'We stand on business' apparently wasn't the only jab that Eli Drinkwitz took at Josh Heupel during Missouri's win against Tennessee in 2023
Missouri Tigers head coach Eli Drinkwitz isn't shy about taking jabs at opposing programs when he gets the chance. Perhaps his most memorable jab came last season when he met Tennessee Vols head coach Josh Heupel at midfield and said "we stand on business, Josh" after Missouri's 36-7 win. According to ESPN's Justin Heckert, that […]
Missouri Tigers head coach Eli Drinkwitz isn't shy about taking jabs at opposing programs when he gets the chance.
Perhaps his most memorable jab came last season when he met Tennessee Vols head coach Josh Heupel at midfield and said "we stand on business, Josh" after Missouri's 36-7 win.
According to ESPN's Justin Heckert, that wasn't the only jab that Drinkwitz took during the Tigers' win against the Vols
Heckert pointed out this week, via a profile piece on Drinkwitz, that the timeout that Missouri called near the end of the game, before Tennessee missed a field goal, was a jab at Heupel and the Volunteers. Heckert pointed out the timeout while suggesting that Heupel is "known for running up the score and kicking onside kicks against lesser teams".
From ESPN: No one at Mizzou has ever spent so much time on his image or being mischievous….Taking a jab at Tennessee's Josh Heupel by calling a timeout last year at the end of the game against Tennessee, the game well in hand. Heupel is known for running up the score and kicking onside kicks against lesser teams, and when the Tennessee kicker missed against Missouri, Drink deadpanned after, "We stand on business, Josh."
Tennessee lined up for a field goal on fourth-and-goal with 40 seconds to go. The game was out of reach for the Vols, but Missouri called their final timeout before the attempt. CBS Sports play-by-play man Brad Nessler suggested that the move was some "gamesmanship" by Drinkwitz and the Tigers.
Drinkwitz admitted in the interview with ESPN that he's poked at opponents in the past in an effort to shift attention toward Missouri's program.
"We wanted to create story and space because if you're not a blue blood it's hard to get written about or recognized," said Drinkwitz. "But now we're to the point where we're there, and it needs to be a lot less about me and a lot more about Brady Cook and Luther and Theo Wease. Those guys are way more important to this than I am. But it took a little of me putting myself out there to get noticed. But now that they notice and know who we are, it doesn't need to be about me. I was a lot more active on social media. When I was at SEC media days, I was a lot wittier and a lot further and willing to take shots at other people, maybe more antagonizing; this year's approach to media days was much more calculated."
Unless they meet in the College Football Playoff or the SEC Championship game, Tennessee and Missouri won't play again until at least 2026. I'm sure Heupel and the Vols will be eager to get some revenge on Drinkwitz and the Tigers after last season's beatdown in Columbia.
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