Eli Drinkwitz is hoping the Mizzou football faithful is ready for Saturday’s game against No. 15 Kansas State, because he and the Tigers are excited.

With Peter Burns and Chris Doering on Friday, Drinkwitz said he wants the Mizzou football fans to be “loud and ferocious” when the Tigers face off against the Wildcats.

Drinkwitz even channeled his Jimmy Buffett with a reference to the song “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere.”

“I know it’s an 11 a.m. kick, but it’s always 5 o’clock somewhere, especially in the Midwest,” Drinkwitz said. “I don’t think any of our fans are opposed to maybe having a 10 o’clock refreshment.”

Drinkwitz expects a solid crowd at Fauret Field on Saturday. It’s the Tigers’ first sellout crowd since Oct. 2019, 2 months before Drinkwitz was hired as the new head coach of the program.

“I’m anticipating an unbelievable crowd,” Drinkwitz said. “I’m excited. I know our football team is excited. We really appreciate our fans. Our players are ready to roll.”

Mizzou took on Kansas State last season on the Wildcats’ home turf. KSU came away with a win in that game, 40-12.

The Tigers, off to a 2-0 start this season, knocked off South Dakota and Middle Tennessee. The Wildcats, also 2-0, beat Southeast Missouri and Troy.