Eli Drinkwitz shares satisfaction of winning 10 games

Getting 10 wins is an important milestone for a ton of programs. Missouri has not been able to get there a ton since moving to the SEC but Eli Drinkwitz pulled it off this season. A season finale drubbing of Arkansas capped off a fantastic year in Columbia.

During his postgame press conference, Drinkwitz gave out a ton of credit to his players and coaches for the 10-win mark. He mentioned all of the seniors Mizzou has on the roster, choosing to stay with the program and watch it grow. Guys like Theo Wease and Luther Burden got shoutouts as well for their desire to remain with the Tigers.

Nothing but satisfaction coming out of the Missouri locker room.

“There is a lot of satisfaction,” Drinkwitz said. “Not really for me but for our team. These kids… they believed we could be so much better and they chose to come back. Our coaches didn’t take other jobs, they stayed. It’s just a group of men who believed in each other, formed a brotherhood, and fought. And they fight shoulder to shoulder every day for everything they’ve got.”

Missouri got three wins against ranked teams, with all of them occurring in front of the home fans. Beginning in the nonconference against Kansas State, a walk-off field goal sent Faurot Field into a frenzy in mid-September.

Kentucky and then Tennessee also came to town ranked but wound up getting on the plane ride home with another loss. Drinkwitz was especially happy with the Tennessee win, having some words for Josh Heupel during the postgame handshake.

Eli Drinkwitz has opportunity to add to 10-win season at Cotton Bowl

Missouri only has seven seasons throughout its history of winning 10 games or more. Three of them are now members of the SEC, with the first two occurring in 2013 and 2014. Both times resulted in a trip to the SEC Championship in Atlanta.

While Drinkwitz’s team did not get the same luxury, they were rewarded with a New Year’s Six bowl game spot. Missouri will face off against Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl on Dec. 29 from AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX. It’s the program’s first NY6 game since the College Football Playoff system was formed in 2014.

Having just one win against Ohio State in its history, taking down the Buckeyes would be a great moment for the Tigers. It would be just another chapter to what has been a special season in Drinkwitz.