Will Beau Pribula return for Missouri vs OU football? Injury update for Mizzou starting QB

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Beau Pribula’s return may be later rather than Sooner.

Missouri football coach Eli Drinkwitz said Tuesday, Nov. 18, that if and when Pribula returns from a dislocated ankle this season, he will be the Tigers’ starting quarterback again over rookie Matt Zollers. 

But, despite showing some encouraging mobility on his injured ankle before MU’s win over Mississippi State in no-contact warmups, Missouri is going to be careful before letting Pribula return to a live game.

That is partly because of who Mizzou plays next. The Tigers will travel to face one of the nation’s most disruptive defenses when they play the Oklahoma Sooners on Saturday, Nov. 22, in Norman, Oklahoma.

The Sooners are second to only Texas A&M for the FBS lead in total sacks this season, averaging 3.7 per game.

Drinkwitz hasn’t officially ruled Pribula out of the matchup, but the head coach did say that he currently expects Zollers to make his third straight start.

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“I know that Matt is going to have an excellent week preparing,” Drinkwitz said. “I know that Matt will be prepared to go on the road and play this game, and that’s my anticipation going into it, is that Matt will be our starting quarterback this week.”

Pribula sustained a “non-fractured dislocated ankle” against Vanderbilt on Oct. 25. Four weeks will have passed when the Tigers take to the field against the Sooners, which would be quite a fast recovery for that type of injury.

Before the Tigers faced Mississippi State on Saturday, Nov. 15, Pribula warmed up on Faurot Field. He ran sideline to sideline with no visible aid on his ankle or limitation in his movement before throwing some short passes with Mizzou staffers. Warmups are, of course, no contact, and Pribula was ultimately ruled ‘out’ on the final pregame availability report.

Drinkwitz said to watch the SEC-mandated availability reports, which will publish Wednesday, Thursday and Friday night before the game, for further updates on Pribula. 

Between now and then, the call will be made between doctors, trainers, Missouri’s staff and Pribula’s camp.

“I think we’ll probably huddle as a group and make a call,” Drinkwitz said. “You know, the very first thing, and the most important thing, is the student-athlete’s health and wellbeing. And playing against an elite defense, you don’t want to put somebody out there who can’t compete at the highest level. And knowing how aggressive and attacking they (Oklahoma) are, it would be a detriment to our team, and to Beau, to put him out there if he’s not able to play up to his level. 

“So, we’ll circle with him first, make sure his mental processes are where it needs to be. And that’s if he clears the protocol, which would be the doctors and the trainers (circling) with him. And then obviously they’ll have to circle with his circle. So, it’ll be a lot of circles.”

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Zollers, because of injuries to Pribula and Sam Horn, has taken over starting duties earlier than expected in his Mizzou career. The true freshman was a top-100 prospect in his high school class, Drinkwitz has called him the future of the Missouri program on multiple occasions.

But, the 19-year-old is still raw and developing. He showed increased signs of comfort in Mizzou’s win over Mississippi State with a pair of early touchdown passes, but also had some rookie moments again with the first interception of his college career.

Pribula will return to the starting lineup if and when he is ready this season, but until then, Drinkwitz has shown faith in Zollers to lead the offense.

“We don’t have a Drew Bledsoe-Tom Brady thing here brewing yet,” Drinkwitz joked, referencing Brady taking over as Patriots’ starting QB after Bledsoe was injured. “But I’ve been very, very impressed with Matt Zollers. I thought he played a heck of a game. … The thing I was the most impressed with with Matt was the moment was never too big for him. I mean, he had a plan. He executed his plan. He got a game ball after the game. He addressed the team. I think he understands the situation with Beau. I think they’ve got a great relationship.”

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Beau Pribula injury update: Can Missouri QB return at OU football?

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