Five potential transfer QB options for Mizzou

Boy, Eli Drinkwitz sure seems to be having a fun week, huh?

Just hours after using his regularly-scheduled press conference to decry the state of the transfer portal, namely how tampering is rampant amongst power conference programs, he suddenly finds himself in need of a starting QB.

Reports this morning say that Mizzou’s 2025 starter Beau Pribula is destined to re-enter the portal after just one season in Columbia, meaning Drinkwitz is down to just three scholarship QBs — rising sophomore Matt Zollers, the mysterious Sam Horn, and future true freshman Gavin Sidwar. If you want to be competing for a College Football Playoff spot in 2026, that’s not ideal depth. For the second consecutive offseason, Drinkwitz will be portal shopping.

Occam’s Razor says that this suggests Matt Zollers is the incoming starter for Mizzou. After all, he looked decent in his few appearances in 2025, and should take a big leap in his sophomore season. He’s one of the highest-rated Mizzou QB recruits this century, and fits the mold of a Drinkwitz QB — athletic enough to hurt teams in the run game, but has the arm for the vertical passing game Drinkwitz is always publicly wishing for. There’s also the curious case of Sam Horn who still has a year of eligibility to his name and could choose to use it despite signing a professional baseball contract this past spring.

But if Drinkwitz decides Zollers isn’t the answer and Sam Horn decides to pack his bags for LA in the coming months, Mizzou will have a brand new guy under center in 2026. Let’s scan the current state of the portal and decide which QBs Mizzou could plug and play in 2026 (new offensive coordinator notwithstanding):

Drew Mestemaker

Eli Drinkwitz has spoken outwardly about his desire to revive Mizzou’s passing game, which ranked dead-last in the SEC in multiple key categories this season. So why not try and reel in the country’s leading passer? In his first year as a starter for North Texas, Drew Mestemaker threw for more than 4,100 yards and 31 touchdowns for the Mean Green. He took good care of the ball as well, only having been intercepted seven times. He’ll be one of the top options on the market, and the Tigers will certainly have competition if they go in for the rising junior. But he’s got two years of eligibility left and has proven himself at a high level. Pairing Mestemaker’s arm with Ahmad Hardy’s legs in 2026 could spell danger for opposing defenses.

DJ Lagway

Eli Drinkwitz understands the importance of having talent on the roster. And there are few, if any, QBs in the portal right now that have more pure talent than DJ Lagway. The former consensus blue-chipper left Florida after some reported meetings with new coach Jon Sumrall went south, and he’ll be highly coveted by a number of power conference programs. Lagway is a monster player with a monster arm who has arguably the highest ceiling of any player (regardless of position) in the portal.

But with Lagway come a whole lot of questions. Can he stop turning the ball over? Did he leave Florida because of stylistic differences or because the staff challenged him? Just because you got five stars on your recruiting profile doesn’t mean you automatically pan out over the course of your career. But it’s hard to ignore the star caliber player Lagway could be. If Drinkwitz is willing to gamble on ceiling, Lagway would be the pick. And who knows… maybe having an All-American to hand the ball off to might take some pressure off of him!

Sam Leavitt

Will Eli Drinkwitz and his new offensive coordinator want a guy with a similar profile to Pribula? Could I interest you in a year or two of Sam Leavitt?

The erstwhile Arizona State starter is a powerful runner, and PFF grades him as one of the best dual-threat QBs in the country. His numbers took a dip this season after his season-ending Lisfranc injury, which could be a concern for any team wanting to take him on. He’s also spent his career on the west coast, where defenses aren’t usually as speedy as they are in the SEC. But if Mizzou wants to continue its run of QBs who are just as dangerous on their feet as they are with their arms, Leavitt would be worth a call.

Aidan Chiles

Want DJ Lagway type of ceiling but a Sam Leavitt level of running ability? Aidan Chiles might be your guy.He’s more of a runner than Lagway, and his massive frame makes him a threat for short-yardage situations in a way that Pribula wasn’t. He’s not exactly the type of player you’ll scheme designed runs for, but his mobility and size make him a unique threat when plays break down which, you know, might be perfect for an offensive line replacing multiple pieces!

The thing with Chiles? He’s had three years to prove himself as an elite or merely above-average passer and he’s yet to do it. He got better this season about taking care of the ball, but his yards per attempt was a paltry 6.86. Chiles is likely on your high-end list of backup options, but he certainly fits around the Pribula level of talent.

Kenny Minchey

We’ve reached a point in the list where you’re not bringing in a guaranteed starter. But you are bringing in another elite, unproven talent to challenge Matt Zollers for the future of Mizzou’s QB1 position.

Minchey hasn’t played much over his last few years at Notre Dame but he’s got the reputation as a gunslinger who just lost the Notre Dame starting job by the slimmest of margins this past season. The fact that multiple SEC programs are recruiting him suggests there’s a lot of talent to be tapped, and he’ll be in demand despite not having much experience. If I’m Mizzou’s staff, I’d really have to be in love with his potential to go out and spend big money on this guy, and you’re running a big risk by doing so. Bring in Minchey and you’re either (a) spending a lot of money on a backup when you had Matt Zollers at home or (b) alienating Zollers in his first full offseason with the program. But the talent is undoubtedly there. Sometimes you have to roll the dice. Mizzou is in a position where that may be the case.