Why No. 8 Alabama must take No. 14 Missouri seriously

The No. 8-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide seem to be back in business after wins over the No. 5 Georgia Bulldogs and No. 6 Vanderbilt Commodores in consecutive weeks.

Long gone is the stink and shame of the Week 1 loss to unranked Florida State, and Kalen DeBoer has his team playing at a College Football Playoff level. The Tide are 4-1 and riding a four-game winning streak. The last two, as mentioned, were impressive.

That doesn't mean Alabama is simply going to skate all the way to the SEC Championship and ultimately the CFP, though. There are still some big-time matchups left on the schedule, and that absolutely includes a game against the No. 14 Missouri Tigers this weekend.

The Tigers are 5-0, and they'll be protecting their home-field advantage. There's also the narrative heading into this game, which should keep Alabama on its toes.

After beating Georgia on the road and getting "revenge" against Diego Pavia and Vandy at home, the Tide could be perfectly set up for a "letdown" game.

Alabama Crimson Tide must take Missouri Tigers seriously 

That's, at least, what ESPN college football analyst Rece Davis would be worried about if he were in DeBoer's shoes. 

“Now, you go to Missouri — you know they’re really good, they’re unbeaten. You’ve got that early kickoff, 11 a.m. Central time. Trying to get up emotionally for the third week in a row — that’s the thing," Davis said on the "College GameDay Podcast" (h/t On3). "This is purely anecdotal, but I think the third one is always tough. You can get up for the first one, especially if you’re in a position like Alabama was. The second one, maybe you get some of that juice. But the third one? It’s tough."

Not only do the Tide have to worry about the emotional aspect of being mentally prepared for a third-straight marquee game, but as Davis mentioned, Missouri is a really good team.

It's worth noting that this is the Tigers' first game against a ranked opponent, but they've been playing great football to date. 

The Tigers are averaging  547.6 yards per game on offense, which is good for No. 4 nationally. They're scoring 45.2 points per game, which is Top 10 nationally, and on defense, they're 203.8 yards per game given up is second-best nationally behind only Oklahoma.

Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz is considered one of the best in the nation, and speaking of, the Tigers currently have the best running back in college football in sophomore Ahmad Hardy.

Hardy has rushed 103 times for 730 yards and nine touchdowns. He's averaging an incredible 7.1 yards per carry.

So yes, this Mizzou team is going to be a tough matchup for Alabama. If the Crimson Tide take the Tigers lightly, they'll most likely walk away with their second loss of the season.

It's up to DeBoer to make sure that doesn't happen, and that's why he gets paid the big bucks.