What Would Make Week 1 a Success for Mizzou?: The Extra Point

Breaking down what the Tigers need to do to find success against the Central Arkansas Bears.

Aug 29, 2024; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Missouri Tigers head coach Eli Drinkwitz watches team warm ups against the Murray State Racers prior to a game at Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

Watch the video below as Missouri On SI football reporter Michael Stamps breaks down what needs to happen for Missouri's opening game against Central Arkansas to deem it a success.

Welcome to Missouri Tigers On SI's "Extra Point," a video series featuring the site's Missouri beat writers. Multiple times a week, the writers provide analysis on a topic concerning the Tigers or the landscape of college sports.

The Missouri Tigers should handle business against the Central Arkansas Bears, plain and simple. But just because they're expected to win doesn't mean there still won't be plenty to take away from it.

All three units will need to perform at a high level against the Bears, even if it won't be their most challenging opponent they face this season. The season opener is a perfect opportunity for Eli Drinkwitz and the Tigers to establish their identity as a team throughout all phases, something Drinkwitz is hoping to find.

Here's what would make Missouri's season-opening game a success.

A clear quarterback starter

On offense, Drinkwitz has a glaring hole that needs to be filled and made more certain. One of Beau Pribula or Sam Horn must emerge as the guy for the Tigers following the conclusion of this game.

Drinkwitz knows what he wants to see from the guy who emerges as the starter for the Tigers, even if he wasn't willing to share it. The simple leadership traits he looks for, like toughness, leadership and maturity, should be at the front of his list of things he hopes to see.

"I feel like both of them need to play football. I think they both demonstrate the ability of toughness, preparation, decision-making, accuracy and leadership in a practice setting," Drinkwitz said Saturday. "But that doesn't mean they've done a game setting for us. And I know both of them have played college football before, but they haven't played it in this situation before, and so they'll get to demonstrate that this week, all those this week, and in a game."

Score some points

Regardless of the quarterback situation, the Missouri offense needs to score some points. The Tigers have a lot of new weapons on offense, like running back Ahmard Hardy and wide receiver Kevin Coleman Jr., that need to be utilized in a way that helps them find the endzone.

Even outside of those two, Missouri has many offensive threats that should help them get into the endzone. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Tigers in the future will have tons of talent in the world around him

Force turnovers

The Tigers reloaded on both sides of the ball and have a defensive unit full of players who know how to turn the ball over. Additions like linebacker Josiah Trotter, cornerback Stephen Hall and safety Jalen Catalon back that up.

Also, if the Missouri offense has a chance to struggle at the start of the season, giving them the most opportunities possible to put points on the board will benefit them. That makes generating turnovers that much more important.

"Can we be a team that denies the ball or do we have to be a team that has a touchdown group defense and just trying to keep everything in front of us," Drinkwitz said. "Can we force takeaways and do we tackle well?"

Clean up special teams

Last year, there were plenty of tiny special teams mistakes that hurt the Tigers in subtle ways. Poor return coverage, bad punts and missed field goals plagued them all of last season.

Many of the return team will be back, along with kicker Blake Craig. Craig will certainly be seeking out some consistency, especially from the 40 to 49-yard line. He went 1-for-7 from that range last year.

There are plenty of new faces that will need to quickly adjust to what Missouri does on special teams. Punter Connor Weselman, an offseason transfer from Stanford, won't have much time to acclimate. Brett Le Blanc will also get the reps at long snapper, an area he helped Trey Flint with last season.