Eli Drinkwitz happy to bring Mayor’s Cup to ‘real Columbia’ after beating South Carolina

Eli Drinkwitz was feeling himself after Missouri was victorious in the annual Mayor’s Cup Rivalry against South Carolina on Saturday.

The Tigers continued their awesome season, and were dominant all afternoon in an eventual 34-12 victory at home. With the win, Drinkwitz kept a perfect record against the Gamecocks since taking over in 2020.

Additionally, the victory marked Missouri’s fourth-straight win over South Carolina. Drinkwitz had a lot to celebrate, and he made sure South Carolina realized where the Mayor’s Cup will continue to reside afterwards.

“What a big time win, by our football team and program,” Drinkwitz started. “Really appreciative of the crowd. I thought they were just unbelievable. What a great, energetic atmosphere. I thought the students were unbelievable again. They were there early and loud. Really felt like our guys needed some energy going into this game. You know, we’ve been going since July 30th. This has been eight straight weeks, plus those four weeks, so you know, we needed this bye week, and I was worried about getting to this finish line. But really proud of the seniors, and our leaders, for really playing with a lot of courage and energy, and really thankful for the fans. You know, it’s always good to win homecoming when you invent homecoming. So really appreciate to our team. Then, to keep the Mayor’s Cup in the real Columbia, it’s always something special too.

“So hats off to our defense. I thought (Missouri defensive coordinator) Coach [Blake] Baker did an outstanding job getting after the offensively. To hold them to four field goals I think was incredible, especially after the drop punt. To go out there and run the fight the way they did, and hold them to a field goal, was really impressive.”

Moreover, the Tigers achieved victory by being extremely effective in getting pressure on South Carolina quarterback Spencer Rattler, as they finished the day with six sacks and eight tackles for loss. The Gamecocks star didn’t have much time to make decisions, resulting in a 23-of-40 (57.5%) passing performance for 217 yards and an interception.

Also, Missouri also held South Carolina to just 69 yards rushing on 2.4 yards per carry, proving Drinkwitz right for giving Baker his props.

With the win, Missouri has also achieved its highest win total in any season since Drinkwitz took over, improving to 7-1 (3-1 SEC). The Tigers now have a well-earned bye week before they prepare for their biggest test of the season against No. 1 Georgia on Nov. 4. 

Eli Drinkwitz has Missouri playing some awesome football at the moment, and there’s no reason that shouldn’t continue, even with the Bulldogs in their path.

On3’s Chandler Vessels contributed to this article.