Year 5 of the Dennis Gates era opened the way Mizzou fans wanted it to: with a runaway win and a pair of freshmen making an immediate splash. The Tigers blasted Cleveland State 111-50 to begin the 2026-27 season, a 61-point margin that matched the tone of the night from the opening stretch.
It was Mizzou’s highest scoring game since putting up 112 against Arkansas-Pine Bluff in 2024, and the box score was loaded with balance. All five starters finished in double figures, while Jason Crowe Jr. and Toni Bryant gave the debut performance everyone was waiting to see.
Those two combined for 38 points, nine rebounds and four blocks, and Bryant in particular wasted no time showing why he turned heads early at Mizzou Arena. The big man from Tampa made his presence felt on both ends right away, carving out a clear role in the first few minutes: protect the rim and, surprisingly, knock down corner threes.
By halftime, Bryant already had 11 points, three blocks and 3-of-4 shooting from the corner. His athleticism stood out against a Cleveland State team that simply couldn’t match it.
Crowe and Bryant weren’t the only story, though. Mizzou controlled the game from start to finish and never let Cleveland State find a foothold.
Elsewhere around the Mizzou world, the College Football Playoff committee’s first rankings of the 2026 season dropped with the Tigers sitting 18th at 6-2. With four games left and three of those opponents ranked in the Top 10, the path ahead is loaded. Missouri’s next test comes Saturday against Texas.
The football side also drew plenty of attention after a dominant showing in the rain, one that produced a 96% postgame win expectancy. The Tigers handled business on both sides of the ball.
And in the latest SBN Reacts survey, the question for fans was simple: Will Mizzou Football get in the College Football Playoff with a record of 9-3?
That would mean, in this scenario, a win over either Texas or Georgia.
There was also a reminder of a more familiar kind of Mizzou satisfaction: beating Arkansas. In a college football landscape full of chaos, that part still feels timeless.
Five in a row.
In Other News...
Missouris Bowl Outlook Is Taking Shape With Bigger Questions Still Ahead
The bowl picture is starting to come into focus across the SEC, and Missouri is part of the early conversation as ESPNs Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach laid out projected College Football Playoff matchups and bowl pairings for 14 league teams based on current standings. Eight SEC teams have already locked up bowl eligibility with six wins, while South Carolina and Florida still have a path to clinch it with wins ahead, giving the conference a clearer sense of where everyone stands as the season moves toward its final stretch.
For Missouri, the projection is another reminder that the Tigers postseason destination is beginning to take shape even as the bigger questions around the league remain unsettled. Arkansas and Vanderbilt were left out of the analysts bowl projections entirely, underscoring how much can still change in the SEC race, and how quickly one result can alter the path from here. [Read more 🡒]
Mizzous New-Look Roster Just Gave Tigers Fans A Reason To Believe
Missouris season opener offered an early look at how quickly the Tigers revamped roster can come together. In a 111-50 win over Cleveland State, five-star freshman Jason Crowe Jr. led the way with 23 points, and fellow freshman Toni Bryant added 11 points and two blocks as the newcomers made an immediate impact. Several four-star transfers and returning players also chipped in, giving the Tigers a balanced first impression that matched the buzz around the roster overhaul.
For a program trying to turn a fresh mix of talent into something more than a collection of names, the opener was a promising start. Missouri looked deep, active and far ahead of the usual early-season learning curve, which is exactly the kind of first step fans wanted to see. The bigger question now is how that early chemistry holds up once the schedule tightens and the competition gets more demanding. [Read more 🡒]
Eli Drinkwitz Is Pushing A CFP Change Missouri Fans Will Notice
The first College Football Playoff poll of the 2026 season put Missouri at No. 18, a spot that keeps the Tigers in the conversation but still leaves plenty of work ahead. It also gave Eli Drinkwitz another chance to talk about the postseason structure he wants to see, and he did not sound interested in a system where a committee keeps making the biggest calls.
Drinkwitz is backing a move to a 24-team playoff with more automatic bids for conferences and play-in games instead of relying so heavily on selections. There is already a tentative agreement for that format to arrive after 2032, but the formal details are still being worked out, which means Missouri fans are watching both the rankings and the broader playoff debate with real interest. [Read more 🡒]