Mizzou's Eli Drinkwitz Preparing for Marcel Reed, Not Conner Weigman at Quarterback

The Texas A&M Aggies have some discourse surrounding their starting quarterback in Week 6, but Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz doesn't seem to put stock in the "semantics."

Sep 28, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies quarterback Marcel Reed (10) reacts after scoring a touchdown during the first half against the Arkansas Razorbacks at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images / Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

Although the No. 9 Missouri Tigers are just a few days away from heading down south to face the No. 25 Texas A&M Aggies, questions are still lingering regarding their opponents' starting quarterback.

Sophomore Conner Weigman entered Texas A&M's 2024 campaign as the expected starter, but redshirt freshman Marcel Reed has taken over amid Weigman's on-going shoulder injury over the last three weeks.

In those three games, the Aggies have a perfect record of 3-0 — defeating Florida, Bowling Green and Arkansas in the Southwest Classic. Reed's been one of the biggest contributors in that winning streak, passing for over 500 yards, nearly 200 rushing yards and a total of eight touchdowns.

The Texas A&M offense is thriving under Reed, more so than Weigman.

"(Reed's) cleary become the focal point of what they're doing offensively," Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz said on Tuesday. "You can tell, in my opinion, that (offensive coordinator Colin) Klein is very comfortable with him as the quarterback."

Klein's gameplan has fit seamlessly with the dual-threat playstyle that Reed brings. Klein designs quality run schemes and utlizies him on the move, while Reed excutes and creates his own opportunities.

With offensive momentum running through College Station, Texas, it'd be strange for head coach Mike Elko to make a change back to Weigman at this point. Rumblings of Weigman starting have emerged, but Drinkwitz doesn't seem to find legitimacy there.

"I know on their depth chart the other kid's (Weigman) the starting quarterback, but I mean, that's just semantics in my opinion," Drinkwitz said. "The guy's (Reed) 3-0 as a starter, and whether he's listed as questionable or whatever, I don't see them going back."

Unless Reed were to struggle against the Tigers — or any other team down the road — it doesn't make sense to bench him at this point. The Aggies are on the rise, and the freshman is a tougher matchup for their opponent.

Missouri has already dealt with multiple dual-threat quarterbacks this season — Buffalo's CJ Ogbonna, Boston College's Thomas Castellanos and Vanderbilt’s Diego Pavia. They've all varied in speed and strength, but Reed is potentially more of a complete offensive package than any of the rest.

“I think (Reed’s) got a speed dynamic that is similar to Thomas Castellanos,” Drinkwitz said. “Until you see him live, I don't know if the short area quickness or burst is the same, and I don't know if he's got the physicality, necessarily, that Diego (Pavia) had, but he's kind of somewhere in between both of them.”

Overall, the Tigers have done a great job at limiting the quarterbacks in the run game this season, holding Castellanos and Ogbonna to a combined 35 rushing yards. Pavia, however, made them pay in both the passing and running game, tossing for 178 yards and two touchdowns and adding 84 yards on the ground.

Missouri will need to have balance defensively, or Reed will have just as much success inside the pocket as the outside.

"It's not like you can sit there and try to do the same rushing attack that we had against Boston College to keep him in the pocket, because he'll pick you apart," Drinkwitz said. "But I don't know that we can afford to let him out of the pocket the way we end up letting Diego a couple of times."

On the road for the first time in 2024 — and the first time in Kyle Field in a decade — the Tigers will be tested the most they've been thus far. And when gameplaning for Texas A&M, they'll be focusing on Reed, not Weigman.

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