2020 Missouri Tigers football team

2020 Missouri Tigers football
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Division	Eastern Division
Record	5–5 (5–5 SEC)
Head coach	Eliah Drinkwitz (1st season)
Offensive coordinator	Eliah Drinkwitz (1st season)
Defensive coordinator	Ryan Walters (3rd season as DC; 6th overall season)
Home stadium	Faurot Field (Capacity: 62,621)

2020 Southeastern Conference football standings

	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
East Division
No. 13 Florida x		8	–	2					8	–	4
No. 7 Georgia		7	–	2					8	–	2
Missouri		5	–	5					5	–	5
Kentucky		4	–	6					5	–	6
Tennessee*		3	–	7					3	–	7
South Carolina		2	–	8					2	–	8
Vanderbilt		0	–	9					0	–	9
West Division
No. 1 Alabama x$#^		10	–	0					13	–	0
No. 4 Texas A&M		8	–	1					9	–	1
Auburn		6	–	4					6	–	5
LSU*		5	–	5					5	–	5
Ole Miss		4	–	5					5	–	5
Arkansas		3	–	7					3	–	7
Mississippi State		3	–	7					4	–	7
Championship: Alabama 52, Florida 46
# – College Football Playoff champion ^ – College Football Playoff participant $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions * – Tennessee vacated all wins due to NCAA violations. LSU was ineligible for postseason due to self imposed ban. Note: Due to COVID-19, the SEC played a conference-only schedule. Rankings from AP Poll.

The 2020 Missouri Tigers football team represented the University of Missouri in the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Tigers played their home games at Faurot Field in Columbia, Missouri, and competed in the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). They were led by first-year head coach Eliah Drinkwitz.

In a season impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Tigers compiled a 5–5 record, all in conference games. The team was set to face Iowa in the Music City Bowl, but had to withdraw due to COVID-19 issues.

Previous season

The Tigers finished the 2019 season 6–6, 3–5 in SEC play to finish in a tie for fourth place in the Eastern Division. Head coach Barry Odom was fired on November 30, 2019 following an overall four-year record of 25–25 and SEC record of 13–19. Eliah Drinkwitz was hired on December 10 following a 12–1 conference championship season at Appalachian State.

Preseason

Award watch lists

Listed in the order that they were released

SEC Media Days

In the preseason media poll, Missouri was predicted to finish in sixth place in the East Division.

Media poll (East Division)
Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	Florida	624 (53)
2	Georgia	613 (43)
3	Tennessee	434
4	Kentucky	405
5	South Carolina	287
6	Missouri	224
7	Vanderbilt	101

Personnel

Staff

Name	Position	Seasons at Missouri	Alma Mater
Eliah Drinkwitz	Head Coach	1	Arkansas Tech (2004)
Charlie Harbison	Associate Head Coach / Defensive Backs	1	Gardner–Webb (1982)
Ryan Walters	Defensive Coordinator / Safeties	6	Colorado (2008)
Erik Link	Special Teams Coordinator	1	Drake (2003)
Brick Haley	Defensive Line	4	Alabama A&M (1988)
Bush Hamdan	Wide Receivers / Quarterbacks	1	Boise State (2008)
Casey Woods	Tight Ends / Recruiting Coordinator	1	Tennessee (2006)
David Gibbs	Secondary	2	Colorado (1990)
Marcus Johnson	Offensive Line	1	Ole Miss (2004)
Curtis Luper	Running Backs	1	Stephen F. Austin (1996)
D. J. Smith	Linebackers	1	Appalachian State (2010)
Andy Lutz	Director of Football Operations	1	Pacific (1991)
Zac Woodfin	Director of Athletic Performance	1	UAB (2004)

