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Before their game against Georgia on Saturday, a few Missouri Tigers football players spoke to the media Tuesday evening.
One of the big stories of the morning at Eli Drinkwitz’s weekly press conference was his acknowledgement of the push he has made for Center Mike Maetti to return to the Tigers next year. Typically Maietti would not have such an opportunity, but due to special COVID eligibility rules, the RS-Senior would be able to return to the Tigers for a second season.
Connor Bazelak was asked if he has been a part of the aforementioned campaign, and he claimed to be one of biggest lobbyists in the locker room, “Oh yeah (I talk to him)… I think the biggest part is we are winning games, he didn’t get to do that much at Rutgers.” Definitely a solid argument from QB1.
Bazelak also commented on some keys plays he extended with his legs before finding receivers downfield as opposed to running, “I think it’s kinda just natural for me… I would rather throw for 15 yards than run for 15 yards and maybe get killed.” I think a lot of Tiger fans would agree, too, as the last thing they want is to see Bazelak get hurt like he did early against Arkansas.
Two other standout performances on Saturday came from Daniel Parker Jr. and Damon Hazelton. Parker Jr. stole the show on one particular play in which he blocked 3 different Razorback defenders. When asked about play, he said, “My goal is always just to block someone so hard that someone in the stands is like ‘wow!’”
On Saturday, Hazelton finally looked like the player he was advertised to be after transferring from Virginia Tech. He added 5 catches for 98 YDs against the Razorbacks after struggling with drops to begin the season. When asked if the drops affected his confidence at all, he replied, “I don’t really focus on it at all… I have confidence in my hands.”
In other news, soon after the players hopped off the zoom call, it was announced that the Tigers were ranked No. 25 in the CFP Rankings giving this weekend’s matchup against Georgia a little more meaning.