Too Many Cooks In The Kitchen

Coming into the season, Eli Drinkwitz and Mizzou had four good options at quarterback. Brady Cook earned the starting spot at the end of the 2021 campaign. Cook performed well against Army in the 2021 Armed Forced Bowl loss to Army. He finished the game 27 for 34 with one touchdown and a 147.9 quarterback rating. This made the starting job, Brady’s to lose, which he has not lost, yet.

Behind Brady Cook are a plethora of talented quarterbacks. Head coach Eli Drinkwitz has talked about his confidence in Brady Cook, and with Tuesday’s announcement of Cook as starter, he is putting his money where his mouth is. The margin for error, however, is slim.

The current depth chart shows the following at QB:

1.       Brady Cook

2.       Jack Abraham

3.       Tyler Macon

4.       Sam Horn

Should Brady Cook be concerned? Early on, no. The schedule lines up favorably for Brady. The season opens in a what should be a warmup game against Louisiana Tech on September 1st. The following week the Tigers travel to Manhattan Kansas to play Kansas State on September 10th. Many view this as a 50/50 game. Pending the game is not lost on Cook’s arm, win, or lose, it is unlikely there is a threat at losing his starting spot. Mizzou then travels home to face Abilene Christian. Barring some catastrophic event, an easy win for the Tigers.

The competition within the team.

Jack Abraham: Entering the season as his final year of eligibility, Abraham is the greatest threat to take Cook’s starting job, should Brady falter. For starters (pun intended,) Abraham is the most seasoned of the group. Adding to that, it is unlikely he would have transferred had he not thought there was a real possibility of playing time. This is not to say there is some unofficial, behind-the-scenes agreement, but if the opportunity arises, I expect Jack to be the first man up.

Tyler Macon: A first-year student, Macon has plenty of time to prove his worth and earn his spot. He has raw talent and is one of top ranked dual-threat quarterbacks in the country. A local guy, from East St. Louis, Macon saw some action last year as a true first-year student. While Macon may have not blown the doors down, he did not make many mistakes. This is promising. The Tigers using a 2-quarterback system would not be surprising. If so, intermittent, but bringing Tyler Macon in on obvious rushing downs to rush, or better yet, pass – would fit Coach Drinkwitz’s often creative game plan.

Sam Horn: The most purely talented quarterback of the bunch is freshman, Sam Horn from Suwanee, GA. Horn is a 4-star recruit, and like Macon, was recruited by some big-time schools. Many of the same in fact. Horn was a heavily recruited baseball player as well. An all-around athlete with a big frame, he is the typical mold you see many successful quarterbacks shaped from. His quick release and minimal wasted motion make him a great candidate to someday play on the biggest of stages. For now, injury or failure from those ahead of him on the depth chart is necessary for him to start. To avoid him at some point transferring, Mizzou may find ways to get him involved. Horn may find himself in lopsided games.

As it stands now, Brady Cook is the starter, and should remain so for the foreseeable future, but the situation is fluid and could change at any moment. The Tigers are talented on the offensive side of the ball, More so than they have been in years. Coach Drinkwitz will not squander that. One key to finishing above. 500 ( https://trumanstales.com/2022/08/08/missouri-tigers-five-keys-to-finishing-above-500/ ) was steady quarterback play, and trusting one person to fail. Now the fun starts.