‘Some mottos just kind of fit’: Mizzou football still has something to prove
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
Despite coming off of the best season of the Eli Drinkwitz era, Mizzou is still going into the 2024 football season with something to prove.
"Sometimes we get caught in trying to chase the next motto or whatever," Drinkwitz said. "Sometimes mottos just kind of fit. For us, we just got something to prove '24."
You can watch the full press conference with Coach Drink in the video player below.
The 2024 Tigers kicked off fall camp, on Sunday, as the players moved into the dorms on campus and met with the media. During those media sessions, the team said that camp is the most important part of their season and will determine their success on the field.
"Fall camp is about brotherhood. It's about building bonds with every single person this team," quarterback Brady Cook said.
You can watch the full press conference with Cook in the video player below.
Cook added that, this season, he hasn't heard any of his teammates complain about living in the residence halls, as he has in other years. He said the group is excited to live together over the next few weeks and build that unbreakable bond.
In 2023, whatever Mizzou did in fall camp seemed to equal success, as Drinkwitz's crew went 11-2 overall and defeated Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl.
"I think everyone really just surrendered and just said, you know what, let's give it everything we have. Let's not worry about how long our day is in fall camp, let's now worry about what we can't control," Cook said. "Everyone really just bout in."
Coach Drinkwitz will be tasked with blending an experienced offense and a new-look defense under first-year coordinator Corey Batoon, during fall camp.
The MU offense returned all of its star power, including Cook, wide receivers Luther Burden, Theo Wease Jr. and others. Cook said he feels like the sky is the limit for this unit in 2024, as he enters his final season in the black and gold.
"I really don't think there's a ceiling," he said. "There's a lot of continuity. I think in fall camp, you know, let's see how far we can take it, how good we can be and how far we can take this thing."
As for the defense, the Tigers will work to install Batoon's new system before kicking off against Murray State on Thursday, Aug. 29. However, Mizzou's new d-coordinator said it's not as difficult as people may think.
"People get all caught up with systems and calls and all that," he said. "It's players over plays, right? So, fundamentally, how are we getting better?"
You can watch the full press conference with Coach Batoon in the video player below.
Mizzou and Murray State will kick off the 2024 season at 7 p.m. on Aug. 29. Until then, Drinkwitz and company have 17 fall camp practices to work through.
The ABC 17 sports team also spoke with a slew of other coaches and players during Sunday's media availability. You can watch all of those full interviews in the video players below.
