During his National Signing Day press conference, Mizzou head coach Eli Drinkwitz had plenty to talk about regarding the newest players for the Tigers. The team signed 19 players to their 2026 class, but their focus will now shift towards the transfer portal.
When asked about Missouri's plans for the portal, Drinkwitz seemed to slip up, and offered up a bit more information than he intended.
"We have a couple of positions we've already targeted, we want to take a couple of corners--oof-- a couple of players. Yikes. Cut," Drinkwitz said with a laugh.
Has Mizzou's top secret portal plan been uncovered?
While Drinkwitz probably didn't plan to say "corner," it's really no secret that the Tigers would look to the portal to add to their secondary. Despite having a strong defense in 2025, the defensive backs were arguably the weakest unit, and struggled early on in the year. Drey Norwood and Toriano Pride were both seniors, and there are a lot of question marks behind them.
Mizzou has been active in the portal in recent years, bringing in players like Ahmad Hardy, Kevin Coleman Jr. and Beau Pribula. They could certainly look to add players at corner, offensive line, and maybe even quarterback again. But there's no doubt they Drinkwitz and company may be even better in the portal than in high school recruiting, so fans could be in line for some fireworks.
If Drinkwitz's comments are indeed true, expect Mizzou to bring in at least a couple of experienced cornerbacks through the portal.