Missouri looks ahead after loss to Alabama

The game may not have gone the way they hoped or planned, but head coach Eli Drinkwitz was very consistent in his message following the Missouri Tigers’ devastating loss to No. 15 Alabama.

“We’ll go home, regroup, try to get better and move on to the next game,” Drinkwitz said after the 34-0 loss to the Crimson Tide.

The loss was Missouri’s first shutout since the 2019 season. An offense that was already struggling couldn’t put anything together. The closest Missouri came to scoring was a missed 59-yard field goal and goal line kick that came in the fourth quarter. Despite a strong first half, the defense found holes in the second half that Alabama took advantage of.

“We all came in with a plan to win, but it didn’t happen,” Drinkwitz said. “Today was not our day, and we are not going to divide, we are not going to point fingers. We’re going to come back and get better this week and finish this stretch.”

Their struggles were compounded by the astonishing number of injuries that were announced leading up to and during the match. Wednesday’s report listed three players as questionable, six as questionable and one as probable, including their leadoff man and starting cornerback. The roster was trimmed down by playing time but still included wide receiver Mookie Cooper and running back Nate Noel as an outfielder and Brady Cook as a play-action tackle.

The game looked more hopeful after Cook was announced in the starting line-up, but that hope was short-lived. Cook injured his hand on another player’s helmet and had to be removed for X-rays. He did not return to the game.

“First of all, we need to get better for the bye week,” guard Johnnie Walker Jr. said. “I feel like we need to regroup as a team, look at the situation, whether Brady can come back or not.”

The question now on the minds of the Missouri football team is whether Cook can get healthy before the end of the season. The extent of his arm injury was not disclosed, but he also previously had an injured ankle that kept him out for most of the game against Auburn the week before.

“There are four SEC games left,” Drinkwitz said. “There’s still a lot of football season left and we just need to go home, get better, wash this season out and move on to the next one.”

The rest of the season could be viewed very differently if Cook is unable to return. The Tigers were only able to score six points over the last two games when backup guard Drew Pyne was in the game. He also threw three interceptions and was sacked this time.

Despite all the Tigers’ setbacks, their players and coaches prefer to remain optimistic until the end of the season. They made it a point to look at every play, every game as an individual and avoid the bad stuff.

“Our season is not over yet,” Walker said. “We have four or five games left and a bye week. Depending on what happens, playoffs or trying to get a good bowl game. Let’s see what happens.”