Mizzou defensive lineman Darius Robinson (6) celebrates with teammates following a sack in last Saturday’s win over Memphis. (Photo: Thomas Grove)

Cedric Williams
Senior Editor

COLUMBIA, MO — The University of Missouri football team held its Media Day, Tuesday after practice, and head coach Eli Drinkwitz began the discussion by giving injury updates on some the Tigers’ starters and key players.

“Darius Robinson is going to be questionable this week from an injury in the game. We’ll see how that goes. Mekhi Miller will be out this week. And Luther (Burden) and Brady (Cook) are both questionable as of today (Tuesday). Both will be limited at practice and even if they are available, we’ll see.”

Robinson has been battling a calf injury since training camp, which has caused him to be in and out of the lineup. In the Mizzou postgame press conference after last week’s game, Drinkwitz said Robinson’s calf gave out on him in the fourth quarter versus Kansas State and gave out again in the first quarter versus Memphis.

Miller played versus Kansas State with a hand laceration and he also played versus Memphis. It’s unclear if the laceration is what already has him sidelined for Week 5 or something else, but Drinkwitz didn’t seem too worried about what the Tigers will do if without him.

“I mean, Daniel Blood will be back. Obviously, you can slide Mookie (Cooper) into the slot. Marquis (Johnson) can play outside receiver. Josh Manning, he can play outside receiver,” Drinkwitz said. “So, you know that’s a really deep room. I know Coach (Jacob) Peeler will have a plan for us.”

Drinkwitz also said Cook and Burden, whose left foot and ankle seemed to be heavily taped, were full participants in Tuesday’s practice. This was hours after he said they would be limited in practice that day.

Offensive lineman Marcellus Johnson, who missed last week’s game due to an ankle injury was also a full participant, as was Dreyden Norwood, who suffered an ankle injury in the second quarter of the Memphis game.

Tight end Brett Norfleet missed Week 4 with a rib cartilage injury, but was also at practice on Tuesday. He wore a green non-contact jersey. Drinkwitz said he thinks Norfleet will be able to play this week.

Ennis Rakestraw was a late scratch last Saturday. His availability in Week 5 will be dependent on his week of practice.

“We will see how Ennis practices today (Tuesday) and tomorrow and make a decision for him. Obviously, we want to put his best interest ahead of everything and don’t want to further injure himself by participating,” Drinkwitz said. “He was a full participant in yesterday’s (Monday) walkthrough. So, we’ll just see how his injury responds today going full speed in practice.”

The other thing Drinkwitz talked about on Tuesday was the Mizzou defense and some of the struggles the team has faced on that side of the ball.

Following last week’s game, the Missouri defense is ranked No. 42 in the country. Not a bad number, but most expected the Tigers to be better after four games.

“Yeah, there’s a variety of issues, but it comes down to us executing our assignments. Coaches making the assignments more clear so that we can play with less confusion and more aggression,” Drinkwitz said. “We got to stay in our rush lanes, we’ve got to cover better in man-to-man. When we mix up coverages and get to zone cover, we’ve got to make sure we’re matching in our zones.”

Man-to-man pass coverage was something Drinkwitz spoke of often. And he stressed how much the Tigers need to be better at it.

“I think it’s more technique and fundamentals and making sure that when we have a man, we have our eyes where they’re supposed to be and not get caught in the backfield,” Drinkwitz said. “I think too many times, we’re trying to make a play outside of the scheme. You’ve got to do your job. It’s guys wanting to make plays but make plays by doing your job within the scheme and doing them well, doing the little things really well.”

Mizzou will have two more days of practice and a Friday walk-through to get ready for Vanderbilt. Kickoff in Nashville is set for 3 p.m.

2023 MISSOURI TIGERS FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

DateTimeAtOpponentLocationTVRadio
September 30, 2023 (Saturday)3:00 PMAwayVanderbiltNashville, Tenn.Tiger Radio Network
October 7, 2023 (Saturday)11:00 AMHomeLSUFaurot FieldTiger Radio Network
October 14, 2023 (Saturday)TBAAwayKentuckyLexington, Ky.Tiger Radio Network
October 21, 2023 (Saturday)TBAHomeSouth CarolinaFaurot FieldTiger Radio Network
November 4, 2023 (Saturday)TBAAwayGeorgiaAthens, Ga.Tiger Radio Network
November 11, 2023 (Saturday)TBAHomeTennesseeFaurot FieldTiger Radio Network
November 18, 2023 (Saturday)TBAHomeFloridaFaurot FieldTiger Radio Network
November 24, 2023 (Friday)3:00 PMAwayArkansasFayetteville, Ark.CBSTiger Radio Network