Mizzou football prepares for crucial year four under Eli Drinkwitz

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Mizzou football coach Eli Drinkwitz is headed into year four at the helm of Tiger football knowing that each season is never a guarantee. At SEC Media Days, on Monday, Drinkwitz said he thinks that his program is headed in the right direction.

MU finished the 2022 season 6-7 overall and 3-5 in the Southeastern Conference. The year finished short of a couple goals, including snagging Mizzou's first bowl win since the 2015 Citrus Bowl. Drinkwitz is still aiming to finish a season above the .500 mark for the first time in his MU career, as he sits at 17-19 through three seasons in Columbia.

"Honestly I don't think anyone puts more pressure on ourselves more than the players and coaches. I mean, we want to win every game," he said. "We all understand that it's a game-to-game, year-to-year job."

A big decision in Drinkwitz's fourth season will be the job of starting quarterback. On Monday, he said that last year's starter, Brady Cook, will go into fall camp as the guy to beat.

“We go to practice, Brady Cook will step out there with the ones. There’s very little doubt about that. I think he’s had a really good summer coming off an injury, but no different than every position on the field there’s nothing guaranteed," Coach Drink said.

He added that rising sophomore Sam Horn and Miami-transfer Jake Garcia will give Cook some good competition in fall camp.

Another crucial decision for Drinkwitz in the offseason was the decision to bring on an offensive coordinator, in Kirby Moore. The main goal of the offense is pretty simple: score more touchdowns.

There were several situations in 2022, where Mizzou lost close games, after struggling to move the sticks. However, the players said they are making the decision to move on from last season's close losses/what could have been and focus on the 203 season.