****Official Mizzou Football 2023-2024 Thread****
 

Year 4 of the Drinkwitz era, let's discuss.

Schedule

• Aug. 31 - South Dakoka - W
• Sept 9 - Middle Tennessee - W
• Sept 16 - kansas State - W
• Sept 23 - Memphis
• Sept 30 - @Vanderbilt
• Oct 7 - LSU
• Oct 14 - @Kentucky
• Oct 21 - South Carolina
• Nov 4 - @Georgia
• Nov 11 - Tennessee
• Nov 18 - Florida
• Nov 24 - @Arkansas

Recruiting Class
Rivals

Recruiting class looks like an anal carbuncle right now, and the odd years always have harder home/road conference splits.

Need some weapons to emerge on this team

I haven't been to Columbia since the last time K-State played Mizzou there in 2010 (that was a L for the Cats against a really good Tiger team). I would absolutely make that trip this year but I'm going to be in Italy :)

I'm guessing Mizzou is a 7-5 type team this season?

Depends largely what happens at QB. If they can find a QB that can hit the broad side of a barn, ceiling is 8-9 wins.

If we do the whole thing like last year, again, ceiling is 6 wins and Drinkwitz is shit canned. 60/40 there's a new coach in 2024.

Expecting/looking good on 2-3 **** recruits (2 OLB, 1 WR) in the next week or so. Which will put the class in "normal/minimum expected" range for Mizzou.

They are chasing a ***** WR and DE from in-state. Have a good shot with the WR and a lot of competition for the DE (Georgia, Texas, Alabama), though not out of the picture.

If the team shows it is less snake-oil and more substance this year, I think that will help bump recruiting back up a bit.

In fact, one of those **** LB committed while I was typing that post.

Looks like 5 or 6 wins this thread will be fun

I've got 6-7 wins as the basic expectation. I'm not sure where the program lands with Drinkwitz if that's the case. 6 wins with some good trends (competitive, good QB play, a handful of close losses) is very different than scraping by to 6 wins in terms of how the win total is viewed.

It will be more of the same. The usuals will say **** about 54 times in a variety of ways. Some people will try to logic explain how it's not an actual tire fire and the shit birds will come in here to mention CS1950 because well, we know why.

If Cook starts in 2023, atleast he’ll be healthier than he was in 2022

If Brady Cook starts, then Drinkpiss should be fired immediately.

If that happens, we need to start pooling money for a banner flyover.

Yeah ya'll almost pulled it off against UGA last year. Had they done that we aren't having this conversation right now.

November is going to tell Mizzou's season. No reason they shouldn't be bowl eligible by the time they go to Athens.

Hell of a last few days on the recruiting trail. Some pretty big gets the last few days.

The WR and CB who committed today are both **** on 247. The Cb is a *** on Rivals.

But yes, some really nice adds of late.

Honestly, I like the QB they have now more than the kid they lost of Nebraska, too. Though you hope it Gabarri Johnson keeps them on the bench and hands it off to a higher-ceiling QB when he leaves.

11-1

Only regular loss is to South Dakota.

Missouri’s mid-summer success on the recruiting trail continued on ______ with the commitment of 3/4-star cornerback Cameron Keys.


The Lynn Haven, Fl. native chose the Tigers over Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Arkansas, Tennessee and a handful of other programs. Keys immediately becomes one of the highest rated commits of the 2024 class for Missouri.

Keys recorded 26 tackles, nine pass breakups and two interceptions in nine games last season. He also caught nine passes for 101 yards in limited action as a wide receiver. Keys ran track at A. Crawford Mosley High School as well.

Get to know: Cameron Keys
Hometown: Lynn Haven, Fl.

High School: A. Crawford Mosley High School

Position: Cornerback

Ht/Wt: 6-foot, 160 lbs.

Rivals Ranking: 5.6 (3-star)

247Composite Ranking: No. 308 national, No. 26 cornerback (4-star)

Total announced offers: 19

Offers to note: Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Arkansas, Tennessee, Ole Miss, Mississippi State
For me, the first thing that jumps off the tape is Keys’ ability to stay in the hip pocket of a receiver in the open field. His long strides and quick acceleration makes it very difficult for receivers to beat him deep.

