‘It helps my sanity’: Mizzou’s defense should remain dependable even amid uncertainty
For the Missouri Tigers, the coronavirus pandemic arguably came at the worst time.
Mizzou coach Eliah Drinkwitz was installing his new offense, and without a starting quarterback, losing 12 spring practices immediately put the Tigers at a disadvantage. Instead of slowly implementing his “pro-tempo” offense, the best Drinkwitz can do now is communicate over Zoom for a set amount of time per week.
On the other side of the ball, though, it’s a completely different story. The Tigers return seven starters, the same scheme and same defensive coordinator in Ryan Walters.
Instead of working from scratch, Walters is fine-tuning an already potent machine.
“It definitely helps my sanity,” Walters said in a phone call with the Star. “I can only imagine what’s kind of going on with Drink and getting the offense established. Having a baseline of guys who know the foundation and know what we’re trying to do from a schematic standpoint is something else.”
While the Tigers struggled the second half of the season — starting 5-1 only to finish 6-6, which led to head coach Barry Odom’s ouster — their retooled 4-2-5 defense remained steady. Mizzou stifled opponents with the 16th-best scoring defense in the country.
The strength of Mizzou’s returning starters begins with linebacker Nick Bolton. Named All-SEC last fall as a sophomore, he’s arguably the face of the MU defense as the Tigers look to build off last year’s success.
Other key starters from that 2019 defense include defensive end Kobie Whiteside, cornerback Jarvis Ware and safety Tyree Gillespie.
“There was a lot of carryover,” Walters said. “We were able to install a great deal in those three days (of practice this spring) because of the carryover. I was pleased. Obviously, there’s a lot of things to clean up. If you look at Day 1 of spring ball a year ago, it looked a whole different. Definitely having the returners helps. Even some of the backups are back.”
The Tigers did lose a couple of key defenders who exhausted their eligibility or declared early for the NFL Draft. Cornerback DeMarkus Acy, defensive tackle Jordan Elliott and linebacker Cale Garrett were crucial to what Mizzou did in 2019.
Defensive end figures to be an important position next season. The Tigers’ defensive line was formidable down the middle last fall with Elliott and Whiteside, but production from the ends left a lot to be desired. Senior Chris Turner, redshirt senior Tre Williams and junior Jatorian Hansford should figure into the mix; who emerges from that pack will be worth watching.
While Drinkwitz noted during spring practice that he’s hands-off with his defense, Walters said the lines of communication are always open. Walters said the defense worked off Drinkwitz’s offense this spring in terms of what would be installed.
“You have an offensive head coach now, so he’s got progressions on areas of the field he wants to work, situations he wants to work,” Walters said. “So you follow suit, whatever the interest of the day is from a defensive standpoint, to make sure you’re in the right situations and the right scenarios and the right personnel groups.”
Walters said he was impressed with how much the Tigers were able to get done in so little time. Continuity on the defensive coaching staff helped. Walters, defensive line coach Brick Haley and defensive backs coach David Gibbs were retained from Odom’s regime.
Only two new faces joined the defensive staff: linebackers coach DJ Smith and safeties coach Charlie Harbison.
“He played for the Packers, played in the league — that’s an All-American,” Bolton said of Smith after the first day of spring practice. “He knows what he’s talking about. Very energetic guy. Likes to have fun as well. But when it comes down to business, it’s business.”
During the NCAA’s pause due to the coronavirus oubreak, teams are allowed just four hours of remote training per week, though that number will jump up to eight starting Monday.
Walters said the majority of the coaches’ time in this virtual setting is dedicated to ensuring their players stay safe. Football talk is kept to a minimum, for now.
“Don’t want to over do it,” Walters said. “We want them to be hungry, want to get them ready to ball. You’re just walking that fine line. We want to keep them fresh in their minds. Don’t want to be overkill with it. But you want to build a sense of camaraderie and a genuine care for one another.”