Eli Drinkwitz Feels 'Pretty Good' With Luke Work Starting at Right Tackle

When transfer tackle Josh Atkins suffered a setback on his leg injury in early June, it opened up the door for a competition for Missouri's starting right tackle.

Both head coach Eli Drinkwitz and offensive-line coach Brandon Jones have highlighted two candidates for the job: Mississippi State transfer Luke Work and returning senior Logan Reichert. A little over two months later, and Drinkwitz feels like Missouri has its guy at the spot.

"We feel pretty comfortable with it right now," Drinkwitz said Saturday. "It doesn't mean somebody couldn't make a jump and force us to reevaluate it, but right now I feel pretty good that Cayden (Green) and Luke (Work) are kind of our starters.”

Work played 130 snaps across eight games with Mississippi State last season, including one start at right tackle against Texas A&M. In the game, Work posted a pass-blocking grade oof 60.9 and a run-blocking grade of 61.7. In 2024, Work started five games at left tackle and an additional two at right. He played 332 total snaps on the season, posting a season run-blocking grade of 53.3 and a season pass-blocking grade of 24.5.

Drinkwitz believes Work has seen tremendous growth since arriving at Missouri, though, going as far as stating that Work has had "as good of an offseason as I've ever seen an offensive lineman have" at SEC Media Days.

Jones also previously highlighted Work's offseason during a one-on-one interview with Missouri On SI.

"Luke has a ton of potential, a lot of upside," Jones said. "I think he's game put on some really good muscle on this off season. He played a little bit at Mississippi State. His versatility being able to play guard and tackle, obviously, we're happy he's here so he can play tackle, but he's just worked his butt off."

Given the confidence held in Work and Green, Missouri has moved on to finding its third-string tackle. Green was held out of practice Friday, partially so Missouri could focus on seeing reps from the potential options at the third tackle.

"We got to figure out who's our third tackle, between Logan (Reichert) and Jack (Lange) and even Whit Hafer," Drinkwitz said. "We moved Whit around a ton, but he's played tackle the past two days and he looked really natural at it, so to have that flexibility with him to even play all five positions is pretty good."

That third tackle spot is rather important, as showcased in the last two seasons at Missouri. Technically, Work is already Missouri's third tackle, as Atkins likely would've been the second, starting at right tackle before his injury. In 2025, an injury to Green resulted in the Tigers turning to their third tackle, who at the time was Jayven Richardson. Richardson filled in for Green at left tackle for two contests, struggling in pass protection but sufficing in the run game.

One midseason injury to Work or Green, and Missouri would be have to sift further down the depth chart to find a fill-in starter — why not figure out who that may be now?

Tristan Wilson: 'A Starter in the SEC'

The battle for right tackle was the most-watched competition throughout fall camp, but how things have shaken out at left guard has been equally interesting.

Dominick Giudice, who manned the spot in 2025, has switched to center, leaving an opening at left guard. Four-star transfer Zack Owens seemed to have a strong chance at winning the job, but Tristan Wilson, who's entering his fifth year at Missouri and hasn't been a permanent starter in any, received some high praise from Drinkwitz on Saturday.

"Tristan has developed himself into a starter in the SEC and really one of our most versatile players," Drinkwitz said. "With holding (Dominick Giudice) out today, we moved Tristan into the center position, and I mean he handled everything from cadence to snap count to identification. You know we didn't really miss a beat, so just impressed with his commitment. He's got a great routine."

Missouri Tigers offensive lineman Tristan Wilson. — Oct 12, 2024; Amherst, Massachusetts, USA; Missouri Tigers offensive lineman Tristan Wilson (73) lines up against the Massachusetts Minutemen during the second half at Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium. | © Eric Canha-Imagn Images

Of course, Drinkwitz's statement alone doesn't mean Wilson is a guaranteed starter — there's still about a week left of fall camp and a few weeks until the season-opener, but Wilson would make sense in the role. Being in Missouri's system for five seasons, previously competing for the starting right guard job with Curtis Peagler in 2025 and now taking plenty of reps alongside a unit featuring Green and Giudice in fall camp all seem to indicate the real possibility of Wilson starting at left guard.

Giudice also said he "loved playing next to him," when asked about Wilson's offseason.

"He's a grinder, he's a dog," Giudice said Aug. 7. "He's super about his business, no-BS kind of guy, and love playing next to him. I mean, he's gonna get the job done — and you know it — every single time, and he pushes us, and we push him. So it's been it's been good to be able to grow with him these past couple years."

If Work and Wilson hold down starting spots that seem to be theirs to lose, the starting offensive line for Week 1 could shake out like this:

LT: Green
LG: Wilson
C: Giudice
RG: Peagler
RT: Work

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