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Eli Drinkwitz discusses Mizzou’s QB, WR depth and what success will look like for Luther Burden
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Missouri opens its season Thursday night with a visit from Louisiana Tech.
The Tigers finished 6-7 a year ago but are looking forward to bigger and better things in 2022.
Observers are interested in seeing how Missouri fares at quarterback with last year’s starter, Connor Bazelak having transferred to Indiana after passing for more than 2,500 yards and 16 touchdowns a year ago.
One person who feels good about where things stand at quarterback is Tigers coach Eli Drinkwitz.
“I have a lot of confidence in our QB room,” Drinkwitz said Wednesday during the SEC coaches teleconference. “Brady Cook has done everything the right way from leadership to decision-making standpoint. … I have a lot of confidence in his ability. … We’ve got some young guys behind him. Sam Horn, very talented freshman. Tyler Macon, very talented redshirt freshman. We’re very deep.”
Cook, a 6-2, 206-pound sophomore, was impressive in the 5 games he appears in a year ago. He completed 46-of-58 passes for 345 yards, 2 touchdowns, and no interceptions.
Drinkwitz said he also believes that the Tigers have the personnel necessary at wide receiver to help the QBs out in 2022.
“They’ve been getting a lot of reps with the quarterbacks. … Ii feel like we’re very deep at that position,” Drinkwitz added. “We’ve got a lot of guys with great play-making ability. It’s been a lot of great practice, but now we’ve got to do it in a game.”
Of course, included among those receivers is 5-star recruit Luther Burden.
“I think for all of our players, it’s developing into the best version of themselves. … For us, it’s about him playing to the best version of himself,” said Drinkwitz when asked about Burden. “Trying to put any more ‘Hey, to be successful, you have to do this’ is discouraging to him and his teammates. … As long as he’s embracing his role and helping us win, I would consider that to be a success.”
The Tigers and Bulldogs will kick off at 8 p.m. (ET) on Thursday night and the game will be televised by ESPNU.
Missouri is currently a near three-touchdown favorite.
"Chris Wallace covers college football for Saturday Down South. He has covered college athletics for multiple newspapers and also worked previously for Rivals.com and GolfChannel.com."
