No. 20 Missouri gets back to work Saturday night in Columbia, Mo., with Troy up next and the Border War chaos left in the rearview.
That was the backdrop after Missouri’s 38-21 win at Kansas on Friday night, a game that came with plenty more than just football. Quarterback Austin Simmons powered the Tigers in the rivalry matchup, but the day also brought all the extracurriculars in Lawrence, including an incendiary post and video from Kansas’ social media accounts and Mizzou players banging the rivalry’s drum trophy in the direction of Kansas players near midfield.
Coach Eli Drinkwitz made clear he took issue with the Jayhawks’ post because it included negative references to Missouri tied to historical events with Kansas that helped bring about the U.S. Civil War.
Mizzou and Kansas are not set to play again until 2031, a gap that frustrates some fans who want the rivalry back every year.
"If they're going to be weird about it, what's the point? If they want to have a football game and a great rivalry on the border, awesome, let's do it," Drinkwitz said. "But if we want to make it deeper than that, man, we left Kansas bleeding again, so call it good."
Now Missouri turns to a Troy team that is 2-0, just like the Tigers, and has given Mizzou a competitive game only sporadically over the years. Troy is 1-3 all time against Missouri and last met the Tigers in 2019.
The Trojans arrive off a 34-17 win over Alabama State on Saturday, a game they controlled early with a 31-7 halftime lead. Still, coach Gerad Parker was far from pleased afterward, saying Troy slipped into "a complete, undisciplined brand of football" because of too many penalties and play that fell below the program’s standards.
"That's got to be fixed and fixed quickly," Parker said. "There's got to be ownership on both sides (of the ball). I certainly look inward as to why we did not play a better version of football."
Troy will need a cleaner showing to handle Simmons, who has been sharp through two games after transferring from Ole Miss. He has completed 36 of 48 passes for 544 yards and seven touchdowns.
Drinkwitz had plenty to praise after Simmons’ performance against Kansas, especially the way he handled pressure and kept Missouri on schedule.
"He played unbelievable, didn't flinch. I thought his third-down conversions were as good as I've seen.
He's putting balls in tight spots, and they were doing so many different things on the back end," Drinkwitz said of Simmons' performance against Kansas. "Normally a quarterback gets frustrated.
He didn't. He just locked in.
I thought he made incredible reads. Didn't make very many misses.
The ball was not in jeopardy."
Missouri’s offensive line has also been unsettled, which has led to some inconsistency. Left tackle Cayden Green missed Week 1 after having a "minor procedure" to repair a meniscus tear in his right knee, then earned a game ball for his effort against Kansas just 10 days later.
"That guy, man, he is exactly what being a captain is all about," Drinkwitz said.
On defense, linebacker Robert Woodyard Jr. delivered a big swing by forcing turnovers on back-to-back possessions in the third quarter against Kansas.
Troy has its own playmakers. Jaheim Merriweather, a transfer from Purdue, ran for 127 yards and three touchdowns on 13 carries against Alabama State, including a 69-yard touchdown run. Quarterback Goose Crowder went 14 of 27 for 201 yards and threw a 73-yard touchdown in the first quarter.
In Other News...
Missouri May Have Found The Pass Rusher It Desperately Needed
Missouris defense got a welcome jolt in the Border War, and it came from a player who is still just scratching the surface of what he can become. Defensive end Daeden Hopkins was named Co-SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week after he spent the game harassing Kansas quarterback Isaiah Marshall, finishing with eight pressures in the matchup. For a Missouri front that has been searching for more consistent disruption, Hopkins performance stood out as the kind of edge presence that can change how an offense has to play.
Hopkins, a 19-year-old underclassman, has already piled up 12 pressures this season and sits among the nations top players in that category. Eli Drinkwitz has pointed to the work ethic and development behind the jump, noting that Hopkins has added weight while also becoming more reliable against the run. The bigger question now is whether this was a breakout night or the start of Missouri finally having the pass rusher it has been trying to find. [Read more 🡒]
Mizzou Wrestling Schedule Sets Up A Season Tigers Fans Will Track Closely
Mizzou wrestlings 2026-27 schedule is now on the books, and it gives fans a clear early look at a season that should keep interest high from start to finish. The Tigers will have seven home events on the calendar, along with a slate of road tournaments that includes stops at the Keystone Classic and the National Duals Invitational, before the Big 12 Championship arrives late in the year. The season is set to begin with the Missouri Duals on Nov. 2, giving the program an immediate chance to set the tone in front of its home crowd.
The biggest date on the wrestling calendar, though, comes in March 2027, when the NCAA Championships will be hosted by the University of Missouri in St. Louis. For a program like Mizzou, that kind of spotlight adds another layer to a schedule already built around familiar in-state interest and high-level competition. By the time the postseason rolls around, Tigers fans will have had plenty of chances to track how this group handles the grind, and whether the long run toward St. Louis looks as promising as the schedule suggests. [Read more 🡒]
Drinkwitz Knows Mizzou Has Two Problems That Could Get Exposed Fast
Missouris loss to Kansas in the 122nd Border War came with a pair of glaring issues that were hard to ignore, and they were the kind that can snowball quickly once SEC play starts to tighten the screws. Special teams had a rough day, and the secondary was uneven enough in coverage to leave head coach Eliah Drinkwitz with more than one area to clean up after a rivalry game that exposed some familiar stress points.
Drinkwitz said he took responsibility for the problems and noted that changes have already been made to address them, which matters because the schedule ahead will not offer much room to breathe. Missouri has to get sharper in a hurry, especially with cornerback play still searching for consistency and the margins getting thinner against tougher opponents. [Read more 🡒]