No. 25 MissouriCOLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — 2025 record: 8-5ExpectationsMissouri has gone to six bowl games in six seasons under Eli Drinkwitz, including an 11-2 finish in 2023 capped by a Cotton Bowl win over Ohio State. But other than that spectacular season, the Tigers have struggled to escape the middle tier of mediocrity in the SEC, twice under Drinkwitz finishing with losing records after bowl defeats. If All-American running back Ahmad Hardy can return from a gunshot wound sustained earlier this year, and the defense under coordinator Corey Batoon can continue to be among the stingiest in the nation, perhaps the Tigers can excel against a schedule that shapes up to be one of the most difficult in the nation: The Tigers are the only team that will play five of the top 10 teams in the AP Top 25 preseason poll.“For us, we have had the same mentality we’ve always had: STP, something to prove,” Drinkwitz said. “Everybody at the University of Missouri has something to prove every day, something to prove that we belong in the SEC, something to prove that we can win and at a high level, and something to prove that we want to do it this year.”
Strengths start with the offenseAustin Simmons backed up Jaxson Dart at Ole Miss before winning the starting job ahead of last season. When an ankle injury in Week 2 against Kentucky sent him to the sideline, Trinidad Chambliss took over and quickly became a star. Simmons played sparingly the rest of the season before transferring to Missouri as the replacement for Beau Pribula, who left for Virginia.
