For most of us the moments are few and far between, so take all the chances you can relate to an SEC starting quarterback.

“I took Friday and Saturday. Those were kind of our off days,” Cook said. “You know, everybody kind of gets out and watches ’ball like a normal person. You know, watched College Football GameDay and all that stuff. It was fun.”

College football players, just like us.

That is … until they’re not.

“But at the same time, I mean, I’m not gonna lie — I had the call sheet out,” Cook said. … “There's always things to be doing on a Friday and Saturday where you can't really turn your mind off of it. That's the reality. You know you’ve got Texas A&M coming up, (and) your mind never really turns off.”

The explosiveness of the offense and its efficiency in scoring position has been a topic of conversation for this Mizzou team through four weeks of the season, and the concerns are not completely unfair. With a road test coming Saturday at Kyle Field in College Station, Texas, for a matchup with No. 25 Texas A&M, the No. 9-ranked Tigers have some issues to iron out.

More: Why Missouri football coach Eli Drinkwitz expects to see Marcel Reed at QB for Texas A&M

More: Here’s what Texas A&M coach Mike Elko, Aggies QB said about Missouri football before game

Missouri struggled to put away both Vanderbilt and Boston College as its mostly methodical offense stalled out a few too many times in the red zone.

In those two games, MU converted 10 red-zone trips into just three touchdowns. Once the Tigers reached the opposition’s 30-yard line against Vandy and BC, they averaged just 2.1 yards per play.

“You know, it's hard to win games like that,” Cook said. “Luckily, we did.”

So, on either end of a Saturday mostly spent watching the Week 5 slate of games, the Tigers got to work.

And it’s no grand surprise where a bulk of that practice was directed.

“I think at the end of the day, it just comes down to practicing it. We practiced it last Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday a ton,” Cook said. “Red zone plays; red zone versus defense; a red zone lockout period where it's basically offense versus defense for three or four rounds just in the red zone.

“So, we've repped it a ton. I think we're feeling a lot more confident.”

Cook took plenty of the blame for the shortcomings.

Individually, a bulk of his off-week work was spent working on his mechanics, which spanned footwork to rhythm in the pocket.

As a squad, the passing game got some extra attention.

“As an offense as a whole, we threw the ball a lot. We got a lot of good reps,” Cook said. … “We threw a lot of balls. It was good for our chemistry. It was good for just getting some of those full-speed reps back in. It was a lot of good work.”

Texas A&M presents the sternest challenge to this point of the season for the Missouri offense, as new Aggies head coach Mike Elko has plenty of playmakers at his disposal.

Defensive end Nic Scourton is playing his way into Day 1 NFL Draft consideration. Cook was complimentary of the Aggies’ third-down packages, and for good reason. Through five games, the Aggies have allowed 44 of the 63 third downs they’ve faced, which means they’re holding opponents to a 30.2% clip.

The week off came at the right time for the Tigers. A win on the road immediately vaults MU into a favorable position in the chase for a College Football Playoff berth. A loss doesn’t kill the Tigers’ chances, but leaves little room for error moving forward.

“I was focused. I knew what I needed to improve on and work on that week,” Cook said. … “We got back Sunday, and we hit the ground running on Texas A&M. So, the energy is great. My energy is great. We feel really confident moving into this week.”

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Why Missouri football offense put emphasis on red zone in idle week