Missouri’s opener against Arkansas Pine-Bluff on Thursday night is expected to be over fast, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be plenty to watch once the Tigers finally get back on the field.
After a long wait since last December, Mizzou begins its 136th season with real college football again, and the matchup should be a lopsided one. Arkansas Pine-Bluff, an FCS program that hasn’t won more than four games in a season since 2019, enters as a 50-plus-point underdog. Still, even in a game like this, the details matter.
One of the biggest things to track is how willing Missouri’s quarterbacks are to push the ball downfield. That could be a major piece of the offense in 2026, and it’s the kind of element the Tigers have leaned on in their best stretches. It was missing at times in 2025, so Thursday offers the first real chance to see whether the staff is ready to make deep passing a bigger part of the plan.
Chip Lindsey was hired with a reputation for quarterbacks who aren’t shy about attacking vertically, and Austin Simmons brings arm talent that Eli Drinkwitz hasn’t had in Columbia. The key question is how often Missouri challenges the defense on throws of 20-plus yards. Former quarterback Beau Pribula offered a useful reminder of what a productive downfield passing game can look like in the Cavaliers’ win against NC State, when he threw more touchdown passes of 15-plus yards (2) on Saturday than he did all of last season, per ESPN Insights.
The tight ends are another area worth watching closely. There’s been plenty of offseason buzz about how Lindsey might use that group, and the talent is clearly there.
Brett Norfleet, Jordon Harris, Jude James and the rest of the room give Missouri options, but the real question is how they’re deployed. Crossers, seams, or routes that send them straight down the field would all tell us something about how this offense wants to operate.
There’s also a big opportunity on the offensive line with Cayden Green out for an unknown amount of time, per Drinkwitz. That opens the door for Jack Lange, who is expected to get an extensive look at left tackle.
Lange was a former 4-star recruit and the top-ranked player in Missouri in the 2024 class, but he has only four career offensive snaps, all of them against Louisiana last season. Thursday will give him his biggest stage yet.
That position battle matters beyond this week. Green could return for another season in 2027, though the NFL remains a real possibility.
Meanwhile, Dominick Guidice, Curtis Peagler and Tristan Wilson are all in their final seasons, so the line is going to need some reshuffling next year. Lange’s snap count against Arkansas Pine-Bluff should help provide a clearer picture of what’s coming.
Missouri’s newcomers also deserve a long look. Ahmad Hardy is out until mid-September, which leaves Jamal Roberts as the No. 1 running back for now. Behind him, Malae Fonoti and Xai’Shaun Edwards arrive from the FCS level and should get a chance to show what they can do in a program that has shown it wants to run the ball.
There are similar questions at other spots. Wide receiver Naeshaun Montgomery has not played many snaps in college, but he is listed as a starter after arriving as a former 4-star recruit. Ja’Don Blair, another former 4-star, is listed as the primary backup free safety, though he has only 19 career snaps.
The scoreboard should take care of itself. The more interesting part is what Missouri reveals underneath it all.
In Other News...
Missouris Roster Chaos Just Added Another Problem Before LSU
Missouris preparation for LSU and the rest of the opening stretch got a little less cloudy with Sterling Webb back in the conversation. The defensive tackle had been under a temporary restraining order against the NCAA, and a St. Louis County judge has now upheld it, clearing the way for him to remain eligible and take part in upcoming games, including Week 1.
Eli Drinkwitz acknowledged the ruling but stopped there, leaving the bigger question hanging over Webbs status beyond the immediate schedule. For a Missouri team already managing roster churn, any stability on the defensive front matters, and Webbs availability at least removes one problem from the short-term picture while the long-term one remains unresolved. [Read more 🡒]
Mizzous 2026 Ceiling May Come Down To One Major Concern
Missouris 2026 outlook looks like the kind of projection that can make a teams fan base dream a little bigger than usual. Under Eli Drinkwitz, the Tigers appear to have enough pieces in place to stay firmly in the conversation, with the preseason conversation leaning heavily on a defense that should be the backbone of the team and on a handful of players expected to shape the year on both sides of the ball.
Still, the ceiling may hinge on one area that can swing a season quickly, especially when the schedule starts forcing harder questions. The game-by-game forecast around the Tigers reflects plenty of optimism, but it also leaves room for the same concern that follows any ambitious Missouri preview: if that one issue shows up at the wrong time, the difference between a good season and a great one could come down to it. [Read more 🡒]
Missouri Opens Week 1 With Two Massive Availability Concerns
Missouris Week 1 depth chart is already taking a hit before the first snap, with the Tigers preparing to open against Arkansas-Pine Bluff without a pair of key pieces. Preseason All-American running back Ahmad Hardy and left tackle Cayden Green have both been ruled out for the season opener, leaving Eli Drinkwitz to patch together the early plan on offense while the roster settles into game-week rhythm.
Hardys absence is the bigger short-term storyline, since Missouri had expected him to be a centerpiece of the attack, but he is still working back from an offseason gunshot wound and has not returned to full practice. In his place, Jamal Roberts, XaiShaun Edwards and Malae Fonoti are expected to handle the backfield work, while the Tigers also have a separate off-field matter lingering with defensive tackle Sterling Webb and a court hearing tied to his 2026 eligibility. [Read more 🡒]