to use Burden - who has proven to be a threat to score anytime he gets the ball - against an Auburn team that shut Missouri out in the second half on Saturday?
He has three total touchdowns this season, one rushing, one receiving, and one punt return. Along with that 78-yard return touchdown, he also had a season-high six catches for 58 yards along with three carries in a win over Abilene Christian on Sept. 17, so it's safe to say he isn't being outright ignored.
But Mizzou receiver Dominic Lovett, who currently leads the SEC in receiving yards (376), knows that freshman slumps are sometime bound to happen. He made sure to reassure Burden that everything will come with patience as the Tigers enter a stretch where they'll need the freshman most.
"I told him that ... it's just a freshman thing," Lovett said Wednesday. "Not every freshman goes through. So freshmen are blessed to be you know soon as they come in. You know, it's just a process and I told him that his time is gonna come, you got to be patient. Patient is a very big word. Patient is big for everybody."
Lovett is speaking words of wisdom that are hard to argue with. However, considering what Burden has show he can do makes it puzzling that Drinkwitz wouldn't choose to have at least tried to get the ball in his hands at some point against Auburn.
After all, the team has shown an urgency to do this, as Burden has take a handful of wildcat snaps and has seven rushes for 40 yards and a touchdown this season.
But regardless of what could've been or should've been, Lovett's message remains the same
"You yourself might not see the vision, but you just have to be patient," he said. "Eventually everything will fall in place, and I ain't being religious, but you just got to keep God first and just put everything in his hands and let everything fall in place."
Lovett even used a player from Mizzou's opponent Saturday, the No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs, as an example of how some things go your way off the bat and some don't.
Great person to use is (tight end) Brock Bowers," Lovett said. "Brock Bowers came in to Georgia, they used them immediately. Some players you know, you got to sit back, but that's just part of football."
Sitting back certainly sounds beneficial, but the Tigers will need every bit of Burden that they can get against Georgia. He's currently questionable for the game.
"I told him, we're gonna be all right," Lovett said. "He's got to keep pushing (the) this-play mentality and we gonna be aight."
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