Roster

2020 Missouri Tigers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class RB 1 Tyler Badie Jr WR 2 Micah Wilson  Sr QB 3 Shawn Robinson  Jr RB 4 Elijah Young Fr WR 6 Keke Chism GS WR 7 Damon Hazelton GS QB 8 Connor Bazelak  Fr WR 9 Jalen Knox Jr WR 11 Barrett Banister  Jr QB 12 Brady Cook Fr WR 13 Javian Hester Fr WR 14 Dominic Gicinto Jr WR 15 Kris Abrams-Draine Fr QB 16 Jack Samsel  So WR 18 Chance Luper Fr WR 19 Jay Maclin Fr RB 20 Simi Bakare Jr WR 26 Jaden Nash Fr RB 28 Dawson Downing  Sr WR 31 D'Ionte Smith Jr RB 34 Larry Rountree III Sr RB 35 Michael Cox Fr RB 43 Jerney Jones  Sr TE 45 Kibet Chepyator Fr TE 48 Niko Hea So OL 50 Hyrin White  Jr OL 51 Zeke Powell Jr OL 54 Luke Griffin  Fr OL 55 Michael Maietti GS OL 57 Steven Hardy  So OL 59 Case Cook  Jr OL 61 Richard Taylor  So OL 64 Bobby Lawrence  So OL 65 Trenton Sederwall  Fr OL 69 Drake Heismeyer Fr OL 70 Dylan Spencer Fr OL 71 D.J. Bullard  Fr OL 72 Xavier Delgado  So OL 73 Mike Ruth  So OL 75 Mitchell Walters Fr OL 76 Javon Foster  So OL 79 Larry Borom  Jr TE 80 Messiah Swinson  So TE 81 Shawn Hendershot Fr TE 82 Daniel Parker, Jr. Jr WR 86 Tauskie Dove  So WR 87 Cade Musser  So TE 88 Logan Christopherson  Jr TE 89 Brendan Scales  Sr	Defense Pos. # Name Class LB 0 Tre Williams  Sr S 1 Joshuah Bledsoe Sr DB 2 Ennis Rakestraw, Jr. Fr S 3 Martez Manuel So S 4 Jalani Williams  Fr DL 6 Darius Robinson So DB 7 Stacy Brown So DB 8 Jarvis Ware Jr S 9 Tyree Gillespie Sr DB 10 Chris Mills  So LB 11 Devin Nicholson So DB 14 Adam Sparks Sr LB 15 Johnny Walker. Jr. Fr LB 16 Gerald Nathan, Jr.  So DB 17 Jaylon Carlies Fr DL 18 Trajan Jeffcoat  So DB 21 Tyler Jones Fr DB 24 Ishmael Burdine  Fr LB 25 Jamal Brooks Sr DB 26 Aidan Harrison So LB 28 Jatorian Hansford Jr LB 29 Jamie Pettway  Fr DB 30 Zion Sales  Jr LB 32 Nick Bolton Jr LB 33 Chad Bailey  So DB 35 Mason Pack  Sr LB 36 Joe Britton  Jr LB 38 Bryson Clayton  So DL 39 Chris Turner Sr LB 40 Cameron Wilkins Jr LB 41 Chance May  Jr DB 43 Brandon Gregory, Jr. Fr DB 45 Daval Torres Fr DB 46 Justin Efebera Fr LB 49 Martin, Jr. Sr DL 52 Myles Eaddy  Sr LB 53 Will Norris Fr DL 78 Kobie Whiteside Sr DL 90 Markell Utsey  Sr LB 92 Z'Core Brooks  Fr DL 93 Andrew Serrano Fr DL 95 Ben Key Jr DL 96 Cannon York  So DL 97 Akial Byers Sr DL 98 Keion Willis  So DL 99 Isaiah McGuire So	Special teams Pos. # Name Class P 19 Grant McKinniss GS LS 31 Drew Wise  Jr LS 47 Daniel Hawthorne Fr LS 49 Jake Hoffman  So PK 90 Sean Koetting  Jr P 91 Josh Dodge  So PK 92 Harrison Mevis Fr PK 93 Luke Bauer Fr PK 94 Aaron Rodriguez  Fr PK 98 Logan Brock  Fr	Head coach Eliah Drinkwitz Coordinators/assistant coaches Charlie Harbison – Associate Head Coach/Defensive Backs Ryan Walters – Defensive Coordinator/Safeties Erik Link – Special Teams Coordinator Brick Haley – Defensive Line Bush Hamdan – Wide Receivers/Quarterbacks Casey Woods – Tight Ends/Recruiting Coordinator David Gibbs – Secondary Marcus Johnson – Offensive Line Curtis Luper – Running Backs D. J. Smith – Linebackers Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster Last update: October 11, 2020

