Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz opened his mouth again this week, and once again, something dumb came out.
Speaking on The Paul Finebaum Show, Drinkwitz took an unprompted swipe at Kansas and the $300 million gift the Jayhawks received from alumnus David Booth, saying, “$300 million, that’s almost as much as Adidas gave Tennessee. It’s a whole lot of money out there right now.”
Tennessee recently announced it would be switching from Nike back to Adidas in a deal reportedly worth over $150 million.
Instead of acknowledging what was a landmark moment for Kansas Athletics and one of the largest private donations in college sports history, Drinkwitz tried to turn it into an SEC talking point. The joke didn’t land. It never does.
This is hardly new territory for Drinkwitz, who’s made a habit of forcing humor and delivering commentary that usually makes more headlines than his football team. From joking about his quarterback and teenage daughter to bizarre media day appearances, his personality has often overshadowed his results on the field. At Missouri, he’s 22-20 over five seasons in conference play and has yet to make a serious push for the SEC title.
The latest quip wasn’t just off-base; it was unnecessary. Kansas is building something with real backing from one of the most grim starting points in college football history.
In a college football landscape full of serious investment and rapid change, Drinkwitz continues to play the clown in a room full of adults.
Related: Missouri Head Coach Eli Drinkwitz Apparently Doesn’t Know Collin Klein