While his frame is fairly lean, Keys is capable of being a heavy-hitter, and that should only become more prevalent as he puts on some weight in college. His capabilities as a receiver are intriguing, as he showed a great ability to adjust to the ball and make the most of it when he had it in his hands. Still, it is hard to imagine Keys straying from the defensive side of the ball when Blake Baker gets his hands on him.

TE Whit Hafer Joplin, MO 2/25/2023 3-star 5.5 N/A 0.8614 6'7 230

TE-OL Ryan Jostes Washington, MO 3/11/2023 3-star 5.6 3-star 0.8619 6'6 280

QB Aidan Glover Colliervillle, TN 6/15/2023 3-star 5.7 3-star 0.8753 6'3 190

WR-S Jude James St. Charles, MO 6/30/2023 3-star N/A 3-star 0.8500 6'4 200

ATH Jackson Hancock Canton, GA 6/30/2023 N/A N/A N/A N/A 6'0 175

ATH Cam Dooley Valley, AL 7/1/2023 3-star 5.5 N/A 0.8567 6'4 195

DT Justin Bodford Ft. Lauderdale, FL 7/2/2023 3-star 5.6 N/A 0.8385 6'1 290

LB Nicholas Rodriguez Ft. Lauderdale, FL 7/3/2023 4-star 5.8 3-star 0.8850 6'1 190

WR James Madison II Ft. Lauderdale, FL 7/4/2023 4-star 5.8 4-star 0.8971 6'3 190

CB Cameron Keys Lynn Haven, FL 7/4/2023 3-star 5.6 4-star 0.9034 6'0 160

That's not terrible.

Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) St. Thomas Aquinas touted receiver James Madison II is headed back home as the Kansas City native announced his commitment to Missouri on the Fourth of July, choosing to play his college football for Eliah Drinkwitz and his staff over his other finalists in Florida State and Louisville.

Madison moved to the Sunshine State in eighth grade and emerged as one of the area’s best pass catchers, including turning 19 receptions into 407 yards and six touchdowns as a junior en route to a state championship.

“I feel like it was a lot of factors that went into my decision,” Madison said. “The main three factors would be at Mizzou being that I am from there I feel like I can bring a lot of light to the program, bring a lot of excitement to the program. You saw Luther (Burden) commit last year brought a lot of people on. Building a whole class of guys from Missouri and outside of Missouri people say can compete would bring a lot of hope for Missouri and that Missouri football is back and can be a top SEC school.




“Also I would have to say my relationships with the coaches. Coach (Jacob) Peeler is a very proven receiver coach. He has put a lot of receivers in the NFL like AJ Brown, DK Metcalf and Elijah Moore and he’s a really good guy and really good coach. I trust in Coach Drink and what he’s doing. All he needs is the recruits and players and that’s my mission to help him get that and be the best player I can be.”

Madison is ranked by 247Sports as the nation’s No. 49 receiver in the 2024 class and he feels he can reach his potential in Columbia.


“The offense, Kirby Moore coming in from Fresno State,” Madison said. “I don’t know what it is about him but he’s a very, very smart guy. His offense he runs is very proven. His brother is the OC with the Chargers. I already know he has an elite type of mindset with his offense.”

247Sports Director of Scouting Andrew Ivins breaks down what Mizzou is getting in Madison.


“A gangly pass catcher with surprising run-after-catch capabilities,” Ivins wrote in his scouting report. “Measured just over 6-foot-3, 190 pounds in Spring of 2022. More importantly, had a near 6-foot-8 wingspan. First emerged on the recruiting scene as a freshman at TRU Prep. Eventually transferred into St. Thomas Aquinas where he cracked the rotation as a junior, totaling 407 receiving yards and six touchdowns for Florida’s 3M champions. Long stride allows him to chew up turf as he works his way up the field while superb body control allows him to make high-level grabs look easy every now and then. Has proven to be a bit of a mismatch on the inside as he can quickly stack linebackers or safeties and get vertical on post/corner routes. At one point looked like he was going to grow into an F tight end of sorts (and has been utilized some in that role on Friday nights), but continues to bill himself as a larger wide receiver. Should be viewed as a potential game-changer that offensive coordinators can get creative with (especially in the red zone) given his skill set. Must keep progressing and fill out, but arrow seems to be pointing in the right direction.”

