Drinkwitz Named To Paul “Bear” Bryant Coach of the Year Award Watch List
10/19/2023 11:45:00 AM | Football
COLUMBIA, Mo. – University of Missouri football head coach Eliah Drinkwitz was one of 26 coaches named to the watch list for the American Heart Association's 2023 Paul "Bear" Bryant Coach of the Year Award.
The award is given each January to a college football coach for contributions that make the sport better for athletes and fans alike by demonstrating grit, integrity and a winning approach to coaching and life - both on and off the field.
Drinkwitz has led No. 20 Mizzou to a 6-1 start, 2-1 in Southeastern Conference play. The Tigers have a pair of wins over ranked teams – No. 15 K-State and at No. 23 Kentucky – along with a 3-0 mark in one-score games. Missouri is bowl eligible for the 37th time in school history and fourth-straight year under Drinkwitz, who is one of two MU coaches in 133 years of football to lead their team to bowl games in each of their first four season (Warren Powers, 1978-81).
The Tigers offense has averaged 33.9 points per game behind QB Brady Cook, RB Cody Schrader and the WR duo of Luther Burden III and Theo Wease Jr. - all among the national and SEC leaders at their position. Cook is the No. 3 passer in the SEC and No. 6 in the nation while Schrader – who has led the SEC in rushing at various points this year – became only the fourth active NCAA player to top 4,000 career rushing yards. Burden and Wease have combined for 90 receptions, 1,208 yards and 10 TDs on the season with Burden leading the country in receptions and reception yards for most of the campaign. Burden and OL Javon Foster – who anchors an offensive line recognized on the Joe Moore Award Midseason Watch List – have been named to multiple midseason All-America squads.
Defensively, Missouri has limited its foes to under four yards per carry and seven yards per pass despite having several starters miss time due to injury. CB Kris Abrams-Draine has four interceptions and dots multiple midseason All-America teams. Edge players Darius Robinson and Johnny Walker, Jr. have combined for 7.5 sacks and 14.0 tackles for a loss while LB Ty'Ron Hopper 39 stops leads the way overall.
P Luke Bauer has the longest kick in the SEC this season - 73 yards - while K Harrison Mevis hit a 61-yard strike at the gun to defeat K-State. Mevis is closing in on Mizzou's all-time points scored record, one of the few kicking marks the senior doesn't already own.
The No. 20 Tigers return to action this weekend in the battle for the Mayor's Cup against South Carolina. The game kicks off from a sold out Faurot Field/Memorial Stadium at 2:30 p.m. CT on Saturday, Oct. 21. MU celebrates its 112th homecoming with the annual parade starting the day at 9 a.m. through the streets of Downtown Columbia.
LIMITED TICKETS STILL AVAILABLE
Reserved seats for upcoming football games against Tennessee are sold out, but for available group and single-game tickets for remaining home games call 1-800-CAT-PAWS or buy online. Hill Tickets for South Carolina (buy now), Tennessee (buy now) and Florida (buy now) are on sale for purchase today!
FOLLOW THE TIGERS
For all the latest information on Mizzou Athletics, please visit MUTigers.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow Missouri football (@MizzouFootball) and Coach Drinkwitz (@CoachDrinkwitz) on X. You can also find the Tigers on Instagram and Facebook.
ABOUT THE BEAR BRYANT COACH OF THE YEAR AWARDS
The American Heart Association, the leading voluntary health organization devoted to a world of longer, healthier lives for all, and the Bryant family present this award annually to celebrate Bear Bryant's legacy and raise awareness and critical funds for scientific research to eliminate needless suffering and death from cardiovascular disease and stroke, the leading causes of death globally. The football coaching legend died from a heart attack in 1983.
Now in its 38th year, the Coach of the Year award winner will be announced live from Houston's Post Oak Hotel on Wednesday, January 10, 2024, during an awards ceremony presented by Marathon Oil. The watch list, finalists and Coach of the Year recipient are voted on by the National Sports Media Association, the Bryant Awards' Executive Leadership Team and the Bryant Family.
In addition to the Coach of the Year, the Paul "Bear" Bryant Awards will also present Conference Coach of the Year Awards from each of the Power Five collegiate athletic conferences (Atlantic Coast Conference, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and Southeastern Conference) and one from the Group of Five conferences (American Athletic Conference, Conference USA, Mid-American Conference, Mountain West Conference and Sun Belt Conference).
