A review of the quarterback performance for the 2024 season
With the 2024 season officially over, it’s time to break down the performance of the team position by position. We’ll look at the stats for the year, the departing players, new additions, and some predictions for what we’ll see in 2025.
We start, as always, with quarterbacks.
After a mostly injury-free season of quarterback play in 2023, Missouri once again had to deal with a hobbled signal caller and it affected the overall quality of play in 2024. Whether you think he was injured all year (like myself) or just from the middle of the season on, Brady Cook was not nearly as efficient nor effective throwing the ball as he was the year prior, seeing dips in total yardage, touchdowns, completion percentage…basically everything except interceptions. And while Drew Pyne played admirably in his one game against Oklahoma, the overall quality of quarterback hit a level that wasn’t nearly as low as the nascent Drinkwitz campaigns but certainly not at its maximum. And turning in a “pretty good” year after a “great” year, especially when fans were likely expecting “elite”, feels like a larger let down than it actually should be.
But hey! The starter is gone! And a presumed starter just transferred in! Let’s review the scholarship quarterback platoon as it currently stands:
The Departed
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You’ve read – and heard – enough of my defenses of Brady Cook that there’s no use in rehashing them here. In summation, Brady Cook is a capital T capital S True Son through and through and while he will never be confused as the most gifted quarterback to start at Mizzou, he will certainly be the most grittiest, determined, “I’m going to find a way to win” quarterback that this school, has seen in quite some time. Cook finished 4th in school career passing yards, 5th in career passing touchdowns, and his 2023 passing yardage total of 3,317 yards ranks 8th all-time in school history. Whatever he chooses to do with his football career isn’t relevant to what he gave to this school and fanbase for five years and we should all look back fondly at the kid from St. Louis who just wanted to play quarterback at the University of Missouri, and did so successfully. Bravo, Brady.
The Returners
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Drew Pyne played in the Oklahoma game and was rotated into a smattering of others, memorably the debacle against Alabama. Sam Horn was lost before the year even started and might be ready to go for spring ball, but also maybe not? The point is that there are two older options here but, at this point, Drew Pyne’s ceiling seems well established as “experienced backup” and Sam Horn has more action as a pitcher for Missouri than he does as a quarterback.
The Transfer
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Enter: Beau Pribula. The long-time Penn State backup wanted nothing more than to be THE quarterback at the state university of Pennsylvania but was cursed to arrive on campus at the same time as Drew Allar and only saw time in extended injury relief. The redshirt junior from York, PA has a build a profile that’s very similar to the departing Brady Cook, but with only 56 passes thrown as he enters his fourth year of college ball. At this point he can be anything you want to think he can be as he’s mostly untested but shown enough to be promising. For what its worth, Penn State seemed very sad they were losing him, both as a player and a person.
The Freshman
The Mercury
2024 stats: 54-92 (58.7%), 611 yards, 3 TDs, 3 INTs/29 rushes, 233 yards, 3 TDs (injured in fourth game of the year)
And, then of course, leads us to baby-faced bluechipper Matt Zollers. The consensus four-star out of Royersford, PA is the fourth bluechip quarterback to commit to Eli Drinkwitz but, of course, nary the previous signal callers have ever started a game for Eli’s offense.
Whether Matt breaks that streak or not most likely won’t be determined this year. He had a horrific leg injury in the fourth game of the year and will also be a true freshman, meaning his chances of starting in ‘25 are slim to none. But he’s an exciting addition that brings tons of hope for the upcoming seasons.
2025 Forecasted Depth Chart
- Beau Pribula
- Drew Pyne
- Sam Horn