The Mizzou Tigers will be without 12 players when it opens the football season a week from Saturday against number-two Alabama because of COVID-19, head coach Eli Drinkwitz said yesterday. He did not say how many have the virus opposed to how many are being quarantined because of contact tracing.
The team went through another round of test on Wednesday and Drinkwitz was uneasy about the prospects of losing more players. Drinkwitz specifically mentioned his offensive line has been diminished, but did not elude to whether that was completing by injury or if some of that was COVID-19 related.
Drinkwitz also said defensive tackle Chris Daniels and wideout Maurice Massey have opted out for the season.
Massey is a redshirt freshman who did not tally a catch in any of the four games he played in last season, at Wyoming (8/31), vs. West Virginia (9/7), vs. Southeast Missouri (9/7) and against Florida (11/16). He was rated as the 5th best player in Missouri coming out of Kirkwood High School.
Daniels was a JUCO transfer who played in two games last season.
As far as the quarterback competition it is between former TCU transfer Shawn Robinson and Connor Bazelak. Drinkwitz will not publicly announce a starter ahead of the Alabama game, but did say he has yet to decide on a starter.
