Should Mizzou play in KC? Eli Drinkwitz being aggressive? Seven thoughts on MU Tigers

It was electric. Missouri football showed out at the Dome at America’s Center and went away with a win that ranked MU for the first time since 2019.

The Tigers are off to a 4-0 start to the 2023 season after defeating Memphis 34-27. MU’s other wins have come against South Dakota, Middle Tennessee and Kansas State.

Here are seven thoughts on Missouri football following Saturday’s game against the Memphis Tigers...

Missouri took care of business. That absolves the miscues

I thought MU was going to win by at least a couple of scores. My prediction was 35-17. Save for a score in the final minutes of the game by Memphis, that prediction was close.

Still, Missouri won 34-27. The Tigers overcame six penalties, a turnover, zero third-down conversions on offense, two offensive lulls and man-coverage struggles to beat a Memphis team that had every reason to try and spoil the Tigers’ time in St. Louis.

Credit to Missouri for making sure the crowd of over 40,000, most of whom were Missouri fans, didn’t leave disappointed.

The Tigers had over 500 yards of total offense. Brady Cook threw for over 300 yards again. The running game rumbled for more than 200 yards. The thin secondary got two turnovers on the day.

Say what you want about Memphis being an AAC team, but the blue Tigers were 3-0 going into Saturday. They weren’t a pushover. Memphis has an experienced quarterback and a complete running game; Memphis’ defense was solid, too.

But Missouri won. Take the win, the top-25 ranking and head into SEC play. Last year, this was a game Missouri would’ve lost. The turnovers would have continued and the offense would’ve stagnated.

Instead, Missouri was up by 14 with two minutes left against a 3-0 team.

Now is when Missouri’s transfer portal efforts pay off

Ennis Rakestraw didn’t play with an injury. Dreyden Norwood left the game with an injury. Jaylon Carlies played cornerback. Darius Robinson might miss a game or two.

These next few weeks will allow Eli Drinkwitz the chance to prove his efforts in recruiting the transfer portal were successful.

Tre’Vez Johnson, Marcus Clarke and Dreyden Norwood are players MU is confident in, should players like Rakestraw and Kris Abrams-Draine miss time. Norwood showed it before his injury, and Clarke stepped up with an interception.

But this depth, which includes Texas Tech transfer Devyn Butler and a host of freshmen and underclassmen, will be tested if Rakestraw and Norwood need to miss more time.

The same goes for the defensive line, although the depth there depends on the position. MU will most like be missing Robinson at defensive end more than at tackle, as Josh Landry, Realus George and Kristian Williams are solid interior players.

At defensive end, Nyles Gaddy has come on strong, as has Johnny Walker. But having Robinson in the rotation makes that position more effective. Robinson punctuated the start of the game with a sack.

The modern-day aspect of college football has to carry MU through at least the next weekend.

Drinkwitz the gambler showed up in St. Louis

I had to ask.

What went into Drinkwitz calling the onside kick to start the game?

“It was there,” Drinkwitz said. “Everybody thinks I’m not aggressive, so I figured I’d show y’all how to play aggressive more.”

Fair. Can’t argue with the aggressive mentality playing in St. Louis with an active crowd. Drinkwitz also went for it on fourth down twice.

I have to say, I love the onside kick, too. That was gutsy and played into the moment. It worked, too, aside from the offsides that negated the kick-and-self-recovery by Week 3 hero Harrison Mevis.

The British Special Air Service’s motto is “Who Dares Wins,” and aggression like that is a way of just taking what you want. Need the momentum? Just take it. You can take that opportunity in football if you’re bold enough.

Jordon Harris should be starting

Brett Norfleet, who made some impressive catches against Kansas State, was out against Memphis. Enter, tight end Jordon Harris, who didn’t show up in the stat sheet.

But, he did draw massive praise from his coach.

“Jordon Harris, true freshman, having to play a lot this week with Brett being out,” Drinkwitz said. “They’re bringing an edge pressure. He’s gotta alert the pressure, execute a call. He’s gotta relay that information down to the rest of the offensive lineman, and he does it perfectly. We execute versus pressure, which is something that’s hard to do.”

