2/27/2024 football Edit

Mizzou Spring Ball Notebook: Horn injury, new coaches & thoughts on DRF

Jarod Hamilton • PowerMizzou

Staff Writer

The season of spring doesn't officially get underway until March 19, but Missouri officially starts the chapter on the 2024 season on Tuesday when it holds its first spring practice.

Head coach Eli Drinkwitz talked to the media on Monday to hash out some things about the quarterback room following Sam Horn's injury, new coaches who have joined the program, people who have departed the university and more.

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For the second year in a row, Horn won't get an opportunity to participate in spring ball due to a forearm/elbow injury.

On Feb. 18, it was revealed Horn would miss 12-15 months after undergoing Tommy John surgery for a torn UCL.

His injury sparked many questions about the quarterback room, so let's break them down.

Horn's injury means that starting quarterback Brady Cook and true freshman Aidan Glover are the only scholarship quarterbacks on the roster.

So, naturally, the questions were how much more will Cook take on this spring and who else will be taking reps?

"Yeah, I think that's one thing about Brady is that he's such a pleaser. He wants to do everything. We've got to make sure he understands to not overdo it," Drinkwitz said. "But that's where you got Aidan Glover and JR Blood (also known as walk-on Harold Blood Jr.) and (walk-on) Tommy (Lock). And then, I think there's a potential for us, depending on what the diagnosis is, to take somebody out of the portal if the opportunity presents itself."

So, Cook will take first-team reps but Drinkwitz said on multiple occasions that spring ball is about individual development. In other words, spring ball matters but in a way it doesn't. If this was fall camp, it'd be a little different.

So, Cook will do what he's required to do but don't be alarmed if he's not taking every first-team rep. The team not only wants to preserve him from wear and tear but give others opportunities to display their talents

As far as the portal, it's probably closer to a guarantee the team will look for a quarterback in the portal than not.

Another question that arose was if Horn has a chance to play in 2024.

"I don't know it depends on how far we go. But, yeah. I don't anticipate that he would play next year," Drinkwitz said. "We elected to take the full surgery, and there was an opportunity there that you could have potentially not done a full reconstruction and been back for football but leaves something to be desired on the baseball end.

"And again, Sam, I think at one point was considered a top 30 prospect for the 2025 (MLB) draft. So I mean, our number one goal is to get back to that first and then we'll see (how that) will positively affect football, too."

Horn won't play in 2024, but 2025 is a different scenario.

The 2025 season will be big for several reasons, but Cook is in his final year of eligibility this season. So, whoever ends up as QB2 may be putting themselves in the driver's seat for next year when the team will be looking for a new starter whether it's Horn, Glover, Blood, Lock or someone the team gets from the portal.

Turning the page on the 2023 roster and welcoming in the 2024 additions

After the team's best season in almost 10 years, the Tigers lost several coaches and players to other opportunities besides graduation.

Cody Schrader, Javon Foster, Darius Robinson, Ty'Ron Hopper, Kris Abrams-Draine, Ennis Rakestraw, Jaylon Carlies and Harrison Mevis make up the eight players from last year's squad headed to Indianapolis for the NFL Combine later this week, which is a school record.

Schrader, Foster, Robinson, Hopper and Mevis were five of the team's six team captains a year ago. Losing all that leadership is what Drinkwitz called the team's most impactful loss of the offseason.

"That's probably the single biggest loss, right," Drinkwitz asked rhetorically. "Leadership as we know is neutral. It's not good or bad. It's got to be pushed one way or the other. So, there's a vacuum void of leadership. The positives are I think there are a lot of people in that room who lead in a positive way and understand what that looks like."

Drinkwitz went on to mention players like Triston Newson, Kristian Williams, Chuck Hicks and Johnny Walker as players who started stepping up in the leadership department last year and can be leaders for the defense again this year.

For the offense, he mentioned Cook, the lone returning captain from a year ago, Theo Wease, Connor Tollison and walk-on running back Chris Kreh as other people who have demonstrated good leadership qualities on that side of the ball.

Meanwhile, defensive coordinator Blake Baker, defensive ends coach Kevin Peoples and defensive analyst Jake Olsen all departed for LSU.

In turn, Mizzou hired South Alabama defensive coordinator Corey Batoon to be its new defensive coordinator, Houston defensive line coach Brian Early to be its new EDGE coach and Hawaii defensive coordinator and safeties coach Jacob Yoro to be a defensive analyst.

"The first thing we look for is low ego, high output. Both of these guys (Batoon and Early) from an ego standpoint are very much open to doing what we've done here in the past and adding value to it," Drinkwitz said. "And then I think the second thing is you want to see great teachers. When you go back and check these guys' resumes the amount of development that they've had at their position is a reflection of not only great teachers but great evaluators in the recruiting aspect, and so I think those guys provide that value."

Drinkwitz also said he liked that the new coaches are "not trying to replace anybody they just try to be uniquely them."

It should be noted that Batoon will also be running a 4-2-5 defense. There was a thought that he may run the 3-3-5 as his base package, which is something he did at South Alabama.

Also, Batoon will also be doing something Baker did when he was first named the defensive coordinator, and he will be learning the scheme in place and then adding to it as he gets familiar with the system as opposed to having the players learn his system.

Drink comments on his relationship with Desiree-Reed Francois

After the hirings of Batoon and Early in late January happened it seemed the Tigers were poised to have a relatively quiet offseason. Then the Horn news broke and the very next day Athletic Director Desiree Reed-Francois decided to take the same job at Arizona, the same place she obtained her law degree in 1997.

Things had seemingly gone well for Missouri since Reed-Francois came over from UNLV in Aug. 2021. She even received an extension 10 months ago that would've had her at Mizzou through June 2028.

However, the decision to go back to her alma mater and her relationships with the Board of Curators and Drinkwitz have some wondering what happened. (For more on that, click here.)

Drinkwitz believes he and the former Mizzou AD had a successful relationship that led to many improvements and hopes that the focus will be off of him when finding a new AD and more on building up the school as a place student-athletes choose to play for.

"I think I had a great relationship with Desiree," Drinkwitz said. "We worked well together to try to advance not only the athletic department but the University of Missouri football program. I think we accomplished that. No, I don't think it's a challenge to have somebody new come in I think it's an opportunity. I think with any situation, it's an opportunity to improve your current condition. If you look at a new person coming in with strengths, and how they're going to add value to what we're trying to build and what we're trying to accomplish.

"It's really not about me at all. It's about how we build Mizzou football to last for a long time as a premier place to come play college football 一 not only Mizzou football but Mizzou athletics. I want us to have the best of the best, and that's from facilities, NIL, player development and to raise the standard."

The last time Mizzou held an AD search it took 13 days. This one is expected to take a little longer than that with the school looking at hiring a new AD some time around spring break (March 25-29) according to what we've heard..

PowerMizzou will keep you updated about spring football and the AD search as more information becomes available.