Drinkwitz Says Mizzou's Pass Coverage Issues Are 'Getting Ridiculous'

Eli Drinkwitz didn't want to get negative in his press conference following No. 23 Missouri's win over South Carolina on Saturday night.

But there was an elephant in the room that he knows he'll need to properly address in the film room over the weekend.

"When we watch the tape tomorrow, I'm going to be on some secondary coaches' rear ends," Drinkwitz said. "I'm not going to get negative, but that crap's gotta get corrected."

That "crap" was the performance of Missouri's defensive secondary against the Gamecocks.

South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers was under constant pressure. The Tigers forced 27 pressures, according to Pro Football Focus, their highest mark in a game since facing South Carolina in Week 8 of 2023.

But that pressure seemingly didn't matter. With Sellers' ability to extend plays, he was constantly able to escape the pocket and find holes at the top of Missouri's defense. He completed eight passes of 15 or more yards. Those explosive plays alone accounted for 231 of Sellers' 302 passing yards.

"This is getting ridiculous, how porous our pass defense is," Drinkwitz said. "That's got to get shored up in a hurry. And whatever we got to do to fix it, we're going to have to do."

South Carolina was not the first team to expose this weakness in Missouri. In Week 2, quarterback Jalon Daniels did the same, completing passes of 24, 25 and 50. In both games, Drinkwitz has attributed the coverage busts to poor execution in zone coverage.

“When we got into our zone coverage, we had communication issues and eye issues and discipline issues and that stuff's got to get taken off the tape," Drinkwitz said following the win over Kansas. "So there's a lot of stuff that was really disappointing when we watched the tape."

If it weren't for the deep passing plays from South Carolina, the Missouri defense would've been able to hold their performance as a feather in their cap to begin Southeastern Conference play.

The Tigers held the Gamecocks to a net of -9 rushing yards. Ultimately, the defense did show up when it needed to most — in the fourth quarter, Missouri held South Carolina to nine yards on 10 plays.

But the Missouri defense likely wouldn't have needed those series of key stops late if it weren't for the explosive plays let up early.

"You look up at our stats and our numbers and our time of possession is dominating, and yet the scoreboard is not," Drinkwitz said. "It's because we're getting up explosive plays down the field."

Missouri sits at 4-0 on the season. It's edge rushers have been as impactful as expected. But the secondary is arguably the top concern for the Tigers entering Week 5.