Nwaneri is the #1 overall prospect on On3. First kid to be ranked #1 nationally. MU have a chance here or is the kid OU bound?

If this team only wins 6 this year, he has to go…I’m sorry, I don’t care what it looks like.

The time of treading water and being .500 or just above is over, they have to show some upward trajectory this season.

I’m not a believer in Drinkwitz at all but I’m actually fairly optimistic about this season…do worry about both lines however. I think hiring an OC was a smart move as well.

Brady Cook gonna start camp as QB1. I know this ****ing bitch is about to run Brady Cook out there to start the season. If he does, then fire him after game 1.

He’s going to die on that hill, simple as that.

Drink should just start packing up his office.

Gotta give him through 2024 at least due to the recruits he's brought in and as well as the willingness to change.

He gave up play-calling and brought in a quality OC in Moore.

Baker appears to be a stud DC.

I know you guys love to bash Cook, but I think he's at least competent (though still athletically limited) when healthy. The OL was a forest fire in Canada last season.

Mizzou has a non-zero chance to be 5-0 going into Week 6 vs LSU in CoMo.

Win 3/5 vs LSU, Kentucky, Florida, Arkansas, and SC and that puts Mizzou at 8-4.

Did you see the part of the presser where he talked about being comfortable using a few QBs to start the year and not deciding on a QB1 until after 2 games?

Returning starting QBs are usually going to start the next camp as the starting QB. Doesn't mean they stay that way.

Drinkwitz understands Cook's ceiling and won't run with him unless Horn shits the bed entirely. He knows his seat is going to get warm if he doesn't start showing some solutions at QB, too.

Brady Cook can't hit the broadside of a barn.

You live and die at the QB position and so far going into Year 4 he has no clue what he's doing at the position. That's a big giant red ****ing flag.

The athleticism or lack of isn't really the big problem here so I think you're whiffing pretty hard on this assessment.

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I'll probably watch here and there as I'll be busy with a newborn, but I don't think my expectations for this year can be any lower.

About to the point I'm rooting for failure just to expedite Drinkwitz departure. There is literally no excuse to even pencil in Cook as the #1.

I really hope it's just coach speak and there is a real competition. I could see him starting Cook just because he won't admit he's wrong.

It's TC. Literally nobody should care. It means just about nothing at this point.

It definitely doesn't mean nothing. No matter how atrocious he was last year he never was in danger of losing his starting spot. It means Drinkspiss didn't think his play was bad enough to lose his starting job. It means Drinkspiss thought he was good enough in spring practice to remain starter.

He was such trash that if Drink doesn't have a QB on this roster that can start over him, then there is absolutely no reason for him to remain coaching here. Brady Cook only had 3 pretty good games last year and the other games he was a basically Alex Smith with more INTs. In those 3 games he had 9 of his 14 passing TDs. Two of them were absolute trash teams New Mexico St and Abilene Christian. The other was against Tennessee. He had 5 games in which he didn't throw for a TD and 4 games where he had under 200 yards. He never had a 300 yard game and only went over 250 yds twice. His average 211 passing yards per game.

He wasn't close to good enough. He didn't earn the right be named the starter, but here we are. Nothing that I saw from him last year looked like a player that had potential. He just looked extremely average on his best days and nothing about him excites me even a little. He's just so damn mediocre.

LMAO Yeah, that's more or less the jist of it.

The difference is when he talks about playing Russian roulette with QB's going into the actual season.

That right there tells me he knows he doesn't have a ****ing thing.

