I'll have a full Said and unsaid later and video from Brady Cook, Johnny Walker and Will Norris speaking, but for now, here are my notes from Drinkwitz's press conference.
"Senior week, 27 men who have, in my opinion, been true sons to the state of Missouri. Some choose Missouri out of high school, some through the transfer portal."
"It's a proud group, very resilient group."
"I look forward to sending them out in a sold out Faurot Field."
"The group who came here in a coaching transition, didn't choose it because of sellout crowds or because of what it is now, they choose it to help make it that way."
"Mookie Cooper reveled he had surgery. He had season-ending surgery."
"His last play will be remembered as the one that sparked us to beat Auburn."
"Arkansas, the battle-line rivalry. It's a great rivalry and a really good football team."
"I think Pittman has done a great job there."
"It's a really, really challenging football game."
"Really, really good skill positions."
"A lot of these guys, similar to South Carolina, we've played a lot and we have a lot of respect for them."
"During Covid, Mookie announced he was going to transfer ... I was talking to him on the phone about it being the right decision for him, being a point of pride for the city of St. Louis."
"We were looking up yesterday, I think Brady is 24-13 as a starter here and that will be third all time. He's been here, won a lot of football games for us."
"We're all aware it's their last game at Faurot. We talked about it as a team on Monday and we'll talk about it again today ... these are the greatest days of our lives, but they aren't forever. ... We told them back in August, the days drag on, but the months fly by and now we're at the end."
"There can be a lot of mixed messages throughout the week ... rivalry week is important, the Battle Line trophy is important, but this one is about the seniors. The North end zone is going to look totally different once we leave the field so this is the last chance for this group to play with that setup"
"Some have done more, some have done less, but everyone has contributed to what we've been this year"
"Armand has really played well the last three games. It's been a big point of emphasis for us to play physical at the point of attack. ... He played as a true freshman and every year, every game, he shows growth."
"There's a program style of complimentary football (at Arkansas). Since I've been here coaching, Arkansas has had really, really good linebacker play."
"Those guys really stand out, their defensive line really stands out."
"They really establish the run and are explosive in the pass game."
"I have had conversations with Luther, we are in those conversations. I'm never going to steal anybodies spotlight. We're very fortunate to have had Luther for three years. He will walk Saturday, though no decisions have been made."
"I haven't played in a snow game, but it looks like we might get one of those"
"Sunday night, we'll have a staff meeting and we'll finalize what we've been discussing the past four weeks with is roster construction and management. Next week we'll meet with every player on our team to see where everybody's mind is."
"Most important thing for us is to sign our freshman class, retain the great players we have on roster and then build moving forward. It's going to happen fast and there will be a lot of moving parts. ... What it looks like is keeping your head on a swivel and making the best decisions you can from the information available."
"We spent part of the second bye week having discussions with current roster players to talk about retaining them."
"We've got four out of bounds kicks this year, which is four too many. We'll be making some adjustments about how to place the ball. Our defense hasn't responded as well as we'd like in those situations. ... An inconsistency in our kicking game has been an achilles heel this year. That's nut just Blake, but punting too."
"We'll be outside all week and try to get used to the temperature."
"Senior week, 27 men who have, in my opinion, been true sons to the state of Missouri. Some choose Missouri out of high school, some through the transfer portal."
"It's a proud group, very resilient group."
"I look forward to sending them out in a sold out Faurot Field."
"The group who came here in a coaching transition, didn't choose it because of sellout crowds or because of what it is now, they choose it to help make it that way."
"Mookie Cooper reveled he had surgery. He had season-ending surgery."
"His last play will be remembered as the one that sparked us to beat Auburn."
"Arkansas, the battle-line rivalry. It's a great rivalry and a really good football team."
"I think Pittman has done a great job there."
"It's a really, really challenging football game."
"Really, really good skill positions."
"A lot of these guys, similar to South Carolina, we've played a lot and we have a lot of respect for them."
"During Covid, Mookie announced he was going to transfer ... I was talking to him on the phone about it being the right decision for him, being a point of pride for the city of St. Louis."
"We were looking up yesterday, I think Brady is 24-13 as a starter here and that will be third all time. He's been here, won a lot of football games for us."
"We're all aware it's their last game at Faurot. We talked about it as a team on Monday and we'll talk about it again today ... these are the greatest days of our lives, but they aren't forever. ... We told them back in August, the days drag on, but the months fly by and now we're at the end."
"There can be a lot of mixed messages throughout the week ... rivalry week is important, the Battle Line trophy is important, but this one is about the seniors. The North end zone is going to look totally different once we leave the field so this is the last chance for this group to play with that setup"
"Some have done more, some have done less, but everyone has contributed to what we've been this year"
"Armand has really played well the last three games. It's been a big point of emphasis for us to play physical at the point of attack. ... He played as a true freshman and every year, every game, he shows growth."
"There's a program style of complimentary football (at Arkansas). Since I've been here coaching, Arkansas has had really, really good linebacker play."
"Those guys really stand out, their defensive line really stands out."
"They really establish the run and are explosive in the pass game."
"I have had conversations with Luther, we are in those conversations. I'm never going to steal anybodies spotlight. We're very fortunate to have had Luther for three years. He will walk Saturday, though no decisions have been made."
"I haven't played in a snow game, but it looks like we might get one of those"
"Sunday night, we'll have a staff meeting and we'll finalize what we've been discussing the past four weeks with is roster construction and management. Next week we'll meet with every player on our team to see where everybody's mind is."
"Most important thing for us is to sign our freshman class, retain the great players we have on roster and then build moving forward. It's going to happen fast and there will be a lot of moving parts. ... What it looks like is keeping your head on a swivel and making the best decisions you can from the information available."
"We spent part of the second bye week having discussions with current roster players to talk about retaining them."
"We've got four out of bounds kicks this year, which is four too many. We'll be making some adjustments about how to place the ball. Our defense hasn't responded as well as we'd like in those situations. ... An inconsistency in our kicking game has been an achilles heel this year. That's nut just Blake, but punting too."
"We'll be outside all week and try to get used to the temperature."
