Nearly seven years into his Columbia tenure, what do we know about Eli Drinkwitz?
We know he loves a Diet Coke. I’m more of a Coke Zero guy, but we’re all addicted to the chemicals of our choosing.
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We know he’s a bit of a troll. And while I might find it a bit distasteful at times, who am I to judge? I’m just as prone to riling up folks on subreddits.
We know he works and plays hard. I ran into him outside a St. Louis hotel recently… man looked like he played a full 18 holes of golf before 8 a.m. Or at least I think that’s what it was. He was carrying a full golf bag.
And, much to our chagrin at times, we know he’s fairly risk averse on the football field. He doesn’t care for fourth-ands. He loves a dependable three points. His style of game management dictates that Mizzou will be in many, many close contests, rarely putting games out of reach one way or the other.
Which makes his seventh season at the helm all the more fascinating. Because it seems like 2026 is bound to be his riskiest yet.
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It’s not hard to see why this is the case. All you have to do is consider the amount of roster turnover taking place? The offense, outside of a few key playmakers and a lineman or two, is almost brand new. New quarterback, new receiving corps, new starting linemen, new coordinator and play-caller, new backroom staff… this is a very different unit than the one that ran out against Virginia last December. The defense, while sturdier on the staff end, might be even more changed from a personnel standpoint.
Typically, those types of mass turnover events don’t exactly spell future success. That’s especially true for programs that operate with such fine on-field margins, as Mizzou tends to do under Eli Drinkwitz. Continuity is the name of the game when it comes to year-over-year results. Continuity on the two-deep, in key positions, in the staff room… you get the picture. Mizzou in August 2026 looks a whole lot different than Mizzou in December 2025. And that makes it hard to say that the Tigers are set up for another run at the College Football Playoff, Drinkwitz’s publicly stated goal for the program.
Still, you don’t have to squint that hard to see a future where Mizzou has one of its best runs at a CFP bid. Because for all of the factors that point to a low floor, there’s also an undoubtedly high ceiling on this team.
On the offensive side, it’s impossible to start anywhere but with the run game. The bread and butter of Mizzou’s on-field success under Drinkwitz, the Tigers return two running backs that would start almost anywhere in the country, one of whom will be playing for a first-round NFL Draft spot next spring. And the line, while diminished by eligibility, has enough veteran depth and returning production to make you think a drop-off would be minimal at worst.
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Then you get to the passing game, a dimension Mizzou hasn’t featured much in the past two years. Austin Simmons represents likely the most purely talented passer to go under center for Eli Drinkwitz. He’s also the most unproven. Hell, even Beau Pribula had a highlight reel to analyze. And as tantalizing as the receiving corps is with Donovan Olugbode, Cayden Lee and a host of transfer additions, you could hardly argue that the Tigers feature a proven number one at the SEC level. But is it that hard to believe they might have three or four guys that could share the wealth in a meaningful way?
Then the defense…hoo boy. It’s been easy to trust Corey Batoon since his arrival in CoMo, but even the most optimistic fans have to be puckering just a little bit. The secondary, already a bit thin in 2025, has been almost entirely remade from the ground floor. The defensive line, having lost its two best pass-rushers in Zion Young and Damon Wilson, is depending on breakout seasons from a number of transfer or rotational options to fill the gaps on the outside. And while the linebacker corps looks the most fortified with talent up and down the eligibility chart, it’s still short of a true star, the type that frequently features on CFP level teams.
But when you look sheer amount of Power Four experience all over the defensive room, is there that much room for despair? Every position group is littered with names who have amassed hundreds of snaps at the highest level of college football. It’s not as if Drinkwitz and Batoon are plugging the holes in the wall with their fingers. They’ve gone about the work of adding quality and quantity in the areas where it’s needed most. If you can’t have continuity and cohesion, you can only find a plethora of talent and seeing what combinations work and which don’t. Is it ideal? Not necessarily. But that doesn’t mean it won’t work either. Rules have exceptions, after all.
All of this reminds me of our annual “Count the Ifs” post that generally runs right before the new season begins in late August/early September. I pity poor Nate Edwards, because the amount of “ifs” on this team has to feel enormous. If Austin Simmons is the guy who convinced Lane Kiffin he was an SEC starter… If Batoon found a few high-level, under-the-radar starters for his secondary in the transfer portal… If Ahmad Hardy is ready to roll in short order… If the offensive line can quickly plug the gaps… If Blake Craig doesn’t come back from ACL surgery diminished…
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You could go on. For all the talent and possibility Eli Drinkwitz has amassed on this team, there are so many ways it go wrong. Even a small number of failed plans could lead to a bust season the likes of which Mizzou hasn’t seen since 2022.
But for a coach who has always played things safe, the roster-building strategy for 2026 feels like anything but. It feels like Drinkwitz betting that he can make the best of a tough situation. It feels like Drinkwitz adding as much talent to the roster as he can and counting on his team’s ability to buck the trend of turnover equaling a downturn.
And honestly? That’s refreshing. As refreshing as a Diet Coke after a well-earned win under the Saturday night SEC lights? We’ll have to wait and see.
