The morning air is crisp, the days are slowly growing shorter, the Mizzou football season is nigh… and the Tigers offense still appears entrenched in a quarterback battle. No one loves an extended competition for signal caller quite like Eli Drinkwitz. At least that’s how it seems. Fully content to extend the competition, at least ostensibly, into the first week of the season yet again, Drinkwitz is either trying to deke everyone, including the impending Jayhawks, as to who will be the Tigers quarterback,
or he really can’t decide who will take snaps this year.
Since Drinkwitz has already announced that both will play against Central Arkansas and they are listed as co-starters on the depth chart, we’re going to take the head coach at his word and assume Sam Horn and Beau Pribula truly are neck and neck to win the job. So what can either quarterback do Thursday to cement starter status?
1. Show command of the offense
Beyond completing passes and avoiding fumbled snaps, the most important part of a quarterback’s job is having a full grasp of the offensive system they are running. As the signal caller and on-field leader of the offense, the quarterback must understand the who, what, when, where and most importantly, the why of every single play Kirby Moore calls through the headset. A lapse in understanding of any play will result in, at best, a wasted down and, at worst, the ball headed the other direction for a defensive score.
In terms of an understanding of the playbook, Sam Horn has a leg up on Beau Pribula, given that he has been in Kirby Moore’s system for two full seasons prior to this one. Even though he missed all of 2024 with an elbow injury, Horn was in the quarterback room and on the sidelines all season and had the opportunity to absorb a lot of information from Moore as well as Brady Cook.
Pribula, on the other hand, has only had a few short months to learn and apply the the playbook since he only joined the Tigers roster in January. Without any firsthand direct knowledge of the situation, I’d venture to guess that one of the reasons Pribula hasn’t won the job outright yet is because he’s still working through the playbook. Whichever quarterback can prove to the coaching staff that he fully grasps the intricacies of the system on Thursday will go a long way in locking down the full-time job.
2. Protect the football
If we have learned anything at all about how Eli Drinkwitz runs his team in the five-plus years he’s been in Columbia, it’s that he leans (or perhaps lays down) on the side of conservative play when at all possible (and sometimes when it’s not possible, or at least prudent.) We’ve seen this through his run-heavy game scripts, questionable fourth down decisions and his penchant for controlling the clock and limiting scoring opportunities for both teams.
Little, if anything, can negatively affect a ball-control offense more than untimely turnovers, so if conservative play, ball control (and thus clock control) is a top priority for Drinkwitz and presumably Kirby Moore et. al., then the number one way a quarterback could get on the wrong side a position battle would be to give the ball to the other team. Say whatever you want about Brady Cook, he was outstanding at protecting the ball. In his three years as a starter, he threw only 15 picks in 1,073 pass attempts, including only two his entire senior year.
If either Pribula or Horn want to secure the starting job based on their performance Thursday, preventing turnovers will be key. This goes beyond interceptions, though those are important to limit, but preventing muffed snaps and shaky hand-offs will keep either or both players in consideration for the job.
3. Make plays
This one seems obvious, but if all else is equal, the coaching staff is ultimately going to choose the player who they think can make the most plays. Last year’s Tiger offense suffered from an extreme lack of explosive plays while leaning on an efficiency-based attack. With an overhauled offensive line, Mizzou cannot depend on controlling the clock and running the ball efficiently, at least until the o-line has proven it can match the production of last year’s talented unit.
Alternatively, if the offense can’t match last year’s efficiency, they will need to lean more heavily on big plays. The Tigers have the talent at receiver and running back to hit big plays both in the air and on the ground, but they need to find a quarterback who is capable and willing to push the ball down field to the likes of Marquis Johnson and Kevin Coleman. Additionally, which quarterback can show they have the ability to manipulate the pocket and manufacture first downs with their feet when plays break down will get a leg up (pun intended) in the race.
Making plays against Central Arkansas is a far cry from making plays against the Alabamas and Oklahomas remaining on the schedule, but if one of the athletes isn’t able to consistently make plays against the Bears, that might serve as a disqualifier more than a qualifier for the other competitor. All in all, the player who is able to demonstrate command of the offense, limit turnovers and make plays on the field will win the job and I think we’ll have a pretty good idea of who that will be come Friday morning.
