Battle Line Rivalry schedule switch was a ‘surprise’ to Missouri HC Eli Drinkwitz

SEC Media Days kicked off in Tampa (Fla.) on Monday and Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz was the second of 16 head coaches across four days to take the podium. After giving a long-awaited update on All-American running back Ahmad Hardy and recounting his take on tweaks to the College Football Playoff qualifications, the Alma native also gave his thoughts on rivalry games. That included – a rivalry depending on who you ask – the Battle Line Rivalry between his Tigers and Arkansas, which was moved up a month from Thanksgiving Week to October. 31. Drinkwitz owns a commanding 5-1 advantage in the series and all of those games were played to conclude the regular season, save for his first year in Columbia during the 2020 COVID season in which teams played an unorthodox SEC only schedule. He did not expect the switch but unsurprisingly expressed no concern about what point in the season it occurs. “The Arkansas game moving was a surprise to me,” Drinkwitz said. “I’ve always enjoyed that being a rivalry at the end of the year. But the thing about rivalries is it doesn’t matter when you play them. They’re still important. We’re playing Kansas Week 2, that’s a pretty important rivalry. “Arkansas, this year, we are playing on the road, on Halloween. It is going to be an important game for our season. I know it is going to be important game for their season. And then, we get Oklahoma at the end of the year.” Not only does Drinkwitz own his home state team in the Battle Line Rivalry, Missouri has dominated since the first time these squads met in 1906 by a 12-4 advantage. Arkansas’ most recent win over the Tigers came in 2021, a 24-17 triumph at Razorback Stadium. Subscribe to HawgBeat now for just $1, visit our homepage to sign up today! This includes complete access to all On3 and Rivals national content, plus The Trough premium message board.