Nevada set to face Missouri

Nevada is going from the proverbial frying pan into the raging fire.

Nevada, 1-1, plays its second consecutive ranked opponent when it travels to Columbia to face the undefeated and No. 6 Missouri Tigers.

Kickoff is set for 9:30 a.m. today (Fox National Sports/ESPN Radio 630AM) at Memorial Stadium.

And, for the second straight week, Nevada will face a Heisman Trophy candidate in quarterback Chase Daniel, who has thrown for 568 yards and six scores in wins over Illinois and Southeast Missouri. Daniel has completed 68 percent of his passes.

"Missouri is as good as it gets," Nevada coach Chris Ault said. "They have a great defense with 10 starters back, while their offense is much like Texas Tech, but not the same. They run the ball better than Tech.

"Daniel is very accurate. He's not opposed to taking off (unlike Texas Tech's Graham Harrell). They (Missouri) will run the ball at you."

The Tigers run it with Derrick Washington and Jimmy Jackson, both of whom are averaging more than seven yards a carry. Tight end Chase Coffman, Tommy Saunders, Jared Perry and Jerrel Jackson all average more than 11 yards a catch. Perhaps the most dangerous skill player is Jeremy Maclin, who has six catches in the first two games. Maclin is averaging 12.9 on punt returns and 48.3 on three kick-off returns.

"Our focus is on us to align and execute," defensive end Kevin Basped said. "The y run a lot of the same plays out of different formations. We have to be a lot more disciplined than we have been the last two games. It will take a lot of focus."

Missouri coach Gary Pinkel will be renewing a rivalry of sorts today. Pinkel used to coach Toledo, which beat Nevada twice in the mid-90s. The second time was at the 1995 Las Vegas Bowl where the teams played in the first overtime game in NCAA history. Toledo won the game 40-37.

"I'm impressed with their defense," Pinkel said of the Wolf Pack. "They get to the football and are very fast. That doesn't surprise me.

"Offensively, it's unfortunate that their tailback (Luke Lippincott) is hurt. He's a great player. It's sad to see that happen. Colin Kaepernick is an impressive athlete. He can run and he has a good arm. He has a lot going for him. They are a good running team. It's going to be a challenge."

Lippincott's spot will be filled by the quartet of Brandon Fragger, Vai Taua, Courtney Randall and Lampford Mark. Fragger is the only one with a collegiate start under his belt.

"We're not going to change our offense," Ault said. "Our offense is our offense. None of the guys have had a chance to play a whole game; be the guy. They are good players and tough kids."

Kaepernick said he won't be under pressure to make big plays with Lippincott out. He said he will have to become more of a leader on the field, a role which Lippincott picked up last year.

The Nevada quarterback said he was impressed with the Missouri defense, which is led by defensive tackle Ziggy Hood, defensive end Stryker Sulak and linebackers Brock Christopher, who had eight tackles and a sack against Illinois, and Sean Witherspoon, who has interceptions in back-to-back games. Safety William Moore is expected to play.

"Missouri's defense is solid," Kaepernick said. "They like to blitz a lot, so we have to be ready for that. We expected Tech to blitz a little more than they did.

"To beat them, we're going to have to play near perfect football. We should have beat Texas Tech last week. The offense just didn't finish. We should have put up 50 points last week. We have to finish (drives) this week."

Kaepernick's favorite receivers thus far have been Marko Mitchell, who has 12 grabs for 196 yards and a score, and Chris Wellington, who has 10 catches for 104 yards.