Drinkwitz already focused on February signing day
In the three recruiting cycles since the early signing period came into existence, most college football programs have turned the third Wednesday in December, the start of the three-day early signing period, into a de facto National Signing Day. Last season, for instance, Missouri signed 22 of its 25 newcomers during the early period.
But after the Tigers fired Barry Odom on Nov. 30 and hired Eliah Drinkwitz on Dec. 10 of this year, putting together a full class by Wednesday became, in Drinkwitz’s words, “nearly impossible.” The new Missouri coach said in his introductory press conference he had to separate the important from the urgent. Most urgent, he decided, was to keep as many of the prospects who committed to the Tigers under Odom on board as he could. Missouri ended up signing 10 such players Wednesday.
But if Drinkwitz was frazzled by the quick turnaround since his hiring or the relatively low number of signees for Missouri compared to the rest of the SEC, he didn’t show it. Meeting with reporters Wednesday afternoon, a laid-back Drinkwitz said there were no surprises on the first day of the early signing period, no real highs or lows. Instead, he has set his sights on the regular signing day, Feb. 5, as the date he can add his own touch to the class.
“With it being eight days, really the next signing period for me is going to be really where we gotta hit the mark,” Drinkwitz said. “Today was kind of a free throw.”
Drinkwitz said he didn’t try to recruit any players who hadn’t already committed to Missouri before Wednesday, including those who committed to him at Appalachian State. Part of that was due to time constraints, and part due to the fact that he still has at least three full-time assistant coaching positions to fill to round out his staff.
“Anything we were unsure about, let’s not rush and take the wrong person or the wrong fit,” he said of his approach. “We should be patient and then when the whole staff is here, then we’ll finalize that in the second signing period.”
Missouri received nine of its 10 signatures by 1 p.m. Wednesday. As of 2, Drinkwitz’s focus was already on February. He said he and his assistants spent “the better part of the morning” identifying prospects to pursue over the next six weeks. At least one of those players, wide receiver and current Boise State commit Chance Luper, has already reported a Missouri offer.
Drinkwitz didn’t specify a number of prospects he would like Missouri to land in February, but he said the team would fill all 81 of its available scholarships — four under the nationwide cap due to sanctions from an academic fraud case. He said the staff will consider transfers (graduate or otherwise) as well as junior college players to fill the void.
Drinkwitz listed wide receiver, offensive line and safety as positions he would like to bolster. Defensive line would seem a likely spot of need as well, since Missouri lost three of its four commitments along the defensive front after Odom was fired and the fourth, Kevon Billingsley, has yet to sign due to qualification concerns.
“We’re probably not going to know exactly what we need until after we get through spring football, but there is going to be some depth situations at the wide receiver position, potentially the offensive line position and then we’ve got unproven people at safety,” Drinkwitz said. “I think we’re going to be fine, but we’ve got to see those guys. You know, they haven’t played yet.”
Speaking of the sanctions facing Missouri, the Tigers also have to negotiate significant recruiting restrictions, including a seven-week ban on unofficial visits by prospects to campus and off-campus visits or evaluation by coaches. Drinkwitz said Missouri has formulated a calendar for when it will implement the ban, but is still awaiting approval from the NCAA.
“We presented them a plan on what we would like for the penalties and how we have them outlined to follow, but we have to get confirmation from them that they’re allowing us to abide by those rules or guidelines,” Drinkwitz said. “... But there is a plan in place.”
One change Drinkwitz plans to make, effective immediately, from the Odom regime will be having his staff recruit by geography instead of position. Drinkwitz, a former high school coach, believes doing so will allow them to forge stronger relationships with local coaches.
“When you’re a position recruiter, you’re not seeing the same faces all the time,” he explained. “The same schools aren’t always producing the same players. Recruiting is relationship driven. You have to get all the information, whether it’s from the counselor, from the teacher, from the influencer in the community, you’ve got to be able to dig and find the information about the young man to make sure his character and work ethic match the potential that he has.”
In addition to receiving 10 letters of intent and mapping out his future recruiting targets, Drinkwitz finalized a major position on his staff Wednesday by announcing that he would retain Ryan Walters as defensive coordinator. Walters has been on staff each of the last five seasons and has been defensive coordinator for the past two. As Drinkwitz pointed out, Missouri’s defense was its strength last year. The Tigers ranked 14th nationally in total defense and eighth against the pass.
“I think Ryan is an incredibly talented football coach,” Drinkwitz said. “I think he has the ability to relate to players. He’s got an outstanding scheme. He’s well-respected in the SEC for what he has done defensively, and I think he’s somebody that can help me and help Mizzou win a championship.”
Drinkwitz has also retained defensive line coach Brick Haley. While cornerbacks coach David Gibbs hasn’t officially been announced as a full-time assistant, he remains on the staff and is expected to coach at Missouri next season as well. Drinkwitz hopes keeping most of the defensive staff from last season will keep the scheme the same, and keeping the same scheme will alleviate some of the rebuild that usually accompanies a coaching change.
“Every time you start a new learning process, you take away the ability to play fast for a player,” Drinkwitz said. “Defensively, the faster you can play, the better.”