Missouri's Cody Schrader Campaigns for Eli Drinkwitz to Win SEC Coach of the Year
There haven't been many other teams this season that have shocked the college football world more than the Missouri Tigers.
Missouri (8-2) has climbed the rankings over the past few weeks and currently sits at No. 11 in the AP Poll (No. 7 in the CFP Poll) after a dominant 36-7 victory over Tennessee. The Tigers have far exceeded their preseason expectations, as they finished the previous couple of years with more losses than wins.
Missouri running back Cody Schrader joined SEC Network's Out of Pocket show to discuss the Tigers' best season since 2013 and campaign for head coach Eli Drinkwitz to win the conference's Coach of the Year award. Schrader said one reason his coach should be handed the honor is because they are "truly the most improved team."
"Coming from the season we had last year, I think he's really restored the brotherhood," Schrader said. "I think he's done an amazing job of setting our standards and core values to have an elite edge. He really instills that in every single player and you're starting to see that success on the field."
The graduate student is the SEC's leading rusher and joined the record books after tallying over 300 scrimmage yards against Tennessee, but none of that would've happened if Drinkwitz never gave him a chance to play last season.
Schrader transferred from Truman State to Missouri as a walk-on in January 2022. He worked hard enough to eventually become the starting running back by Week 1. He had a very solid season, but like the rest of the team, he has truly emerged in 2023.
Schrader explained that Drinkwitz's belief in him and other players is another reason for him to win the award.
"Just from who coach Drink is, he's a man of opportunity and gives players opportunities," Schrader said. "Just looking at my story, if it wasn't for him, who knows if I would've gotten an opportunity to play at Mizzou."
On top of it all, Schrader emphasized his coach does "an incredible job" at being a person that players can look up to.
"The guys truly believe that he's an extremely genuine human being and an even better football coach," Schrader said. "He's somebody that if I call him down the road in 20 years, he'll answer the phone and a lot of guys on the team also think that way. When you think of Coach of the Year, you think of the whole impact—not only wins and losses, but what he's done for this team."
