The Death Row Defense sent four Tigers to the NFL this spring, and yet nobody in Columbia is hitting the panic button. Eli Drinkwitz made it clear this week that Mizzou plans to reload, not rebuild, with linebacker Nicholas Rodriguez stepping in as a captain and a deep group of homegrown players ready to fill the open jobs. The defense that has carried our program the last few seasons intends to keep its standard right where it’s been.
The Rundown
- Four members of the Death Row Defense went to the NFL, including linebacker Josiah Trotter, a second-round pick in the 2026 draft.
- Returning junior Nicholas Rodriguez, who posted 62 tackles as a sophomore, takes over in the middle and has been named a team captain.
- Drinkwitz is betting on development, pointing to Darris Smith and Langden Kitchen as the next edge rushers to follow the Isaiah McGuire and Darius Robinson path.
- Mizzou opens the season Thursday, Sept. 3 against Arkansas-Pine Bluff at 7 p.m.
The Next Man Up Is Already in the Building
Drinkwitz’s message this week boiled down to a familiar formula: Mizzou develops defenders, and the next wave is usually better prepared than outsiders expect. He name-checked Smith and Kitchen as edge players in the same mold as McGuire, Robinson, and Zion Young — guys who weren’t household names entering their final seasons and left as NFL draft picks. Add Jaden Jones and Daeden Hopkins to that rotation and the edge room has real depth, even after all the departures.
Rodriguez Steps Into Trotter’s Shoes
The biggest hole sits in the middle, where Trotter’s second-round exit left both production and leadership to replace. Rodriguez is the answer, and he’s earned it — 62 tackles, 27 of them solo, in his sophomore season while learning behind one of the best linebackers in the country. Now he’s a captain, and he’s framing the job the right way, crediting the whole unit: “We’re all working together to strive for a common goal.” Mizzou also added Robert Woodyard, a linebacker with real SEC experience, to deepen the room alongside returning contributors.
One Number That Has to Change
For all the talent Death Row has produced, Drinkwitz was honest about the flaw: takeaways. The Tigers didn’t record a single strip-sack fumble recovery last season despite consistently pressuring quarterbacks. That’s the stated point of emphasis for 2026 — turn the harassment into turnovers. With Marquis Gracial and Jalen Marshall anchoring the interior after Chris McClellan’s third-round jump to Green Bay, the pieces are there to make it happen.
The takeaway: losing four defenders to the NFL would gut most programs. At Mizzou, it’s become the business model. If Rodriguez grows into the captain role the way the staff believes he will, Death Row won’t miss a beat — and it might finally start taking the ball away, too.
Sources: ABC 17 News, Rocky Top Insider
