COLUMBIA, Mo. — Missouri football coach Eli Drinkwitz and Illinois coach Bret Bielema were among the 26 coaches named to a preseason watchlist for the Dodd Trophy, which is awarded annually to the best head coach in college football.
This is the second year in a row that Drinkwitz has received the nod from the Dodd Trophy. Though he wasn't a preseason candidate in 2023, he wound up a finalist for the award that season.Â
Bielema did not make the list in 2024.
The SEC placed eight of its 16 head coaches on the watchlist, including Drinkwitz. Kalen DeBoer (Alabama), Mike Elko (Texas A&M), Josh Heupel (Tennessee), Brian Kelly (Louisiana State), Steve Sarkisian (Texas), Kirby Smart (Georgia) and Brent Venables (Oklahoma) also made the list.Â
The watchlist included five Big Ten coaches, five Big 12 coaches, four from the Atlantic Coast Conference and one each from the American, Mountain West and Independent ranks.
People are also reading…
Mizzou has won 10 games in back-to-back seasons, which has raised Drinkwitz's national profile. As he heads into his sixth season coaching the Tigers, he'll need to replace lost production at key positions, including quarterback, running back and multiple spots along the offensive line.
Illinois, meanwhile, is expected to contend for a spot College Football Playoff after last season's breakout campaign. Bielema's talented returning core for his fifth season in Champaign is headlined by quarterback Luke Altmyer.