Schedule

Missouri had games scheduled against BYU, Central Arkansas, Eastern Michigan, and Louisiana, which were all canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 26	6:00 p.m.	No. 2 Alabama		Faurot Field Columbia, MO	ESPN	L 19–38	11,738
October 3	11:00 a.m.	at No. 21 Tennessee		Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN	SECN	L 12–35	21,159
October 10	11:00 a.m.	at No. 17 LSU		Faurot Field Columbia, MO[a]	SECN Alt.	W 45–41	10,013
October 24	3:00 p.m.	Kentucky		Faurot Field Columbia, MO	SECN	W 20–10	11,738
October 31	6:30 p.m.	at No. 10 Florida		Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Gainesville, FL	SECN Alt.	L 17–41	12,049
November 21	6:30 p.m.	at South Carolina		Williams–Brice Stadium Columbia, SC	SECN Alt.	W 17–10	13,603
November 28[b]	11:00 a.m.	Vanderbilt		Faurot Field Columbia, MO	SECN	W 41–0	11,053
December 5	11:00 a.m.	Arkansas		Faurot Field Columbia, MO (Battle Line Rivalry)	SECN	W 50–48	11,378
December 12	11:00 a.m.	No. 9 Georgia	No. 25	Faurot Field Columbia, MO	SECN	L 14–49	10,830
December 19	2:30 p.m.	at Mississippi State		Davis Wade Stadium Starkville, MS	SECN Alt.	L 32–51	11,748
Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll and CFP Rankings (after November 24) released prior to game All times are in Central time

^{^[a]} The game between Missouri and LSU was originally scheduled to take place in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. However, in light of Hurricane Delta, the game was moved to Columbia.

^{^[b]} The game between Vanderbilt and Missouri was originally scheduled to take place on October 17. However, due to COVID-19 management requirements in response to positive tests and subsequent quarantine of individuals within the Vanderbilt program, the game was rescheduled for December 12. The SEC postponed Tennessee vs. Vanderbilt to facilitate the rescheduling of the Vanderbilt-Missouri game. The shuffling allows for the opportunity for all 14 SEC teams to play 10 regular-season games.

Games Summaries

No. 2 Alabama

See also: 2020 Alabama Crimson Tide football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 2 Alabama	14	14	7	3	38
Missouri	0	3	3	13	19

at No. 21 Tennessee

See also: 2020 Tennessee Volunteers football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Missouri	0	6	6	0	12
No. 21 Tennessee	7	14	7	7	35

No. 17 LSU

See also: 2020 LSU Tigers football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 17 LSU	14	10	17	0	41
Missouri	14	10	14	7	45

Kentucky

See also: 2020 Kentucky Wildcats football team

Kentucky vs. Missouri

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Wildcats	0	3	0	7	10
Tigers	7	3	7	3	20

at Faurot Field, Columbia, MO

• Date: October 24, 2020
• Game time: 4:00pm EST
• Game weather: Temperature: 85 • Wind: NNE 4mph • Weather: Partly Cloudy
• Game attendance: 22,519
• Referee: Marc Curles
• TV: SECN

at No. 10 Florida

See also: 2020 Florida Gators football team

Missouri Tigers at No. 10 Florida Gators – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Missouri	0	7	0	10	17
No. 10 Florida	6	14	14	7	41

at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium • Gainesville, FL

• Date: October 31, 2020
• Game time: 7:30 p.m.
• Game weather: Temperature: 76 °F (24 °C) • Wind: NE at 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h) • Weather: Clear
• Game attendance: 12,049
• Referee: David Smith
• TV announcers (SECN Alt.): Mike Morgan, Hutson Mason, Taylor Davis
• Boxscore

