Missouri Volleyball is a program with a history of success. Under Wayne and Susan Kreklow, the Tigers reached the NCAA tournament 13 times in 14 seasons, including an SEC championship: the university’s only clinch across any sport since entering the conference in 2012. Surely some momentum would have been carried after their departure from the program.
It has not.
Obviously, current head coach Joshua Taylor had extremely big shoes to fill. He fairly stated himself that he wasn’t worthy of carrying the legacy when he gained the leadership position. However, the program is taking a nosedive and it is hard to justify Taylor’s success when lesser ranked teams keep beating the Missouri Tigers.
Since becoming the full head coach in 2020, Taylor has a record of 29-45, including a conference record of 18-31. Most of those wins came in 2020 where the COVID season saw many players and even programs opt out of the season. If you add the 2019 season where Taylor was named interim head coach, the numbers look much better with the team seeing a tournament run, however, one can argue that this success was off the coattails of the Kreklows.
A disastrous 2021 season saw Kayla Burbage, a top 150 recruit, transfer after her freshman year. The team went 5-26 with two conference wins. Taylor went 3-10 in non conference play, a portion of the schedule that is usually loaded with easy matchups.
Things looked brighter to start this 2022 season. Taylor locked in the highest ranked recruiting class in program history and started the season at 7-3.
The team would then lose six straight games.
At first, one would be fair to give a mulligan to the rough start. They faced Tennessee in their conference opener, a team ranked 3rd in the SEC Preseason Poll with a first place vote. Their home opener saw them stack up against a ranked Kentucky Wildcats team, who they did take to four sets. They went on the road and fought to five sets in South Carolina. The team looked competitive. Until it didn’t.
The Tigers would be swept in their second game in South Carolina. They blew a crucial opportunity to get their first SEC win of the season at Alabama where they would be swept again. Alabama, notorious for being the punching bag of SEC volleyball, entered the game 0-6 in conference play. Rashinda Reed, the team’s new head coach, left the game with her first SEC win.
Things briefly looked brighter during the Tigers’ homestand against the Auburn Tigers. They took the surprise upstart Auburn to five sets in their first game and secured their first conference win in four sets in the second game. One would think they would carry this momentum through their series against Ole Miss, the only team other than Alabama ranked lower than Missouri in RPI rankings.
One would be far too optimistic.
The Tigers lost twice in Oxford: first in a sweep and second in five sets. The second game saw Kaylee Cox’s spectacular 34 kill game go in vain as they blew a 21-16 lead in the fourth set that would’ve decided the match.
In conference play this year, the Tigers have been swept four times, lost the fifth set three times and have lost the first set eight times. They’ve played nine games.
Talent should not be a problem for this Missouri squad. Across three classes, the Tigers have eight players who were Top 150 recruits. They have an All-SEC player in Anna Dixon. They should have another All-SEC player in Kaylee Cox. Why are they not winning more games? Why are they not winning more sets?
It’s only fair to be reminded of the youth of this team. There are only three upperclassmen on this team. However, younger teams are finding success in the SEC. Specifically, the Auburn Tigers who sit at 18-2 and are led by two juniors and no seniors.
Joshua Taylor has not proven he can coach at an SEC level. His latest rwo matchups saw him lose to an Ole Miss team without a head coach as she was placed on administrative leave. Considering that Missouri Athletic Director Desiree Reed-Francois has only one of her own hires in the entirety of Mizzou sports, one has to imagine that Taylor is on the hot seat. Is a change worth it?
If there are bright spots in Taylor’s regime, it is that he can develop an outside hitter and he can recruit top prospects. Kylie Deberg and Anna Dixon headline Taylor’s line of fantastic hitters and soon we may add Kaylee Cox and Jordan Iliff to that list. Taylor notched the 14th overall recruiting class of 2022 and as of now has the 9th overall class of 2024. Are these positives enough to save his job?
Taylor is currently under contract through 2024. His 2022 season record sits at 8-11 with a 1-8 conference record. The rest of his schedule only gets tougher as his chances of matching his conference wins in 2021 (2) becomes slim.
Missouri volleyball expects better.
Can Joshua Taylor be better?