Could Eli Drinkwitz surrender Mizzou football play-calling in the future? He's not opposed
It’s been a rough year so far for Missouri football’s offense.
The Tigers have lost three SEC games by a single score, and while the defense has been much-improved and able to keep games close, MU has been unable to put points on the scoreboard that would lead to wins.
During his weekly press conference on Tuesday, head coach Eli Drinkwitz pointed the finger at himself for many of the issues that plagued Missouri in its narrow escape against Vanderbilt on Saturday.
The Tigers won that game 17-14 but didn’t score in the second half after getting out to a 17-0 lead.
More:Missouri football beats Vanderbilt. Here's what to know from the Tigers' first SEC win
"I’ll take the blame for the performance in the second half,” Drinkwitz said. “That’s on me as the head coach and offensive coordinator to get corrected."
Drinkwitz was asked if he could ever see himself as a head coach who didn’t call the plays. He said he certainly could.
“I dream about it all the time, honestly, usually on third down,” Drinkwitz said with a laugh. “I’m not opposed to that in any realm at all. Again, as you continue to grow and develop as a head coach, you look back and see the things that you’re doing well and the things that ‘Oof, I gotta improve on this. OK, maybe there’s a weakness here or a blind spot there that I continue to grow at.’
"So absolutely, I could see myself doing that if the timing was right with the right people.”
Drinkwitz said the play-calling duties will be under review during the offseason. He said his own ego would have no impact on whether he kept control.
However, there will be no change this season.
“This is a situation that I’ve created and I need to fix it,” Drinkwitz said. “It’s not somebody else’s responsibility. I can’t walk out of that room right now because it’s not working. I’ve got to dive in there with everybody.”
Cody's consistency
MU will emphasize one running back going forward: Drinkwitz said the “lion’s share” of reps will go to Cody Schrader.
Schrader has been splitting carries with the rest of the team’s backs, including Nate Peat and Elijah Young. According to Drinkwitz, the move going forward is based on Schrader’s steadiness.
More:Should Mizzou have gone with Sam Horn anyway? 10 thoughts from the win over Vanderbilt
“Cody’s consistency in production, consistency in ball security, consistency in protection,” Drinkwitz said of the reason for the increased role.
The move to give Schrader more carries continues the unlikely rise of the running back, who last season played at Division II Truman State, becoming the leading rusher at that level of college football. When he entered the transfer portal, Missouri gave him a chance as a walk-on.
Starting in January, Schrader will be on a scholarship for MU.
“It’s amazing that if you’re consistent in your discipline and you’re consistent in who you are with character, good things seem to happen,” Drinkwitz said. “That’s really what happened with him.”
Schrader has 363 yards rushing on the season, with an average of 5.3 yards per carry, and has scored four total touchdowns for the Tigers. His biggest game of the year so far came against Georgia, when he ran for 89 yards.
The Sam Horn situation
If Missouri had stayed up by a comfortable margin on Saturday against Vanderbilt, true freshman quarterback Sam Horn would have made his debut for the Tigers. Instead, the game got close and Drinkwitz opted to keep starter Brady Cook in the game.
“Sam was clearly told that we would like to get him in the game depending on how the game played out,” Drinkwitz said. “That was the plan.”
More:Why didn't Mizzou freshman quarterback Sam Horn play against Vanderbilt?
Drinkwitz said Horn was unfazed by not getting into the game. With the Tigers heading to South Carolina to play a more talented squad than the Commodores, Drinkwitz wouldn’t say definitively if Horn would play.
“There's probably 100 scenarios in this game, so yes,” Drinkwitz said when asked whether Horn could see the field on Saturday. “Will I tell him that he’s for sure going to play? No.”
Drinkwitz was also vague when asked who would take over if Cook was injured and had to miss time in a game. Jack Abraham has seen action this season, and the Tigers also have Tyler Macon on the roster.
“It all depends on the timing and the situation of the game,” Drinkwitz said. “We’re actively working all of our quarterbacks in practice to see who can develop, and depending on the situation in the game, what the injury would be, it would determine who would be the next quarterback in. So in long and short, I’m not gonna tell you.”
Missouri will take on South Carolina at 3 p.m. Saturday. The game will be televised on the SEC Network.
This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Mizzou football: Could Eli Drinkwitz give up play calling next year?
