Eli Drinkwitz SEC Media Days: Five key takeaways from Missouri football coach in Atlanta

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5 days ago

In his opening statement, Eli Drinkwitz quipped that he wouldn't talk about the Jeffrey Epstein files or the JFK assassination.
'I know there's a lot of burning questions in this room by the 14 of y'all that showed up,' Drinkwitz said. 'But, just as a reminder, I'm not going to answer any questions about the Epstein files, or about the radiation belt, or whether or not it was possible for Lee Harvey Oswald to get three shots off in seven seconds.'
Before he left the stage, he closed with what seemed to be a tongue-firmly-lodged-in-cheek message of thanks to the 'late-stragglers' media members who filled the room for his press conference late. Later in the afternoon, he took to X/Twitter to take on 'aggregate' headlines on his CFP format suggestions.
Man, oh man. Where to begin?
It's talking season, you betcha. And Thursday was a Drinkwitz-talkin' tour de force.
Somewhere in-between it all, Drinkwitz — often-fierce, characteristically-zesty and self-admittedly less concerned with what people think about him now than before — broached a lot of big topics facing his Missouri football squad in the 2025 season and the College Football Playoff in general.
Here are — wisecracks, right hooks and left jabs mostly set aside — five of the most noteworthy topics Drinkwitz addressed on the SEC Media Days stage.
Missouri football QBs: It's still Sam Horn vs. Beau Pribula
As expected, nothing new or unexpected on the quarterback front broke in Atlanta.
Drinkwitz did confirm that Sam Horn plans to compete for the starting quarterback job, even despite being drafted in the 17th round by the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday in the MLB Draft. Horn will compete for starting honors with Beau Pribula, a Penn State transfer.
More: Missouri football's Eli Drinkwitz says QB Sam Horn will compete in 2025 despite MLB Draft pick
Here is what was said about each of Mizzou's potential starters, and a bonus quote on true freshman Matt Zollers.
On Horn: 'Has really excelled in his maturation,' Drinkwitz said. 'One thing most people don't know about Sam, he's a Type-1 diabetic, and so he's — since he's been in college — been able to learn to adapt and train and develop and adjust, and he's really done a lot of good things, understands the system.'
On Pribula: 'Beau came in with the right mindset; nothing given, everything earned,' Drinkwitz said. 'Works extremely hard developing his craft. He's a guy who spends a lot of extra time up there, has a chip on his shoulder — the right kind of chip. Does a really good job leadership-wise.'
On Zollers: 'He throws it as well as any quarterback I've ever seen. He's coming back from an ankle surgery. You can tell he's adjusting to the speed of college football, but very excited about that room.'
Bucking the 'whining' trend
Drinkwitz, notably, had some novel suggestions for the College Football Playoff format, mostly focused on player- and fan-experience by making the field much, much larger, as well as making sure the competitors are decided on the field rather than in a backroom. More on that right here.
More: Missouri football coach Eli Drinkwitz backs CFP play-in games, essentially expanding to 30 teams
But one of the most thoughtful responses Drinkwitz gave was at least partially in rebuke to what he, perhaps jokingly, referred to as 'whining' from some other coaches.
There's been a fair share of it. Whether it's NIL and revenue sharing or the transfer portal or the College Football Playoff or you name it; coaches generally don't seem to be thrilled with the state of the athletics landscape.
'I was sent a text message the other day by one of my good friends that said, 'What a privilege it is to be exhausted by a challenge you choose for yourself,'' Drinkwitz said. 'And that's something I think about a lot when we talk about college football and college athletics: We choose to do this. I'm blessed to be the head football coach (at Mizzou) and incredibly proud of the opportunity to serve the great state of Missouri.'
That's a refreshing perspective, and one that's become pretty consistent with Drinkwitz's handling of changes to the sport.
On the strength of the SEC
The Mizzou coach was asked whether it was important for the SEC to get back 'to the top' after two straight national champions from the Big Ten.
Drinkwitz disagreed with the premise of that question.
''The top' as in number of draft picks in the NFL? 'Top' as in most viewership? 'Top' as in overall top as the deepest conference in college football? Yeah, we haven't been — I heard that last night: 'Well, (SEC teams) haven't won the national championship in the last two years.' I don't know, what was it? The previous 10? Fourteen? … You've got 16 of the toughest competitors in the world who are head coaches in this league. We're all driven to achieve the best, whether that's internally or externally.
'We feel pressure to achieve that, but there's no pressure because we've got to do it for the SEC. We want to do it for our team, our players, our fans.'
Between 2009-23 — the 14-year range mentioned — the SEC won 11 of the possible 14 national titles.
On the return of Border War
KU coach Lance Leipold ruffled some feathers in Manhattan, Kansas, when he said that he didn't know Border War was a bigger deal to most Jayhawks fans than Kansas-Kansas State.
Mizzou versus Kansas is back on the football field this year, with a matchup set for Sept. 6 in Columbia. Drinkwitz has long been a proponent of maintaining and protecting regional rivalries in college athletics — a topic he's broached numerous times over the years when conference realignment has come up.
'I think rivalries are a great thing for college athletics and college football, particularly — especially — regional rivalries,' Drinkwitz said. 'This one goes back a long ways. The origins of our football name, the Tigers, is based off of the militia that was formed to protect Columbia from people from Kansas and the Kansas area. So, you know, this is something that goes back a long way. It's very deep, and it's something that our team is very keenly aware of.
'We understand the implications, the importance to our state, and look forward to playing that game, especially having it at home.'
Weighing in on Nick Saban rumors
OK, one last wisecrack: This one aimed at radio host and ex-Alabama quarterback Greg McElroy, who said he was told by a "very in-the-know person" that legendary coach Nick Saban might not be done coaching.
Of course, that became one of the top storylines on the Omni Atlanta Hotel grounds this week, with Kirby Smart and Lane Kiffin and, of course, Kalen DeBoer among the coaches asked to weigh in.
Drinkwitz decided to get his shot in, too.
'Coach Saban, all summer, he calls and does scouting reports with all the head coaches. Not to get back into coaching. Just want to clear that up for Greg McElroy,' Drinkwitz said. 'But he does that to make sure he has an edge on the competition. And the first person he asked about was Jalen Catalon.'
Catalon transferred to Mizzou after an AP third-team All-American season at UNLV under Barry Odom. The safety previously has played for Arkansas and Texas, and figures to be an important figure in Mizzou's secondary this season.
'(Saban) said, 'Man, that guy's played a lot of really good football at a high level,' and you could see that in the spring,' Drinkwitz said. 'He's got great instincts. He understands diagnoses, what offenses are trying to do. He's got a knack for finding the football in the air. He's really good at blitzing. You know, we play a lot of single-high defense and use that safety to insert, which is something that Jalen can really do, and we're very excited about what he brings to that room.'
This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: 5 takeaways from Missouri football's Eli Drinkwitz at SEC Media Days