I can't find the quote, but didn't he say something along the lines of maybe splitting snaps 50/50 or switching up the starter by week 3? If so that sounds like he's already trying to cover his bases, so when Brady Cook does start that he already planted that seed that if Brady sucks, which he will, that he said he could change starters if need be. I'm almost positive that Brady Cook starts pretty much this entire season and will play just mediocre enough that Eli will continue playing him.

It just sounds like he can't develop a QB at all.

From recruits, to the bench and even the portal. Nothing but whiffs.

Until we have a QB, we ain't got shit.

Just listened to a press conference and it really sounds like he's planning on starting Brady Cook. He talks about needing to complete those vertical passes and move the ball down the field, but then goes and makes excuses for why it wasn't Brady's fault he wasn't able to do that by bringing up injuries and protection problems. Says the other guys got a long way to go to catch up with Brady Cook. I think the only way Cook isn't starting is if he has an injury that keeps him out of the game.

Sooo he's admitting to outright failure at recruiting the QB position?

He had a torn labrum and played behind one of the worst OLs in the SEC. No shit he's going to struggle.

I'm not saying a healthy Cook is a good QB, but he's at least an average college starter.

Need I remind you he ****ing relied on a transfer RB from Truman St. last year as well.

Based off what?

Name me one program in the SEC you would take.the Missouri QB situation over. There isn't one.

Aside from Vanderbilt, I’d take Cook over Mertz at Florida.

What's our N here?

Because if 'average college starter' includes the Mountain West, I'd agree with you.

But ultimately he should be a backup in the Power 5. And that's what he was brought here to be - Bazelak didn't work out and Cook ended up with the gig.

It's pretty important to remember that 5-star QBs aren't going to let you layer them, especially not in the free transfer era. If you miss on 'your guy' then the odds are pretty good that Cook is who you end up with.

If Howell and/or Garcia can't unseat him it would suggest either a blind-spot for Cook (which I just don't think exists here) or a real problem in identifying and/or developing quality QBs.

N=133, the # of FBS teams.

If the argument is that Cook shouldn’t be a Power 5 starter, I don’t disagree. But to act as if he’s a WR playing QB for an entire season in a gimmicky offense would be inaccurate.

Wouldn’t be too concerned if Garcia can’t unseat him. Would be if Horn isn’t able to before the season ends.

If Cook starts, then Eli should be publicly beheaded at the first home game.

Okay - I can accept that.

No, he's not Trent Hosick or anything. He's just really limited in what he can do. He's Chase Patton. Patton was smart, hard working and would've started for a number of lesser schools. Or he could've gone about .500 for those Chase Daniel era teams when a truly dynamic passer was taking the program to unprecedented levels.

He didn't start at Mizzou because we had a better guy in front of him and that's really the situation we need to find ourselves in.

Would take Carson Beck over Cook.

Cook vs. Mertz is a true fart vs poop question.

Unless Horn beats out Cook, I don't see a better QB than Cook on the current roster.

"Chase Daniel can win the Heisman. His backup can win the Super Bowl."

How do you have any idea if any QB is better than Cook? Did you see them play sometime that I didn't? There are 3 4* QBs on this roster. I have a hard time believing that none of them are better than Cook.

Say he gets you to another bowl and you fire him who do you get? How often does it workout when a school fires a coach who gets you to bowls and the guy replacing him does better? Your not getting Meyer or Fitzgerald why not give him more time?

The standard shouldn't be oh look, they barely qualified for the horse cock bowl of Limpdick, Idaho.

Yeah you ****in' fire him if he can't find a QB after 4 years. That's long enough to find somebody.

That's Scott Frost copium talk. Mizzou is SEC. Being happy with mediocre should never be acceptable.

That's half of the problem with the program currently. Too many people have accepted mediocrity.

Program was in the dumps when he came along not as bad as when Pinkel took over which btw it took him several years.

