Mizzou football Spring scrimmage shows defensive strength, offensive transition

It was freezing cold outside in Columbia. Missouri football head coach Eli Drinkwitz’s plan to get spring practice done before spring break led to an unexpected obstacle: a March freeze canceling the spring game.

Instead of the traditional exhibition at Faurot Field, the Tigers moved indoors, away from fans, though family, friends and football alums were still in attendance at Devine Pavilion. Even though they lost the chance at a bigger stage, MU players weren’t especially disappointed.

“It don’t really matter, but that cold weather, I’m not really for that,” defensive lineman Realus George said after the practice.

Fellow lineman Darius Robinson agreed.

“When I woke up, I saw that snow outside and I said, ‘Coach Drink got it today,’” Robinson said with a laugh.

Indoors, though the scrimmage wasn’t full contact, the defense had reason to smile. Drinkwitz said ahead of the practice that the unit was ahead of its offensive counterpart, and it showed Saturday.

The usual suspects, including Ennis Rakestraw and Kris Abrams-Draine appeared to perform well at cornerback, and Triston Newson, who Drinkwitz said was having a solid spring, returned an interception for a touchdown.

“He always gets the ball,” Robinson said of the junior college transfer linebacker. “He’s got like four or five picks so far in spring ball. We call him country, “Big Country” is what we call him, but I’m glad he’s here too, he’s definitely making plays and working hard for us.”

The defense is the more stable unit entering the 2023 season. Defensive coordinator Blake Baker is back for his second season, and the Tigers returned a ton of talent, from Robinson, Rakestraw and Abrams-Draine, to Ty’Ron Hopper, Chad Bailey, Jayden Jernigan and more.

Throughout spring practice, the group seems to be taking it to the offense, including Saturday. The Missouri defense stood pat, even in goal line situations, making things difficult for their counterparts.

“We don’t take nothing from the offense,” Robinson said. “We try to go at them every day, every chance we get. And especially drills like that, where it’s like one, two yards deciding, we got to get it. It just is what it is, and that’s just the depth of our defense.”

The offense might not be as far along as Baker’s group, but there’s good reason for that. Drinkwitz brought in Kirby Moore as an offensive coordinator, and he’s been making some changes.

This part of the campaign is largely about getting everything installed.

“I think this spring is going well, especially learning a new offense, kind of starting from scratch,” running back Cody Schrader said. “That’s something we had to do, but I think it’s going well so far.”

For Schrader and his fellow running backs, Moore’s system means they’ll be split wide more often and could be more involved in the passing game. Schrader noted the group will be expected to do more than just run the ball, saying they’ll also pass protect, catch the ball out of the backfield and block on the perimeter.

Fellow running back Nate Peat also pointed to increased versatility as a hallmark of Moore’s offense.

“He’s putting us out in slot, wide receiver, or using us in motion,” Peat said. “It’s able to utilize our abilities a lot more.”

The Tigers will complete spring practice this coming week before spring break. They open the season on Sept. 2 against South Dakota.

Other notes

Offensive line coach Marcus Johnson did not appear to be in attendance for Saturday’s practice. Johnson is reportedly being pursued by Purdue for a coaching staff position there.

Jake Garcia and Sam Horn split most of the reps at quarterback. Walk-on Dylan Laible also saw some action.

Missouri landed a commitment on Saturday, with four-star defensive lineman Tionne Gray, from Hazelwood Central, announcing he plans to join the Tigers. Gray joins MU’s 2024 recruiting class.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Missouri football: Spring scrimmage shows defensive strength