With lessons learned from 2017's slow start, Mizzou football pushes forward

Missouri quarterback Drew Lock runs with the ball as he takes part in a drill at the start of an NCAA college football practice Friday, Aug. 3, 2018, in Columbia, Mo. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)COLUMBIA, MO. • With only 17 practices to prepare for the start of college football’s regular season, the last thing Missouri’s veteran players want to experience is another miserable September. That’s why some returning offensive linemen spoke up just minutes into Friday’s practice, the first of the preseason.

Mizzou nearly capsized its 2017 with a rotten stretch of games, a five-game losing streak that some players and coaches now believe started with a disjointed preseason camp. The Tigers salvaged a…