Lose to Indiana but win SEC East? It's a very real possibility for Mizzou

It's amazing how much can change over the course of one September weekend in college football.

Seven days ago, Missouri looked to be in serious trouble after a stunning 31-27 home loss to lowly Indiana that included some key injuries with a trip to South Carolina on the horizon. Following an improbable fourth-quarter comeback against the Gamecocks last Saturday, the Tigers have a week to heal and a strong argument to be the new favorites in the SEC East.

That might sound crazier than Bud Sasser's spectacular 41-yard grab that jump-started a seemingly dead offense at Williams-Brice Stadium, considering the Tigers have rarely looked the part of an SEC championship participant this season. But thanks to a favorable schedule and a remarkably mediocre division, they may still be good enough to get there.

Mizzou sits alone at the top for now as the only team in the division without an SEC loss. Of course, that's a bit deceiving, because every other school except Tennessee has played more than one conference game.

The Tigers also appear to have more advantages in the upcoming schedule, particularly as one of two SEC East teams with a game against Arkansas, the only SEC West team not ranked in the top 15 nationally. Even a November home game against No. 6 Texas A&M doesn't seem so bad, considering the alternatives and Mizzou's success against the Aggies in recent years.

What about the other contenders? How bad could the SEC East really be this season? Well, let's take a look.

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Feel free to disregard Kentucky and Vanderbilt, since this isn't basketball or debate. The two teams combined for six turnovers last week in a game the Wildcats managed to win, 17-7, despite scoring two touchdowns less than Temple and Massachusetts posted against the woeful Commodores.

Florida and Tennessee fans are likely the only ones who believe their teams are ready to return to their former glory. Even if the Volunteers' near-upset last week at Georgia is a sign of improvement, they still have Alabama and a trip to No. 11 Ole Miss standing in the way of success.

That leaves us with South Carolina and Georgia, the division's last two champions before Mizzou came out of nowhere to steal the crown in 2013. The Gamecocks put themselves in a significant hole by losing to the Tigers, especially since a game at Auburn looks an awful lot like an inevitable third conference loss.

No. 13 Georgia is the other SEC East team to get Arkansas and undoubtedly represents the largest remaining obstacle for Missouri, which makes it rather fortunate the Bulldogs visit Columbia on Oct. 11, when the Tigers should be well rested for their return to an enthusiastic crowd at Faurot Field. This matchup has decided the SEC title each of the last two seasons, and don't be surprised if it happens again.

But at the risk of sounding like Missouri coach Gary Pinkel every time he takes the podium, this team needs to get a lot better. The Tigers made a ton of mistakes and may not have pulled off their 21-20 victory over South Carolina without a pair of quixotic coaching decisions from Steve Spurrier, who decided to have his team go on fourth down in its own territory on its first drive and not go for two when it scored to go up 12 in the fourth quarter.

"It was just a crazy day out there," Pinkel told reporters after the game, and he couldn't have been more right.

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In fact, it's shaping up to be a crazy year in the SEC East, which could wind up being a good thing for the Tigers. They'll improve significantly if senior wide receivers Darius White and Jimmie Hunt can heal up over the bye week, not to mention the value of extra time to gel for a new-look offensive line.

The last six minutes of Saturday night's game wasn't the first time this season Missouri has made all the big plays on both sides of the ball, if only for brief moments. In this case, though, it was good enough, and Pinkel believes it could lead to something more.

"This was an emotional game," Pinkel said. "There's a lot of things we did that we have to improve on. These are games that can change a football team."

The exact same thing could have been said in the Indiana postgame press conference, only with a completely different connotation. Fortunately for Mizzou, the Hoosiers don't play in the SEC, and the Tigers' path to another conference title game will rarely be easier.

You can follow Luke Thompson on Twitter @FS_LukeT or email him at lukegthompson87@gmail.com.