There have been plenty of ups and downs during Eli Drinkwitz’s seven years at Mizzou, but last Saturday was pretty clearly one of the highest of the highs.
Mizzou didn’t just beat No. 8 Florida, the Tigers absolutely demolished the Gators in what was arguably the most complete game of the Drinkwitz era. Mizzou scored 35 consecutive points, piled up 560 yards and controlled the game in all three phases.
Austin Simmons threw for 340 yards and two touchdowns. Jamal Roberts ran for 211 yards and three
touchdowns. The defense held Florida’s star running back Jadan Baugh to 13 yards on 12 carries.
Most importantly, there wasn’t really a phase of the game where Florida had an answer. That is a pretty good way to beat a top-10 team. So where does it rank among Drinkwitz’s best wins at Mizzou? I imagine the answer among Mizzou fans is unanimously: Pretty high. Let’s take a look at the top five wins he’s earned in Columbia:
5. No. 25 Mizzou 30, No. 15 Kansas State 27, 2023
This one gets a spot for the ending alone. Harrison Mevis drilled a 61-yard field goal as time expired to give Mizzou a 30-27 victory over No. 15 Kansas State. It was a huge win over an old rival and the kind of game that can change the trajectory of a season… and that’s exactly what happened.
Mizzou was 3-0 after beating Kansas State and suddenly looked like something different. The Tigers went on to finish 11-2, win the Cotton Bowl and finish No. 8 in the AP poll. It was Mizzou’s best season in a decade, and the Kansas State win was the moment when it started feeling possible.
4. Mizzou 45, No. 17 LSU 41, 2020
The context around this one has changed a little bit with time. LSU wasn’t exactly the same terrifying force in 2020 that it had been the year before, but that doesn’t mean beating the defending national champions one year removed from one of the most dominant seasons in college football history wasn’t significant.
LSU went 15-0 in 2019, won the national championship and produced one of the greatest teams of the modern era. Then, a year later, Drinkwitz and Mizzou knocked off the Tigers in his first season in Columbia. It was Drinkwitz’s first win at Mizzou, and it felt like an announcement that Mizzou was going to matter again.
Drinkwitz had arrived in Columbia during a difficult period for the program, and COVID-19 made his first season even stranger. Beating LSU gave Mizzou fans a reason to believe the new coach could actually get things moving in the right direction. It didn’t turn out to be the beginning of immediate sustained success, but it was the first big sign that Drinkwitz could win big games at Mizzou.
3. Mizzou 36, No. 13 Tennessee 7, 2023
Catharsis, thy name is “Housing Tennessee.” For a few years, the Volunteers had been one of those opponents that Mizzou simply could not seem to solve. The Vols had scored more than 60 points against Drinkwitz’s Tigers in each of the previous two meetings.
So when Tennessee came to Columbia ranked No. 13 in 2023, there was a certain feeling that Mizzou needed to finally punch back. It did more than that, absolutely stomping Tennessee, 36-7.
For a program that had been on the wrong end of two 30 plus-point beatdowns, it was quite therapeutic for coaches, players and fans alike. At the time, it was probably the most satisfying victory of Drinkwitz’s tenure. The Kansas State game had the better ending, but Tennessee was the game where Mizzou fans got to spend four quarters enjoying the fact that their team was clearly superior to a ranked SEC opponent.
2. Mizzou 45, No. 8 Florida 17, 2026
There is something particularly satisfying about beating a top-10 opponent, and there is something even better about beating one 45-17 (45-10 really, who is even counting the BS garbage time TD?) The timing makes this one even more important as Mizzou had just suffered a frustrating loss at Mississippi State, a game that most people around the program had circled as a win before the season.
With Florida, Texas A&M, Georgia, Ole Miss and Oklahoma still sitting on the schedule, suddenly the Tigers needed to find some wins. Instead, they played their most complete game of the Drinkwitz era.
Mizzou dominated on the ground and through the air. The offensive line controlled the line of scrimmage. The defense shut down Florida’s running game. Special teams contributed with two field goals of 50+ yards. There wasn’t a phase of the game where Florida had a clear advantage.
That’s what makes this one different from some of Drinkwitz’s other signature wins. The Kansas State game came down to one kick. The Tennessee game was dominant, but that Volunteers team wasn’t ranked in the top-10.
This beatdown was the whole package. Mizzou didn’t sneak past Florida. It didn’t hang on for dear life. It beat the eighth-ranked team in the country by four (five-ish) touchdowns. It was also Mizzou’s first regular-season win over a top-10 team since 2013 and its first home win over a top-10 opponent since 2010.
Considering what was at stake and what is still ahead, it is difficult to imagine a better regular-season win in Drinkwitz’s tenure.
1. Mizzou 14, No. 7 Ohio State 3, 2023 Cotton Bowl
This one is going to be difficult to top (though hopefully it happens soon!) Ohio State is one of the three or four most powerful programs in college football, and Mizzou went into Arlington and held the No. 7 Buckeyes to three points in the Cotton Bowl.
Mizzou’s defense completely dictated the game. The Buckeyes struggled to move the football, and the Tigers eventually pulled away with two second-half touchdowns to turn a nail biter into a 14-3 statement. It was the perfect ending to one of the best seasons in modern Mizzou history.
Ohio State went on to win the national championship the following season. Obviously, the Buckeyes weren’t at full strength in the Cotton Bowl, but neither was Mizzou. This was still Ohio State, one of the sport’s three or four perennial giants, and Mizzou’s defense held it to three points. That’s the kind of win that stays with a program for a while.
Honorable mentions
A few wins just missed the cut, starting with the 2022 victory over No. 25 South Carolina.
The 23-10 win in Columbia, South Carolina, was Drinkwitz’s first road victory over a ranked opponent. Mizzou jumped out early, the defense took control and the Tigers never really allowed the Gamecocks to get comfortable.
The 2024 Oklahoma game also deserves a mention. Welcoming the Sooners to the SEC with a 30-23 victory was a pretty fun way to renew an old rivalry, particularly with a sellout crowd at Faurot Field and a game that came down to the final minute.
Then there is the 2020 Kentucky game, which might be the most representative of what Drinkwitz wanted Mizzou to become when he arrived. Kentucky was in the middle of their peak Mark Stoops era, physical, disciplined and built around winning games in the trenches. Mizzou responded by being even more physical, beating the Wildcats 20-10 and controlling the game from the line of scrimmage. It was an early statement that Drinkwitz’s version of Mizzou wasn’t going to be pushed around.
More wins to add to the list
There isn’t much time to sit around admiring the Florida win. Texas A&M comes to Faurot Field this weekend, and that matchup carries a little extra juice for Drinkwitz. The Aggies are one of the few SEC teams he has yet to solve, with Mizzou sitting at 0-3 against Texas A&M during his tenure. The timing is pretty good for a chance to change that.
Mizzou is coming off the biggest win of the Drinkwitz era, while Texas A&M enters Columbia at 3-2 after a couple bad losses before beating Arkansas 34-7 last weekend. The Aggies remain talented, but they have hardly looked invincible. More importantly, this is exactly the kind of game that can tell a lot about whether Saturday was simply a great afternoon or the beginning of something bigger.
The Florida win already gave Drinkwitz another entry into the best-wins conversation. A win over Texas A&M would give him something he has been missing for a while: a victory over a team and a coaching staff that has consistently had his number.
