What Eli Drinkwitz said about Missouri football's 2023 recruiting class
Missouri's football recruiting class wasn’t one of the top groups in the nation, or in the SEC. The Tigers came in 32nd in the 247Sports composite rankings, and 11th in the conference. During his Wednesday press conference, head coach Eli Drinkwitz said all the expected things. Missouri was excited to add to the brotherhood; it recruited based on fit first.
All the standard stuff.
Mizzou football recruiting class 2023: Meet the newest Tigers
"It’s always a good day when you’re able to add talent to your roster,” Drinkwitz said Wednesday.
One thing the Tigers did well, and one of Drinkwitz’s emphasis points during his tenure, was getting in-state talent. The top three rated players in the 247Sports rankings were all from the Show-Me State.
Those included tight end Brett Norfleet, who played his high school ball at Francis Howell in St. Charles. The four-star prospect stands as the top-ranked player in MU’s class, coming in at 241 overall nationally and 14th at his position.
Other top players joining the Tigers from in-state include wide receiver Joshua Manning from Lee’s Summit, safety Marvin Burks Jr. from Cardinal Ritter and Logan Reichert from Raytown. According to Drinkwitz, bringing in the best talent from Missouri has always been the plan.
"It’s all about finding those guys that really want to be a true son,” Drinkwitz said.
Missouri managed to make it through all of its signees without having anyone flip to another school at the 11th hour. Drinkwitz and company even managed to change a few minds of their own, including Sam Williams, a defensive lineman from Georgia who was previously committed to Friday’s Gasparilla Bowl opponent, Wake Forest.
Drinkwitz said he and his staff had an inkling they would get Williams on Monday during a social with the opposing coaches.
"For all of us to keep a straight face and not let that one slip out was a little bit difficult,” Drinkwitz said. “In recruiting, yeah, yeah, it’s kind of fun. I don’t rub it in, probably as much as I’d like to, but it’s kind of fun when you beat people who think they got you.”
More:Bush Hamdan departs Mizzou for Boise State; Kris Abrams-Draine to return in 2023
Beyond the freshman class of 2023, Missouri also brought in some new faces via the transfer portal. Chief among them was former Oklahoma wide receiver Theo Wease.
Wease went for 378 yards and four touchdowns through the air in seven games this season with the Sooners. In 2020, he had 530 rushing yards and another four touchdowns.
He missed the entire 2021 season due to injury. Wease will have two seasons of eligibility remaining.
According to Drinkwitz, the wideout could help with the development of freshman Luther Burden.
"He allows us to really have the opportunity to play him at X and potentially move Luther around in our offense a little bit more,” Drinkwitz said. “Really felt like, in order for Luther to really be as successful as we could, we needed to kind of put him in a position. Now we have Theo who can handle that X, that will allow us to move Lu around and create matchup issues.”
Even with the influx of new talent for next season, Drinkwitz made one thing clear. The Tigers are nowhere near done.
“We’ll recruit anybody,” Drinkwitz said.
Tauskie's time
Missouri wide receiver Tauskie Dove announced on Thursday that he plans to enter the transfer portal at the conclusion of the 2022 season. Dove played with the Tigers in the Gasparilla Bowl.
Dove served as a captain for MU this season.
“I would like to thank God for my journey here at Mizzou,” Dove said in a statement. “Not just on the field, but off the field. The blessings and lessons have helped me become who I am.”
Dove joined the Tigers as part of the 2018 recruiting class under former head coach Barry Odom.
He will become the second wideout lost to the portal this season, with Dominic Lovett, now bound for Georgia, being the first.
This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: What Eli Drinkwitz said about Mizzou football's recruiting class
