Drew Allar, solidified as PSU’s starter, dropped his ‘I’m coming back’ bombshell smack in the middle of a playoff run. The moment slammed the door to Beau Pribula’s starting dreams shut all over again. Missouri came calling with a pitch, which Beau called “an elevator pitch that lasted two hours.” Yes, there was a $1.5 million NIL deal floating around, but Pribula claims it wasn’t about the money. Locating a coach who believed in his game and a program unequivocally on the rise mattered.

The Tigers are deep into a two-way quarterback battle, but rumor has it around the SEC that if Beau is not under center when the season begins, something crazy must’ve occurred. Coach Eli Drinkwitz is hyping his arm talent and leadership, raving about how quickly Beau’s picking up the offense and what a playmaker he looks like in spring practice. Beau knows he’s got to win the locker room and the huddle, but if there’s one thing everyone agrees on, it’s that he hasn’t shied away from the challenge. But you know it’s getting even juicier when the whole locker room is just discussing this one guy. Guys like Connor Tollison and Dylan Carnell, the Tigers’ vocal offensive anchor and safety, have not held back on what they witness from Beau.

“But I think it’s only you know best for the team,” says Connor during the SEC Media Days. “You know, that somebody’s gonna be a big leader, and whoever that is, you’ll know, like, they’ll assert themselves. I just say it’s like hard-working, you know; it’s consistency. You do it one day, but he does it every day, every week, you know.” It starts with Pribula’s playmaking DNA. The dude isn’t just a statue in the pocket; he brings a real dual-threat vibe, dangerous on the move but smart with his throws. Last year at Penn State, every time he got the ball, you’d see the offense open up: quick read, decisive cut, and suddenly a run upfield. He accumulated 242 rushing yards and four touchdowns coming off the bench, frequently filling in for planned runs.

But it was mainly how he converted broken plays into positive yardage that caught the coaches’ eyes. Now add him to Mizzou’s offense. It’s a system designed to take advantage of quarterback movement and play-action. Drinkwitz and offensive coordinator Kirby Moore adore having a QB who can threaten defenses on the ground and still take it deep when necessary. The end result? Defenders need to consider twice before committing everyone to the run or covering the deep ball. Carnell, on the other hand, went a step further with the type of approbation Tiger enthusiasts enjoy hearing; he compared Pribula’s presence and approach to none other than Brady Cook, the former starter. “Similar competitors,” Carnell states. “They just want to win everything. I was in both living groups all spring, and he was always competing to have. The top time to anything we did and stuff like that.”

“So that was the same thing Brady did.” Both are about that ‘win everything’ mentality, and both energize teammates with the extra effort. But whereas Cook would create out of chaos with poise, Pribula energizes the offense with a cocky, physical faith that has this year’s Tigers thinking big. At Penn State, he’s been “the next guy up” and played change-of-pace QB, which means he’s accustomed to turning bad into good with productive drives. He came to Missouri with an adjusted learning curve but impressed the coaches by learning the offense in a hurry. Coach Drinkwitz raved about how Beau “got a hold” of the playbook his first spring, so it’s not only grit, it’s adaptability as well. So, with camp heating, and the Tigers locked in a QB race, these feedbacks can be really helpful for the head guy, Eli Drinkwitz, to decide upon the starter.

Choosing the face of Mizzou’s offense

The Tigers’ quarterback race is as heated as you’d expect with two hungry contenders and a coaching staff that refuses to tip its hand. Head coach Eli Drinkwitz is unwavering on one thing: this is a real, “100%” open competition. Sam Horn is the local grinder, coming off a wild year juggling both quarterback duties and pitching for the Mizzou baseball squad. He’s got seniority in Missouri’s system, plenty of locker room trust, and the sort of multi-sport toughness coaches salivate over. But injuries and limited game-action mean his on-field résumé is slim outside of practice tape and flashes in camp.

Beau Pribula, meanwhile, rolled in from Penn State, itching for the starting job. As a backup-turned-transfer, folks thought he was a “high ceiling” guy: tough, strong-legged, a bowling ball with wheels. And as it happens, he’s far more of a passer than his run-first college tape suggested. “After the spring, I’m as confident as ever that Beau Pribula is a very talented passer. I don’t have any reservations about that,” Drinkwitz says at the SEC Media Days. Pribula’s spring performance was the kind that turns heads and sparks watercooler buzz.

He managed the offense with unexpected poise for a newcomer. Though Sam’s got years in the playbook, Pribula’s got seven times more actual college pass attempts, along with significant minutes at a Power Five school. In spite of the new playbook, coaches pointed to how swiftly Pribula adjusted. He’s been complimented on how much offense he’s already learned, so any pain of growth seems surprisingly fleeting.