Believing the football program to be on an “upward trajectory,” Missouri announced a two-year contract extension for coach Eliah Drinkwitz on Saturday that links him to the school through the 2027 season.
The school did not announce the value of the extension, though a university spokesman said Drinkwitz would receive an increase in guaranteed paid. His original six-year deal paid him $4 million annually before incentives.
The decision — a unanimous vote by the University of Missouri board of curators — comes as Drinkwitz is seeking his first winning season in three years as Tigers coach. Missouri is 4-4 and plays Kentucky at home Saturday.
The Tigers went 5-5 during Drinkwitz’s first season in 2020 and 6-7 in 2021. Drinkwitz’s predecessor, Barry Odom, was fired after going 25-25 in four seasons.
Drinkwitz, 39, has had some wins on the recruiting trail recently, signing No. 1-ranked wide receiver Luther Burden in a 2022 class that featured seven ESPN 300 prospects.
In a statement, Drinkwitz thanked the board of curators, university president Mun Choi and athletic director Desireé Reed-Francois for their “faith in me as a coach and leader.”
“You can’t do this alone, and our players, coaches and staff have worked their tails off and stuck with the process as we’ve built this program,” Drinkwitz said. “We feel strongly about our trajectory and are proud to represent our state’s flagship institution. We are grateful for the investment in our program from the administration and excited about the future of Mizzou Football!”
Blake Baker, in his first year as Missouri’s defensive coordinator, also had his contract extended through the 2025 season on Thursday. His pay increased from $600,000 to an average salary of $1.2 million. The extension came amid the Tigers’ improvement from 113th nationally in points allowed last year to tied for 31st this year and from 124th in rushing yards allowed to 26th.
“Like the University and Missouri Athletics, Mizzou Football is on an upward trajectory, and Coach Drinkwitz is a key part of those efforts,” Darryl Chatman, chair of the UM board of curators, said in a statement. “As a board, we continue to support setting higher expectations and making progress in all that we do as a university. That applies to research, academics and athletics. We look forward to watching Coach Drinkwitz build Mizzou Football into a championship program.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
