'Every Game Is Everything': Why Cotton Bowl Classic Matchup Stands As Biggest Moment of Missouri Football's Season
ARLINGTON, Tx. — Eli Drinkwitz has a smug look on his face.
He's seated to the right side of Ohio State Buckeyes coach Ryan Day, listening to the ambience of the decked-out interview room at AT&T Stadium. Lining the walls on either side of the coaches are framed photos of moments throughout Dallas Cowboys history.
Troy Aikman, Jerry Jones, Emmitt Smith are among others pictured, but while they're all different, they share one thing in common: greatness.
Those players have won it all. They've been there for the highest of highs, and lowest of lows, and Drinkwitz sits among them. He hasn't accomplished it yet, but he and his team have a chance. They get to play among history for a shot at it.
But that's not the focus of everyone in the room.
One reporter, sitting in the front row of a line of questioners, decides to try his hand at asking the fourth-year Missouri Tigers coach a future-based question. One that implied that perhaps not every game was as important as it used to be — Cotton Bowl included.
As soon as the words left his mouth, Drinkwitz's upbeat demeanor changed. The smug look appeared as he waited for the reporter to finish. And then he spoke.
"I don't know what world you're living in, man," Drinkwitz said. "In college football, every game is everything. And I don't think that's ever going to change."
Missouri football coach Eli Drinkwitz speaks to the media during the pre-game press conference on Thursday, Dec. 28 at AT&T Stadium.
Photo provided by Good Year Cotton Bowl Classic
Ohio State has been in this position before. In the five years that Ryan Day has been at the helm of the program, they've made a New Years Six bowl. Not necessarily the Cotton Bowl, but a premiere stage reserved for a premiere program has been all the Buckeyes have known.
They've even competed for a national title game, but that was a rare occurrence among other "lesser" finishes. And that's the thing.
Ohio State knows what playing on a big-time stage is like. Missouri doesn't.
That's why facing the Buckeyes in the Cotton Bowl matters. It matters a lot, actually.
"[This is] a tremendous challenge for our football team," Drinkwitz said. "We're excited to play. I know our guys are ready to compete at a high level, so [we're] appreciative of the invitation to be here and of all the opportunities that were afforded to us."
Missouri Tigers head coach Eli Drinkwitz reacts to a play against the Florida Gators during the first half at Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium.
© Denny Medley / USA Today Sports
To get to this point, Missouri overcame the odds against it. It entered the season fresh off of a Gasparilla Bowl-game loss to mark the second straight postseason loss. It overcame the non-SEC early-season competition. And then the SEC teams as well.
Losing to Georgia was a bump in the road, as it was expected to be. As was LSU — though that one stung. Dropping two conference games is normally a death wish, but with the attitude and poise that Drinkwitz's Tigers had, they made sure it wasn't.
Ryan Day took notice of that.
"We're facing a great opponent in Missouri," the Buckeyes' coach said. "Coach Drinkwitz does a great job. "[I've] always had a tremendous amount of respect for him. Looking forward to competing against them this week."
Ohio State presents a unique challenge for the Tigers on both ends of the ball. Drinkwitz continued to praise the way that his team's opponent was able to take control of a game, but his comments didn't go without a response from Day — who was also extremely complementary of the product Missouri put in front of his Buckeyes.
"Any time you're playing that type of schedule and winning like they are, both offensively and defensively, statistically they are ranked very, very high," the coach said. "But that's what you expect when you get into a bowl game like this."
It might not mean as much to Ohio State. They might have been in this position — and better — before, but they're not treating it that way. To them, knocking off a Missouri squad with a strong chance to make a statement is the most important thing.
"Any time you're on field, it matters how you play," Day echoed of Drinkwitz. "And when it's the last game of the year and it's a bowl game, it matters even more. We want to make sure that we're finishing the season the right way ... the way we should."
"Should" is subjective. It implies that a team knows where its potential lies. It implies that there is in fact a result that yields disappointment. For the Buckeyes, that's already happened. They expected to be among the four teams fighting for National Championship at this time last season. But they weren't.
Instead, they're playing in a New Year's Six Bowl, but they still have every intention of coming away victorious. And Missouri does, too.
But Missouri is different.
Everything about its season has been the opposite of disappointing. The Tigers have rallied together to get to the esteemed 10-win mark on the year. They've put themselves first and it payed off. They get to play in a New Year's Six Bowl. They get to face Ohio State. And more importantly, they got to do it all, together.
"I think it's an opportunity to play in a New Year's Six bowl and spend some more time together," Drinkwitz said. "Quality time. To have Christmas morning together as a team, [that's] something they'll always remember and be able to share.
"It was a great ending to a great season."
The Tigers set out this season with "something to prove." And prove they have.
Friday night is just another chance to do so. It's another chance to rally together. To win. To celebrate. To prove. All of it. Everything.
Every game is everything, after all.