Game information

First quarter Florida – Chris Howard 28-yard field goal, 9:07 Florida – Chris Howard 32-yard field goal, 2:10 Second quarter Missouri – Jarvis Ware 59-yard interception return (Harrison Mevis kick), 12:54 Florida – Kadarius Toney 18-yard pass from Kyle Trask (Chris Howard kick), 1:41 Florida – Kadarius Toney 30-yard pass from Kyle Trask (Chris Howard kick), 1:08 Third quarter Florida – Kadarius Toney 16-yard run (Chris Howard kick), 10:36 Florida – Justin Shorter 2-yard pass from Kyle Trask (Chris Howard kick), 0:22 Fourth quarter Missouri – Harrison Mevis 29-yard field goal, 10:56 Florida – Trevon Grimes 18-yard pass from Kyle Trask (Chris Howard kick), 7:50 Missouri – Larry Rountree III 5-yard run (Harrison Mevis kick), 3:18 Passing leaders MIZZ – Connor Bazelak – 26/40, 208 yards FLA – Kyle Trask – 21/36, 345 yards, 4 touchdowns, 1 interception Rushing leaders MIZZ – Larry Rountree III – 14 carries, 36 yards, 1 touchdown FLA – Kyle Trask – 6 carries, 47 yards Receiving leaders MIZZ – Keke Chism – 5 receptions, 68 yards FLA – Kyle Pitts – 5 receptions, 81 yards Tackling leaders MIZZ – Devin Nicholson – 13 tackles FLA – Jeremiah Moon and Brad Stewart – 6 tackles

at South Carolina

See also: 2020 South Carolina Gamecocks football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Missouri	7	10	0	0	17
South Carolina	0	0	3	7	10

Vanderbilt

See also: 2020 Vanderbilt Commodores football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Vanderbilt	0	0	0	0	0
Missouri	7	14	6	14	41

Arkansas

See also: 2020 Arkansas Razorbacks football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Arkansas	6	21	6	15	48
Missouri	10	10	3	27	50

No. 9 Georgia

See also: 2020 Georgia Bulldogs football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 9 Georgia	14	7	21	7	49
No. 25 Missouri	0	14	0	0	14

at Mississippi State

See also: 2020 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Tigers	7	3	8	14	32
Bulldogs	14	13	7	17	51

Statistics

Statistics	MIZ	MSST
First downs	22	24
Total yards	342	446
Rushing yards	101	151
Passing yards	241	295
Turnovers	4	3
Time of possession	28:57	31:03

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Missouri	Passing	Connor Bazelak	22–38, 225 yards, 2 TD, 3 INT
	Rushing	Larry Rountree III	25 rushes, 121 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Keke Chism	6 receptions, 64 yards, TD
Mississippi State	Passing	Will Rogers	21–36, 295 yards, 3 TD, INT
	Rushing	Jo'Quavious Marks	12 rushes, 70 yards, TD
	Receiving	Jaden Walley	5 receptions, 129 yards, TD

Rankings

Further information: 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	Final
AP	—	—*	RV	RV	—	—	—	RV	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	RV	—	—
Coaches	—	—*	—	—	—	—	—	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	—
CFP	Not released										—	—	—	—	—	25	—	Not released

Players drafted into the NFL

See also: 2021 NFL Draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	NFL Club
2	58	Nick Bolton	ILB	Kansas City Chiefs
4	143	Tyree Gillespie	S	Las Vegas Raiders
5	151	Larry Borom	OT	Chicago Bears
6	188	Joshuah Bledsoe	S	New England Patriots
6	198	Larry Rountree III	RB	Los Angeles Chargers