On Thursday night, Missouri will open up its season against Central Arkansas, which finished 6-6 last season and is an FCS team. Other than noticing that the Bears had a great run game last season, I know absolutely nothing about them, nor do many, because of new coordinators, key players gone, etc. In other words, I won’t waste my time breaking down the Bears, because this is a game Missouri should win and dominate at that.

However, what we can do is look at Missouri and discuss the three things to watch for in this season opener. While much may not be able to be learned against a team like Central Arkansas, there are areas of this team that many are stoked to see, so let’s break those down.

1. The quarterback battle

On Wednesday the 20th, Eli Drinkwitz announced that the quarterback competition would spill over into week one, due to wanting to see both quarterbacks get game action so that he could make his decision. For the days that ensued, Tiger fans gave their predictions as to who would start the game, how the quarterbacks would alternate, and so on.

On Tuesday, around noon, however, Tiger fans got their answer, as college football insider Pete Thamel broke the news that Beau Pribula would start and play the first half, with Sam Horn playing the second. Although this is still labeled as a competition, if 2023 was any indication of how Eli Drinkwitz navigates these “competitions,” Pribula has essentially won the job. So, the first thing to look for is how does the transfer from Penn State commands the offense and can he make downfield throws?

Most fans know that Pribula is a solid runner of the football and can make decent throws, but I’m looking to see if Pribula can improvise and if he can push the ball down the field. Unfortunately, due to backing up Drew Allar, we don’t have much film, so Thursday night will give us our first glimpse. Does Beau make the right reads and safely move his team down the field, or does he play carelessly and force the ball into double coverage? Only time will tell.

Although it seems like, based on the news, that this is Pribula’s job to lose, I’m still very intrigued to see Sam Horn play. Horn is coming off an elbow injury that he suffered from baseball, that kept him sidelined for the entire 2024 season, where he missed an opportunity for snaps due to Brady Cook’s injury. After all, it would’ve been likely that Horn would have played against Oklahoma, but we also would’ve missed out on the Drew Pyne legacy game. Horn still has a slight shot at this job and displays traits that Pribula doesn’t, like being a tad better as a pocket passer, better touch, and better measurables. It’ll be interesting to see how Pribula plays that first half and how Horn will respond.

Lastly, I really, really would like to see true freshman Matt Zollers play. As a high-end four-star, it’s no secret that Matt Zollers is likely the future of this program and out of all of the quarterbacks on this roster, he throws the most impressive ball. While Zollers may only get some garbage time play in this affair, it would be really interesting to see him get some reps, not just with handoffs, but throwing against a live defense.

1. Does the D-line live up to the hype?

• All of fall camp, praise has been heaped upon the Missouri front seven, with the group not only being as talented as ever, but also as deep as ever. Zion Young returns, Darris Smith comes back from injury, Chris McClellan and Marquis Gracial return as the two defensive tackles return as well. That doesn’t even cover incoming transfers such as highly sought after Georgia defensive end Damon Wilson, or App State transfer, Nate Johnson, who posted 2.5 sacks last year and displays NFL size. The D-line could easily be three rotations deep, which means that players will be fresh and can make an impact later in the game.

 If this Tiger front seven is as dominant as we expect, it’s fair to expect 5-8 sacks. Truth be told, the disparity between an fcs offensive line and a SEC caliber defensive line is quite sizable, so only time will tell if the Tigers’ defensive line is truly as dominant as some expect.

1. How does the Tigers’ new offensive line gel?

• With this being the first game of the season, mistakes are to be expected. However, to what magnitude? A holding call here or there won’t hurt, but how often? This point revolves mostly around the Tigers’ offensive line. With Eli reshuffling the offensive line and moving Cayden Green to left tackle, this offensive line looks completely different with Dominick  Giudice moved over to left guard, Curtis Peagler to right guard, and Keagan Trost to right tackle.

 This new 5 has to take time to gel, and it’s going to be interesting to see how smooth the transition looks and if it looks fairly seamless. Do the guards look like they are pulling correctly and consistently  getting to the second level in the run game? Does Cayden Green display the athleticism that it takes to play the tackle position? With a new offensive line, we have to see what it looks like in game action to make any judgments. A solid performance will leave some assured, but a negative performance could raise many red flags.

Tonight, we will see if the Tigers can do these things well. I don’t know about you guys, but I’m just ready for some football​