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The Missouri Tigers have a new head coach, according to ESPN’s Chris Low.
The Tigers have hired Appalachian State’s Eli Drinkwitz to replace Barry Odom. Drinkwitz led Appalachian State to a 12-1 record this season — his first season — after winning the Sun Belt Conference Championship Saturday over Louisiana-Lafayette.
Lane Kiffin appeared to be the big candidate for the three open SEC jobs, and once his hire to Ole Miss became official, dominoes started falling. Arkansas and Missouri were both pursuing Drinkwitz, but he has chosen the Tigers, according to Low.
Drinkwitz is an offensive guru as a Gus Malzahn disciple. He worked under Malzahn at Auburn, and he was primed to land a good job after a great season in Boone, North Carolina.
By Sunday night, Drinkwitz was the only candidate that Missouri was pursuing, and an agreement has been reached, per the report. While Drinkwitz isn’t a huge name on the coaching carousel, he could be one of the better hires in 2019.
Odom was a defensive-minded coach, and now, Missouri turns to an offensive-minded head coach in Drinkwitz.
Eli Drinkwitz has reached an agreement to be the next @MizzouFootball head coach, sources tell ESPN. Drinkwitz led Appalachian State to the Sun Belt Conference championship this year in his only season in Boone.
— Chris Low (@ClowESPN) December 8, 2019
Saturday Down South reports and comments on the news around the Southeastern Conference as well as larger college football topics.