So, you prefer to be like Nebraska, who fired perennial 10 win coaches in Frank Solich and Bo Pelini who then went on to suck under their replacement? Of course, if Drink could get to 10 wins, his job would be safe. But, my point is, that the grass isn't always greener on the other side of the fence. I want to see Mizzou as a championship contender. If Drink isn't the guy to get them there, so be it. But let's not get hasty about firing him. The replacement could set the team back like Nebraska's hires have set their team back.

That's the take you got? Sorry reading comprehension isn't a strong thing for you.

The Pelini comparison isn't relevant. We're not in a trashcan Big 10 division.

We're talking about anything beyond 6-6, not a title game appearance.

Nobody is arguing the program was a dump. I called Odom a clownshow from the start while this thread insisted he was actially really smart.

Going into year 4 though, you need to see growth. If you're hitting your ceiling and that ceiling is barely qualifying for an entry level bowl, you need to make a change.

4 years is long enough to start expecting some results. You guys are being nuts here.

I guess my question is who do you think you will get after firing a guy who's taken you to a bowl every year he's been a coach at MU? I can give you countless examples of coaches who've been successful when given a little bit of time. I can also show you plenty of programs who've failed when they quick to fire a coach.

Correct me if I'm wrong here but I don't exactly recall alot of proven names who were serious candidates for the job the last few times ya'll were looking. Rhule comes to mind but he was an unknown at the time. I think your expectations are a little high

If neither Garcia or Horn can beat out Cook then it’s pretty clear that Drink is clueless in terms of QB evaluation and development.

I agree however Drink is no Solich.

If we win less than 8 games, then Eli will have a worse record than Barry Odumb did in his time here. Barry was fired after a 7 win season. If Eli goes with one of the young QBs and wins 6 games, but they look decent, then yeah he deserves more time. If he goes with Brady Cook, then he's nailing that coffin shut. If Cook starts, then we're probably losing Horn and Garcia. We lose those guys and then we are stuck with jack shit at QB and this team is probably a dumpster fire in 2024. Probably lose Luther Burden, because he's not sticking around with shit at QB.

Well, a few things.

4 years is enough time to show growth in the program. Skidding sideways through all of it doesn't equal to growth.

We're not going to get Arky delusional here, but I think it's realistic to expect competent QB play and 7-8 wins by now. Not too much.

Still not going to rule it out. Maybe the new OC will save Drinkwitz from himself by the KState game.

You can qualify for a bowl while still nearly being dead ass last in the SEC East. Barely qualifying to lose on a Tuesday bowl isn't a giant barometer of success.

Being in the bottom of the standings year in year out is enough justification, and it's only going to get even harder starting next year.

Sonny Dykes wanted the job the last go around (oof that one stings rn) and well he didn't do too bad last year. Finding a decent candidate isn't impossible and they have an AD that just revived a BB that was comatose. I think we'll be fine.

You're in the 30s regarding football budget and towards the bottom in NIL in the SEC last time I checked. You're going to have to go the development route if you want to be competitive which takes time

Our state legislature just passed the most friendly NIL bill in the nation. That should be incredibly helpful. School officials and coaches can now discuss NIL with prospects. In state high school kids can now immediately start getting paid once they sign with an in state school. That means in February if a MO high school student signs with Mizzou, then they can start getting paid while in high school. That's pretty huge for families and kids that are barely making ends meet. This has gotta increase the amount of in state kids that we pull in.

Yep. The NIL money will flow soon and flow heavy when the program has a real pulse again.

As for football budget, they're not going to be paying on the stadium expansion forever and SEC payout is about to rocket.

Yep. The NIL money will flow soon and flow heavy when the program has a real pulse again.

As for football budget, they're not going to be paying on the stadium expansion forever and SEC payout is about to rocket.

Yep. The NIL money will flow soon and flow heavy when the program has a real pulse again.

As for football budget, they're not going to be paying on the stadium expansion forever and SEC payout is about to rocket.

While I am anti-Drinkwitz at this point, I'd prefer to be wrong and Garcia or Horn are starting and they do move forward. The program needs the stability, I just don't think cutting the programs future in the knees is worth that stability.

