Photo Courtesy: College Football Pressbox
Arlington, TX- The Missouri Tigers are gearing up to take on the Ohio State Buckeyes in a New Year’s Six bowl at AT&T Stadium. Ohio State comes into this matchup with only one loss against a highly touted Michigan team. A couple of weeks ago, you might have said that Ohio State is a clear favorite to win this game, but after the departure of star quarterback Kyle Mccord and the status of Marvin Harrison Jr. being up in the air, this will be a completely different squad.
Ohio State has a lot of holes to fill on offense, including the loss of running back Miyan Williams due to injury. Sophomore quarterback Devin Brown will be taking the reins under center for the first start of his career. Head Coach Ryan Day spoke on the status of Harrison Jr. earlier today and said that he will not be the one making any statement about his status, as it is up to him and his family. My guess is the first-round draft pick will not suit up tomorrow, as he stood on the sidelines for every practice open to the media so far this week.
As for Missouri Head Coach Eli Drinkwitz, he prides himself on having a full team for this game. A lot of guys opt out if they are going to the NFL draft, like Harrison Jr. could be doing, but not for this squad. Many seniors, notably defensive end Darius Robinson, cornerbacks Kris Abrams-Draine and Ennis Rakestraw Jr., linebacker Ty’Ron Hopper, and running back Cody Schrader, are eligible and expected to hear their names called in the NFL Draft, which led most of us to believe they would not play in the Cotton Bowl, but Missouri appears to be prepared to start every player. Drinkwitz stated that if they so desired, portal participants might also take part in the bowl alongside the team. That is a huge statement from a coach because most coaches don’t allow portal players to play in the bowl game, but after all, they were a part of this team the entire season.
This will be a highly entertaining matchup that will be a lot closer than originally anticipated. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. on Friday at AT&T Stadium.
