Missouri and coach Eli Drinkwitz's have agreed to a contract extension that runs through the 2028 season, the school announced Sunday. Drinkwitz's extension comes two days removed from a 14-3 victory over No. 7 Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl Classic, giving the No. 9 Tigers' their first 11-win season since 2014. It was Missouri's first New Year's Six bowl victory (or equivalent) since defeating Oklahoma State in the Cotton Bowl at the end of the 2013 season -- the final year of the BCS and Missouri's sophomore season as an SEC member.
"My family and I want to thank the Board of Curators, President Choi, and Desireé Reed-Francois for their faith in me as the head coach," Drinkwitz said in a statement "You can't do this alone, and our players, coaches and staff have worked tirelessly and believed in the process of building a championship program. The passion of our fan base, alumni and donors is awesome, and we are proud to represent them. We are extremely grateful for the resources they provide and the continued investment from our administration in Mizzou Football. All of it has allowed us to get to where we are. Why stop now!"
Missouri's 11-2 finish to 2023 marked just the seventh double-digit win total in program history. It was also Drinkwitz's first winning season with the Tigers, that after they were picked by media members in the preseason to finish sixth out of seven teams in the SEC East Division. Drinkwitz was named SEC Coach of the Year after the dramatic turnaround.
Drinkwitz was hired to coach the Tigers ahead of the 2020 campaign. He is 28-21 overall at Missouri and 40-22 overall as an FBS head coach. He led Appalachian State to a 12-1 finish and AP No. 19 ranking in his lone season with the Mountaineers in 2019.
Missouri looks to ride momentum
An 11-win finish and Cotton Bowl victory against a historic blue blood exceeded all expectations for Missouri in 2023. More importantly, even bigger things could in store for the Tigers in 2024 -- especially with some of the drastic changes that are in store not just for the SEC, but all of college football. Many key players from the 2023 team -- including starting quarterback Brady Cook and star wide receiver Luther Burden III -- will be back in action next season as the SEC does away with divisions and the CFP expands to 12 teams.
To say the least, the Tigers are a major benefactor from the decision to abolish divisions. Aside from a road trip to Alabama, the schedule is manageable on paper for Drinkwitz and company. The annual SEC East buzzsaw that is Georgia is absent from Mizzou's schedule for the first time since the Tigers joined the conference a little more than a decade ago, as are division foes Florida and Tennessee. A road trip to Texas A&M and a reunion at home with SEC newcomer Oklahoma highlight the schedule, but both of those programs are in seasons of transition.
Even if Missouri drops a game or two along the way, the Tigers would still likely find themselves in the picture for the expanded playoff -- they would have been one of the at-large berths had the 12-team format been implemented in 2023. Helping their case is a non-conference schedule that includes Murray State, Buffalo, Boston College and UMass. Missouri should be a healthy favorite in all four of those contests, with UMass serving as the only road game in the non-conference slate.
"I think the future is extremely bright because of the plans we have and the vision we are carrying out," Drinkwitz said after the Cotton Bowl victory against Ohio State. "And it's not just me. It's the administration, the support we have and what they have done. ... It's what our players have done, investing in each other. It's what our recruiting is doing in continuing to get the right players to come play for us.
"With the new 12-team playoff, this [the Cotton Bowl] would have been a game where we're obviously continuing to move on and going to have a chance to play at a high level. So everything is coming together now, but we do understand the wind is twice as hard at the top of the mountain. Whatever we did to achieve this year, it's going to be twice as hard."
