Eli Drinkwitz explains 'stand on business' postgame comment to Josh Heupel

Eli Drinkwitz made sure to let Josh Heupel know that Missouri “stand(s) on business” following their 36-7 win over No. 13 Tennessee this past season in Columbia. Now, when discussing the moment in the offseason, he explained that it was a promise that he had to fulfill to his team after the victory.

Drinkwitz addressed the comment to Heupel during an appearance on the ‘Like A Farmer Podcast’ a few days ago. He said that he made a deal with his team to say it to Heupel postgame if they won considering it was their message for that week heading into the matchup with the Vols. After they took it by 29 overall, he knew he had to follow through on it for his players.

“Going into that game, we’re going to play Tennessee. They had beaten us pretty good the previous two years. Our players knew that we didn’t play our best. And, defensively, we hadn’t played our best,” Drinkwitz explained. “The motto for that week for the defense was ‘stand on business’. We were going to stand on business. It just means everybody’s gotta do their job. Don’t worry about the scoreboard, don’t worry about the opponent. But we gotta stand on business.”

“So I told the defense if they stood on business that I would tell the head coach that after the game. And they did it. If you’ll watch the clip closely, the defensive captain, No. 6, is walking right behind me. We were beating them pretty good and they were all gassing me up. They were walking right behind me to make sure I did it,” recalled Drinkwitz. “I had two choices. I could either look like a jackass nationally by saying it. Or I could look like a jackass to my team for not saying it. There’s no choice there. I’m going to make sure that what I do and what I say with my team is always consistent.”

Missouri certainly stood on their business in that game as it was the worst loss for Tennessee this season and worst since 2020 before Heupel took over in Knoxville.

At the 12:35 mark in the second quarter, the Volunteers had earned a 7-3 lead on Faurot Field. Then, from that moment on, Mizzou would go on to score 33 unanswered over the final 40:33 in the game.

Offensively, the Tigers put up 530 yards of offense with QB Brady Cook posting a total of 330 with two touchdowns overall and RB Cody Schrader putting up 321 and a rushing score. On defense, as Drinkwitz noted, they held Tennessee to only 350 yards, including just 83 on the ground, to go with three turnovers with one being a pick-six for DB Daylan Carnell.

Drinkwitz has been a coach that some have poked fun at during his time at Missouri for what he may say or do. Even so, he could care less about that and was more so thinking about his players thoughts about him based on what he had promised them earlier in that week.

“If other people don’t like it, I really don’t care. I really don’t care,” said Drinkwitz. “The brotherhood in the locker room is the most important thing to me. My word to those men is way more important than what the outside noise thinks about me.”

“People think I’m dorky, people think I’m arrogant. I don’t care,” Drinkwitz said. “You know who doesn’t think all that about me? Those players in that locker room.”