Right now, Eli Drinkwitz’s Missouri Tigers are fighting uphill on the recruiting trail. According to On3’s 2026 rankings, Mizzou sits at No. 28 with 19 commits in the boat. With the transfer portal circling like a storm cloud, Drinkwitz hit the panic button. The head coach rolled out a posting for a brand-new role, Chief Recruiting Officer.

“The University of Missouri Department of Athletics is seeking a Chief Recruiting Officer to support the development of the Mizzou Football program, reported Missouri beat writer Eli Hoff on December 17.

Reporting to the Head Football Coach, this position will be responsible for coordinating all aspects of the recruiting process to enhance team success and ensure compliance with NCAA and SEC regulations.” 

The key responsibilities for Drinkwitz’s new hire include Recruiting Strategy and Personnel Evaluation, Recruiting Operations and Visit Coordination, Recruiting Administration, and Systems Management. 

This role is not something new for Drinkwitz’s squad. Brett Whiteside joined the Mizzou staff as Chief Recruiting Officer in February 2021. He left the Tigers in August 2022 and is now serving as the Senior Associate Athletic Director at Auburn University.

There’s no Chief Recruiting Officer on Missouri’s roster at the moment. Olivia Ohlsen manages the recruiting machinery as Director of Recruiting Operations, with Malcolm Askew supporting as Assistant Director of Operations and Communications. Despite that, Drinkwitz has flashed real recruiting chops.

They have racked up nine commitments since September 25, a month after sitting at the bottom of the SEC. However, December brings concerns for Drinkwitz, given the winter transfer portal window, and Santa brings no gifts. 

“Everybody on my roster is being called,” said the Tigers’ head coach in his latest presser. “I had a dad call me (and I called the head coaches at their schools) that this school, this school and this school called and they’re offering this much money.”

Drinkwitz’s Tigers have felt the sting of poaching. 4-star defensive end Micah Nickerson from the 2026 class flipped back to the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

Before him, the Tigers’ head coach lost the commitment of four-star running back TJ Hodges, who transferred to the Arkansas Razorbacks. Missouri lost safety Tony Forney on early signing day when the Georgia native pivoted to the Pittsburgh Panthers. 

Just when Missouri thought the 2026 recruiting hits were enough, the transfer portal delivered more blows. The first 2025 starter to signal his exit? Drinkwitz’s wide receiver Joshua Manning.

Aside from Manning, the other Tigers heading for the portal are mostly reserves. Redshirt freshman wideout James Madison II, freshmen running backs Marquise Davis and Brendon Haygood, and safety Caleb Flagg.

Meanwhile, Drinkwitz, who has been sounding the alarm on poaching, now finds himself under scrutiny.

Hunter Rogers fired back at Eli Drinkwitz

Drinkwitz isn’t shy about sharing his views on the sport’s hot-button issues. Recently, he spoke out against tampering, claiming that rule-breakers are going unpunished. A clip of Drinkwitz’s comments went viral on social media, prompting South Carolina Gamecocks long snapper Hunter Rogers to respond. Rogers claimed Missouri once tried to poach the Gamecocks’ punter.

“You can’t say that and then go offer our punter crazy money,” Rogers said on X.

Rogers didn’t specify the punter. South Carolina had redshirt freshman Mason Love, but Rogers wasn’t on the roster last season. Maybe he meant Kai Kroeger, a two-time first-team All-SEC punter and All-American in 2022 and 2024.

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Drinkwitz and Co. landed four-star 2026 defensive lineman Tajh Overton, who committed to Missouri just five days after backing out of Oklahoma State. 

Back in Missouri, Drinkwitz is now seeking external NIL help. 

“If anybody in St. Louis has enough third party money to keep Jamal Roberts around, we’d love to talk to you about it,” Drinkwitz said in his attempt to keep his redshirt sophomore starter. “Because he’s a heck of a player, we’d love nothing more than to have him be a Tiger for his career.”

Amid the recruiting chaos, Josh Pate floated Eli Drinkwitz as a dark horse candidate to replace Sherrone Moore at Michigan. But with Drinkwitz so focused on defending his roster from poachers, is a program swap really on the table?