Eli Drinkwitz Details 3 Key Members of Troy Football

The Missouri Tigers are gearing up for their final nonconference game of the season Saturday. Missouri will welcome the Troy Trojans to Columbia as the Tigers look to remain undefeated and improve to 3-0 on the season.

Troy also enters Saturday's matchup with a 2-0 record after earning wins over Sam Houston and Alabama State. The Trojans have talent on both sides of the ball, and Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz knows that. During Tuesday's press conference, Drinkwitz highlighted three key aspects of Troy's program.

Here are the three figures Drinkwitz made a point to mention, along with a closer look at each of them.

Goose Crowder, QB

Drinkwitz is well aware that the Tigers' defense will be going up against an experienced quarterback in senior Goose Crowder. Troy's gunslinger is in his fourth season with the Trojans after transferring to the program. Crowder was named a second-team All-Sun Belt preseason selection entering the 2026 season.

"They have an experienced quarterback with Goose Crowder. I think he's been playing there, I think his 12th start, so he's got a lot of experience," Drinkwitz said.

Crowder enters Saturday's matchup with 366 passing yards and four touchdowns through the first two games of the season. He has yet to throw an interception as well.

Adam Austin, Offensive Coordinator

While Crowder is a returning quarterback for Troy, offensive coordinator Adam Austin is in the midst of his first season with the Trojans. After spending two seasons at Tarleton State, Austin brought his system to Troy. Drinkwitz had nothing but praise for Austin during Tuesday's press conference.

"This coordinator was very successful with Tarleton State last year and he's been successful everywhere he's been," Drinkwitz said.

Adding Austin to Troy's offense has brought a significant change. Through the first two games of the season, the Trojans have scored 58 points while averaging 29 points per game. Drinkwitz also touched on the offensive scheme Austin runs.

"He's got a blended offense where he'll run some wide-split RPOs. He'll run some slow mesh, which is a very difficult scheme to go against," Drinkwitz said. "I've faced it several times when I was at NC State against Wake Forest, so he does a really good job of what his scheme is and has ownership of it."

Donnie Smith, Defensive End

On the other side of the football, Troy's defense features defensive end Donnie Smith. Smith returns for his senior season after leading the Sun Belt with 11 sacks in 2025. He was also named first-team All-Sun Belt last season and entered 2026 as the conference's preseason Defensive Player of the Year.

"I think Donnie Smith is an outstanding player. Surprised that he's still there, to be honest," Drinkwitz said. "But he's an excellent defensive end, plays boundary, the jack position is what we would call him and is a tremendous player and somebody that we have to reckon with.

There is no doubt Missouri's offensive line will have its hands full with Smith coming off the edge. But Smith isn't the only challenge up front, as Drinkwitz acknowledged that Troy's entire defensive line will present a test for the Tigers.

"I think they've got two interior (defensive) linemen that can really play and they play multiple fronts, so that that's going to be a challenge," Drinkwitz said.

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