There’s no reason that Harris shouldn’t be starting. If he understands nuances like that, then it’s time to include him in the passing game and give him a bigger opportunity. The same goes for Norfleet if he’s healthy enough to play, although Drinkwitz mentioned he’s suffering from a painful rib-cartilage injury.

The two make Missouri better and they don’t shy away from the level of competition they’re playing at. Especially Harris, who hasn’t been playing football for very long.

“I don’t know that I’ve seen a true freshman in that situation execute that thing that well, and (it) ultimately resulted in a score,” Drinkwitz said. “Really proud of Jordon and, man, we’re gonna be better for all these guys playing.”

Credit the coaches for tearing down the doghouse

Last season, Nathaniel Peat fumbled twice and was then rarely seen in the final stretch of games.

After Cody Schrader fumbled against Memphis, it was telling just how the rest of the running game shaped out for Missouri.

Schrader finished the game with 14 carries, and Peat finished with 15. The even split showed the fumble didn’t really matter. The two-headed running attack is just better when both Peat and Schrader are getting their chances.

No more doghouse here. There’s no time for that. Besides, I tried looking through Schrader’s time at Truman State and found only one fumble from his 2021 season.

There could have been more. It was hard to sift through different play-by-play recordings. But Schrader doesn’t fumble often. If he does, it doesn’t happen again.

Missouri’s receiver room has to be top 3 in the SEC

There’s just no end to how fun it is to watch Luther Burden play football. Saturday was just a new chapter in his book.

The sophomore looked unguardable. There was nothing Memphis could do because Burden kept getting open. He set a career-high with 177 receiving yards.

“Me and Brady was on point tonight,” Burden said. “All the work we did from the spring paid off.

Theo Wease is also proving to be a dependable player as the passing game keeps opening up, and his experience was on display when he caught his touchdown. Mookie Cooper kept up his production, too.

Mekhi Miller didn’t have a great game, with one catch on three targets and a drop, but Miller will eventually break out. He’s too technically talented to not play.

What’s been a massive boon is Marquis Johnson, the freshman who caught his first pass against Kansas State and caught his first touchdown against Memphis on a 76-yard bomb that showcased world-class speed.

“I still work every (day) to do what I do to get faster,” Johnson said.

The talent is there with Burden. Cooper and Wease carry the experience. Miller and Johnson, plus the other freshmen, have so much potential. I’m not sure I’d take any other receiver group in the SEC.

Kansas City has to be next for Missouri football

The scene in St. Louis was incredible for Missouri. Fans, former stars and present-day administrators gathered across the street from the Dome at America’s Center and just enjoyed taking over St. Louis.

The team enjoyed the takeover, too.

“We told ourselves that KC (has) the Chiefs, St. Louis (has) the Tigers, and so we’re going to go put on a show for them,” Drinkwitz said. “Part of the reason we wanted to do this was so that the city of St. Louis would understand that playing at home, playing for your hometown university, is powerful. I think there was a really great display of that tonight.”

It would be another move to bring that display to Kansas City. That interest already exists.

Last year, I chatted with Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas after the Georgia game. I was saving our conversation for another time because it was enlightening into how Kansas City views its relationship with MU, and I came away understanding Kansas City sees potential in having a greater Missouri Tigers presence.

“A lot of people said this, it was easy to say it’s a KU town. Kansas is in our name,” Lucas told the Tribune in an interview last year. “I think the culture of Mizzou and sharing that with Kansas City is important. And so that’s why I think adding more events is key.”

Missouri men’s basketball is already scheduled to play Kansas in Kansas City in 2025 and 2026 as part of the six-year series. Bringing football to Kansas City should be the next step to sustain that momentum.

That next step isn’t linear; Kansas City was planning on building that relationship more. There was a pandemic that halted progress. Now, the potential is there, too.

“Years ago I wanted to kind of get to Mizzou more, have Kansas City better connected, then we get COVID and you don’t have events for a while, right?” Lucas said. “We are not hitting on all cylinders if we’re not selling Mizzou as part of the brands that help make the Kansas City community what it is. And so I’m glad that we’re building that relationship. We just have a heck of a lot more work to do.”

The Star has partnered with the Columbia Daily Tribune for coverage of Missouri Tigers athletics.