FAYETTEVILLE - Eli Drinkwitz left Razorback Stadium with another win over Arkansas, and he didn’t exactly hide the satisfaction.
Missouri’s coach, who is from Alma, now has more SEC victories in Razorback Stadium since the start of the 2023 season than Arkansas does. The Tigers have three. The Razorbacks have one.
After Missouri’s latest lopsided win on Saturday, Drinkwitz was asked what stood out from his first matchup against a Ryan Silverfield-led Arkansas team. He gave a brief answer and a small laugh before settling on the same line he had used earlier in the week.
"Probably the same thing I said on Tuesday," Drinkwitz said. "Good football team.
They're figuring out who they are. They're establishing the foundation of their program."
The sharper jab came a little earlier, when Drinkwitz referenced Silverfield’s story about changing out lightbulbs during his first week on the job.
"I'd like to tip my hat to the Razorbacks," Drinkwitz said. "Those lights, all the new lights they put in looked good, man.
That stadium was good tonight. I know that was a big deal for them to get the lightbulbs changed out."
Drinkwitz also made clear that he sees the Battle Line game as more than just the next item on the schedule. Silverfield had downplayed the rivalry during the week, saying the trophy was part of it but that Saturday was "ultimately, the next game."
Drinkwitz took the opposite view.
"We talked all week about a prizefight," Drinkwitz said. "That's what it was gonna be on a Saturday night, a prizefight.
You won, you got a prize at the end, which was that trophy. And that trophy means something to us.
It's important. We have two trophy games this year and we've won both of 'em.
That's a big deal for our program and our fans. We're always going to fight to win those trophies."
Not everyone is fond of Drinkwitz’s style, and plenty of Arkansas fans have made that clear over time. But the results keep following him, especially in this rivalry. He is 6-1 against the Razorbacks.
And on Saturday, Missouri made sure the game stopped being competitive early in the second half. Arkansas was outscored 21-3 after halftime, with 14 of those points coming in the first 5:13 of the period, wiping away any real shot at an upset. The halftime light show may have been the most memorable part of the night for anyone hoping for drama after the break.
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Ryan Silverfield and quarterback KJ Jackson both acknowledged the problem has been hanging around too long, and the message now is simple enough: it has to improve in practice and carry over to games. For a team that keeps seeing turnovers tilt the field against it, the question is no longer whether the issue matters, but how quickly Arkansas can actually fix it. [Read more 🡒]