Eli Drinkwitz breaks down Missouri QB battle at SEC Media Days

Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz broke down the three-way quarterback battle for the Tigers going into the 2023 season.

Brady Cook is back for Mizzou, while the program added Miami transfer Jake Garcia and also feature redshirt-freshman Sam Horn. Cook has company now despite being the incumbent starter.

Drinkwitz was honest about his offense and his quarterback battle.

“I think for sure for on the offensive side of the ball, we got to improve and we got to score more points,” Drinkwitz said on SEC This Morning. “And does Brady Cook have an opportunity and the leg up on that? Will he go out there first? Absolutely. But we all have to improve.

“I took a step back. Kirby Moore is going to call the plays on the offensive side of the ball, be the offensive coordinator. We brought in transfers in both the offensive line and the wide receiver position to try to enhance our ability to protect the quarterback, run the football, be explosive.”

Last season, Cook threw for 2,739 yards, 14 touchdowns, seven interceptions, a 64.8% completion percentage, 585 rushing yards and six rushing touchdowns. He has the early edge in the Missouri quarterback competition.

As a member of the Class of 2020, Cook was a three-star recruit out of Saint Louis (Mo.) Chaminade College Prep, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He was the No. 14 overall prospect in the state, the No. 45 quarterback in the class and the No. 650 overall prospect in the class. 

But, there’s going to be good competition. Cook’s position isn’t guaranteed.

“And nobody on our team ever believes that their position is sacred,” Drinkwitz said. “Everybody’s got to compete every single day. And I know that we’ve got a really talented room. You’re talking about a transfer that has played and started games in Jake Garcia. You got a redshirt-freshman Sam Horn, who’s a very talented quarterback.

“You got a transfer, junior college player Dylan Laible, who’s a very good quarterback. And so there’s a lot of competition at that position. And I believe that competition makes you better.”

The Missouri quarterback battle got really interesting once Garcia transferred in.

Garcia is a former four-star prospect himself. He received much more playing time last season (eight games) and had his moments.

However, he finished with just 803 yards, five touchdowns, four interceptions and a 59.1% completion percentage.

Garcia has the experience and if the Missouri quarterback battle comes down to two guys, it’ll likely be Cook and Garcia for the starting gig.