Yep. The NIL money will flow soon and flow heavy when the program has a real pulse again.

As for football budget, they're not going to be paying on the stadium expansion forever and SEC payout is about to rocket.

While I am anti-Drinkwitz at this point, I'd prefer to be wrong and Garcia or Horn are starting and they do move forward. The program needs the stability, I just don't think cutting the programs future in the knees is worth that stability.

Hey BryanBusby - do you think the NIL money will flow soon and flow heavy when the program has a real pulse again?

Would you please go into more detail about the stadium expansion financial situation?

That's what he just said you stupid bitch!

So we're going the 'clever nicknames' route, eh?

Yeah - those tend to be conversations that are DEFINITELY worth having. And with people that are just a joy having them with.

Have fun with that.

It's my thing lol. I've been calling him Drinkspiss since last season and I'm far from the only person that has given coaches nicknames. Hell, Duncan gave Cuonzo a "clever nickname". You clearly have more faith in Eli, than I do.

I don't think he forgot the things he showed he knew at App State, no. Or things that we know Harsin was doing (while bringing Drink with him and promoting him).

We'd have all called Harsin a HR hire yet you put no stock in the fact that Harsin trusted Drink enough to bring him from stop to stop and promote him? I know he ran a heck of an offense at NC State with little more than Ryan Finley at QB - you think he can't get a Ryan Finley in here?

Bottoming out doesn't get you good draft picks in college football, folks. It puts you in the beginnings of a death spiral that can take DECADES to recover from - ask Kansas.

You're more accepting of that possibility because you think we should be competing for championships in the SEC. Frankly I'm just not sure why. This program doesn't have NEAR the resources that the UGAs, TNs and FLs of the conference do, let alone Alabama, LSU or A&M.

But an area you're seeming to not want to acknowledge, where Drink is making significant roads, is securing those resources. He's very popular among boosters and folks that can bankroll some of these steps into the higher levels of the SEC.

But I'm not going to pretend like Mizzou is college football royalty where 8-9 wins should be considered a disappointment. It just isn't that program. And you can put your bets on the next hire being the guy that annually puts us in the hunt for the SEC championship if you'd like, but if you want to stack odds, the odds OVERWHELMINGLY favor the next guy being someone who puts us in the basement of the SEC vs. puts us in the driver's seat.

The risk/reward ratio just isn't there at all.

"I guess I just have higher standards" - no, you simply lack a fundamental grasp of the reality on the ground. And a serious impulse control issue.

So you were upset with the Barry Odom firing? I'm not sure why I'm getting the heat either when a vast majority of this thread is people saying the same thing I am. Also, things are a bit different between Appalachian St/NC State and Mizzou. I've never once pushed back on the idea that he's securing resources, but that should be on the administration of the school to pull those resources and not the head coach. It was supposedly the entire god damn reason we moved from the Big 12 to the SEC was all the money it'd bring in to improve the sports programs.

Yeah, the relationship with the fan-base/boosters is worth pointing out. Odom was shit canned not necessarily because of his record but because of waning support (and meddling success with recruiting).

Given the resources and $$, as well as location. behind the programs, the only schools that can consistently expect to compete for titles in the SEC for football are Alabama, Georgia, Texas, Oklahoma, LSU, Florida, A&M, Tennessee, and Auburn.

Mizzou falls in the next tier in the pecking order with South Carolina, Arkansas, and Ole Miss.

Then bottom tier is Mississippi State, Kentucky, and Vandy.

Mizzou’s realistic expectations in football should be make a bowl game 7/10 years, with contention of being in Atlanta once or twice a decade. With the possibility of 9 or 10 win seasons about twice a decade.

Mizzou isn’t a bad job, but the financial support compared to other schools as well as regional recruiting base just isn’t there.

I call Drinkwitz “Crosseyes.” If you have ever seen him without the glasses on.

Unfortunately Kentucky has passed us by.

LMAO Yeesh, didn't expect we'd slip into Stockholm Syndrome so soon defending this schmuck but here we are.