Introduction
Eliah Drinkwitz (born April 12, 1983) is an American football coach who is the head football coach at the University of Missouri.He served as the head football coach at Appalachian State University in 2019.
Coaching career
After coaching at Springdale High School (Arkansas), where he coached with Gus Malzahn in 2004, Drinkwitz moved to Auburn in 2009 to work on football operations as the Quality Control Coach and was on the coaching staff when Auburn won the 2010 National Championship under Gene Chizik
In 2012, after two successful seasons with Auburn, he moved to Jonesboro, AR with Gus Malzahn to become the running backs and special teams coordinator.
When Malzahn went back to Auburn, Drinkwitz stayed at Arkansas State, under coach Bryan Harsin, as the offensive line and tight ends Coach when Arkansas State won the Godaddy bowl.
Bryan Harsin then accepted the position as the head coach of Boise State in 2014 and Drinkwitz went to Boise to win the Fiesta Bowl in 2014 and the Poinsettia Bowl in 2015.
Then in 2016 Drinkwitz was able to acquire a position with North Carolina State as the Offensive Coordinator to win the Independence Bowl in 2016 and the Sun Bowl in 2017.
Drinkwitz was hired by Appalachian State on December 13, 2018. He was previously the offensive coordinator for NC State. He has also coached at Auburn, Arkansas State and Boise State.On December 8, 2019 sources reported that he is in final negotiations to become the next head football coach at the University of Missouri.
Personal life
Drinkwitz was born in Norman, Oklahoma to Jerry and Susie Drinkwitz, but his parents and older siblings moved to the Alma, Arkansas area in 1984 when Eli was barely a year old. Being raised in Alma and playing football for the Alma Airedales is what led him to want to become a football coach, especially hearing the stories of his father playing for Luther College in Decorah, Iowa during the 1960's. During his time at Alma he was an All-Conference and All-State selection and was named FCA Huddle Leader of the Year. He then chose to go to Russellville and received a bachelor's degree in education from Arkansas Tech University in 2004. Drinkwitz and his wife Lindsey have four daughters.
Head coaching record
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | Coaches | AP | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Appalachian State Mountaineers (Sun Belt Conference) | |||||||||
| 2019 | Appalachian State | 12–1 | 8–1 | 1st | New Orleans* | ||||
| Appalachian State: | 12–1 | 8–1 | * Departed Appalachian State for Missouri before bowl game | ||||||
| Missouri Tigers (Southeastern Conference) | |||||||||
| 2020 | Missouri | 0–0 | 0–0 | ||||||
| Missouri: | 0–0 | 0–0 | |||||||
| Total: | 12–1 | ||||||||
Coaching tree
Drinkwitz's assistants who have become college head coaches:
- Shawn Clark: Appalachian State (2020-present)