In first months on job
COLUMBIA, Mo. — Eli Drinkwitz has been the head coach at Missouri for just over seven months.
He has yet to lead the Tigers onto the football field, much less win a game, yet his role in the community already has forced him to take some important stands.
First, it was supporting his new players as they pushed for equality amid the Black Lives Matter movement. Now, it is encouraging folks to wear masks when they are out in public, which health experts insist is among the best ways to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus — even though, much like social justice, it has become a highly politicized issue.
“I don’t believe I have power. I have influence,” Drinkwitz explained during a Zoom meeting Wednesday, which he began by wearing a mask with the Tigers’ logo on it.
“There is a certain amount of influence being a head coach of an SEC school, being the head coach of Missouri, having the logo on your chest. It gives you a certain amount of credibility when you make conversations. What we are trying to do is encourage people that it’s OK to wear a mask. It’s OK to do it.
“I get that there are arguments on both sides. I get that for some reason it’s been politicized,” Drinkwitz continued. “I just happen to believe that is good public health policy. Does it solve all the problems? I don’t know. I’m a football coach. But I know that to get things done we have to buy into a collective mission. Is it a perfect plan? Seldom plans are perfect. But they have a plan in place. Let’s work the plan. That’s what were trying to do. Let’s see if it works.”
Time is running out to see if it works before decisions must be made on the upcoming college season.
The Big Ten and Pac-12 already announced they will play conference-only games this fall, if they are able to take the field at all. The Ivy and Patriot leagues from the lower-tier FCS have decided to not compete in the fall.
Officials from the SEC met Monday to discuss their plans but will not make a final decision until later this month.
“It is clear that current circumstances related to COVID-19 must improve,” SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said in a statement. “In the coming weeks we will continue to meet regularly with campus leaders via video conferences and gather relevant information while guided by medical advisors.”
Missouri has become one of the latest hot spots for the coronavirus, reporting 28,826 cases with 932 people who were hospitalized Tuesday.
Nationwide, nearly 3.5 million people have contracted the virus and more than 136,000 have died.
Tennessee tight end had back surgery
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee tight end Austin Pope says he had surgery Thursday to repair a herniated disk in his back.
Pope shared the update in a Twitter post, saying he had been dealing with a lot of nerve pain stemming from his lower back.
An MRI exam on Monday showed Pope had a herniated disk between the L3-L4 vertebrae, requiring surgery. Pope also had a different herniatated disk two years ago repaired surgically.
“I love this game, my teammates, and my coaches and I will do anything to help this program succeed,” Pope wrote. “Prayers would be appreciated. Minor setback for a major comeback.”
The 6-foot-4, 235-pound redshirt senior has started 14 of his 33 career games and is primarily a run blocker. He had four catches for 21 yards last season.