Eli Drinkwitz Incorrectly States Missouri Avoids the Noise

Missouri head football coach Eli Drinkwitz enjoys speaking into a microphone in the middle of the spotlight. There’s no limit to what he may do to magnify the attention on his program.

He went with a gimmick back in 2021, bringing a lightsaber to a press conference to troll Dan Mullen after upsetting the Gators. He probably prefers preaching from a pulpit over awkward recruiting hijinx. The adults fawned over Drink’s two-minute “grass isn’t always greener” spiel in which he lamented instant gratification while referencing those who survived the Great Depression and WWII.

Those antics are great when you’re looking for attention. Drinkwitz did something shocking last fall. He drew attention to Missouri by actually winning football games.

The Tigers capped off an 11-2 season by defeating Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl. Despite suffering a few big offseason losses, like defensive coordinator Blake Baker to LSU, most of the key pieces return, making Missouri a popular dark horse CFB Playoff pick in the preseason.

Drinkwitz is in unfamiliar territory. His team has high expectations. Just a year ago he was on the hot seat.

To brace for impact, Drinkwitz took a different tone in rhetoric to SEC Media Days, one that mirrored Lane Kiffin’s, whose program is in a similar position this fall. Drink is doing everything he can to prevent his team from taking the rat poison.

“That was last year and last year has nothing to do with this year.”

“In the new playoff and no divisions, you can get caught up in a lot of what-ifs and hypotheticals. The only thing I know is we face Murray State in week one.”

“We don’t rely on exterior noise and exterior factors to provide our motivation.”

Let me stop you right there, Eli. The first two sentences aren’t anything new to the SEC Media Days stage. That sort of talk happens often. It’s the kind of stuff Mark Stoops would say after a big season. But I take issue with that last statement.

If you recall, one of those eleven wins was in Lexington, Missouri’s first since 2013. The Tigers executed an improbable fake punt to turn the tide and take advantage of a stunned Kentucky sideline. Following the 38-21 win, the official Missouri football account took a victory lap, specifically taking aim at this website.

#STP https://t.co/7jq6kjklA3 pic.twitter.com/bnwZs4pJQa

— Mizzou Football (@MizzouFootball) October 15, 2023

Drinkwitz’s Missouri football program pays attention to exterior noise. All of them do. To say otherwise is complete bologna. Good luck avoiding that this year, Missouri. It’d be a real shame if it came back to bite you in the butt, a real shame.

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