Mizzou’s Transfer Portal Quarterback Options (Part 1)

Dec 12, 2024 | Uncategorized

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USC v Washington
Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images

Transfer shopping opened this week, and Mizzou football has already hosted one major target. Who else might draw Eli Drinkwitz’s eye?

Eli Drinkwitz be shoppin’. Mizzou’s head man is knee deep in the portal, and reportedly with a fat NIL wallet – a lot of prior commitments are coming off the payroll. His team has numerous holes to plug before spring camp to get ready for the 2025 season: offensive line, linebacker, safety, and the big one, quarterback.

There is arguably no bigger factor to the fate of Mizzou’s next campaign than this one singular roster move. If the Tigers add a proven Power Four starter, there are enough pieces and continuity on staff to build another winner. But strike out on the best options, and roll the dice with an inexperienced high ceiling player or a small school promotion, and suddenly everything looks like a big question mark. And as men’s basketball just showed us, with the return of the Border War rivalry in Week Two, the Tigers must be ready and fully functional right out of the gate.

Mizzou has already been deeply involved with one of the top quarterbacks in the portal in USC’s Miller Moss. In fact, he just wrapped up his on-campus visit, and we are waiting for news. There are plenty of other top targets, either rumored or a wishlist, so let’s take a look at some of the options over the next two days.

Today’s piece is a look at just two quarterbacks. So far, these are the two overall best fits for Mizzou, a combination of experience, valuable production, and fit. Tomorrow we will get into some of the riskier options, like high upside youth or some reclamation projects.

This list is not exhaustive, because the quantity of available portal quarterbacks is immense, and seemingly grows by the day. And perhaps this is a fool’s errand, because two transfer quarterbacks have committed as I wrote this intro (Zach Pyron to Minnesota and Devon Dampier to Utah). I have broken this list of ten players into three groups to highlight a batch of realistic options, but there are plenty more players in the portal. And I’m not in the war room – just some speculation to see what puzzle pieces might fit.

Goldilocks Options

Miller Moss, USC

By now we know Miller Moss is the staff’s #1 choice. They had him on campus the day the portal opened, and have made a big push to land the former Trojan. Moss is exciting for a few reasons, not least of which is an excellent arm that could really allow Mizzou’s passing game to blossom. He also has only one year of eligibility left, a perfect “bridge” quarterback into the next era.

https://x.com/jasrifootball/status/1740219626053833052

He is also known as an incredible player leader. Drinkwitz has relied on player leadership to develop his impeccable clubhouse chemistry during his winning seasons. Replacing Brady Cook the thrower will be manageable, replacing Brady Cook the leader is an entirely different story and a much harder task.

The one drawback is that he is a pure pocket passer, offering nothing as a rusher. The RPO game and Kirby Moore’s binky plays (fake toss QB rush, for instance) will have to be scrapped. Moss rushed 12 times for USC last year; only one was a scramble, and the other 11 went for 35 yards. Despite his lack of rushing, he is mobile in the pocket: his 8.2% Pressure to Sack rate is impeccable and one of the best in the sport – a great fit for a team replacing three starters on the offensive line.

Fernando Mendoza, California

The other currently available “Goldilocks” option would be the underrated Fernando Mendoza out of Cal. He has two years of eligibility remaining, and really took off this season after getting his feet wet last season.

Mendoza’s pure arm talent is probably a notch or two behind Moss’s, and he takes far too many sacks — 41 in 2024. He is a similar runner to Cook, and is an absolute warrior on the field. Tell me that postgame speech against Stanford wasn’t pure Brady Cook energy.

He has family ties to the Indiana and Miami football programs, two teams that are also highly in need of a star plug-and-play quarterback. He is a Miami native. And with a brother on the Hoosiers, he doesn’t even need to Google Curt Cignetti to know he wins.

Mendoza would be a great fit stylistically for the Tigers if they decide to pursue him. Hopefully the Tigers are able to land one of these two Goldilocks options — proven and experienced good players at power programs. And who knows, maybe some more will enter the portal in the coming days and weeks, like maybe, rhymes with Finn Fewers. But if not, then they will need to turn their attention to either reclamation projects or scratcher tickets. Stay tuned for Part 2 tomorrow.

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