Eli Drinkwitz Named a Finalist for Dodd Trophy
Missouri football head coach Eli Drinkwitz was named a finalist for the Dodd Trophy on Monday.
Named after College Football Hall-of-Famer Bobby Dodd, this honor is awarded each year to the FBS football coach who best embodies the three pillars of success: scholarship, leadership and integrity.
There haven't been many other teams this season that have shocked the college football world more than the Missouri Tigers. Drinkwitz definitely checks off the Dodd Trophy requirements, as he pulled the strings to the Tigers' best season since 2014, and their 10-2 record helped them gain the No. 9 spot in the AP, Coaches Polls and College Football Playoff rankings.
Missouri will be facing No. 7 Ohio State in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic later in the month, but before the season kicked off, the Tigers weren't even expected to finish in the top half of the SEC.
Drinkwitz has helped boost several of his players' NFL Draft stock, as many of them landed spots on SEC and All-American first and second teams.
Nevertheless, the honors may keep pouring in for Drinkwitz, as he's already been named the SEC Coach of the Year by the AP and the conference itself. He is also a finalist for the Eddie Robinson and Bear Bryant Coach of the Year awards.
The 2023 Dodd Trophy Finalists are (in alphabetical order by finalist last name):
- Kalen DeBoer – University of Washington
- Eliah Drinkwitz – University of Missouri
- Jedd Fisch – University of Arizona
- Mike Norvell – Florida State University
- Nick Saban – University of Alabama
