Missouri Football: Steve Wilks’ departure may actually be a net positive

For the third time in three seasons, Missouri football’s defense will be led by a new voice as Steve Wilks has been hired by the Carolina Panthers.

For the third time in three seasons, the Missouri defense will be led by a new voice as Steve Wilks has been hired by the Carolina Panthers as their defensive passing game coordinator/secondary coach.

Wilks arrived at Mizzou in 2021 after spending 14 seasons on the NFL level including a previous stop with the Panthers as the defensive backs coach from 2012-16 before being promoted to defensive coordinator in 2017. In 2018, he was hired as head coach of the Arizona Cardinals where he spent one season before being fired after the team struggled to a 3-13 record.

Before Wilks’ NFL stint, he’d previously coached defensive backs at Notre Dame and Washington.

In his lone season in charge of the defense, the Tigers struggled greatly in Wilks’ 4-2-5 defensive system, particularly against the run. Of Missouri’s 13 opponents, seven of them rushed for over 200 yards. In-state opponent Southeast Missouri State even racked up 294 yards on the ground.

In an October game at home against Tennessee, the Tigers’ defense hit rock bottom. The defense yielded nearly 700 yards of total offense (458 rushing yards) in a 62-24 blowout loss. They ended the week ranked dead last in the FBS in total rushing yards allowed per game (283.9) and second to last in average yard per carry (6.3).

Despite calls by many for the in-season firing of Wilks, he was retained. After the firing of defensive line coach Jethro Franklin and a few lineup changes, the defense began showing incremental progress down with stretch against South Carolina and Florida.

Despite positive progress, the Mizzou run defense concluded the season ranked 124th out of 130 FBS schools. The 227.8 rushing yards allowed per game was the second most allowed by a Missouri defense in the last 25 years, second only to 2016, Barry Odom’s first season as head coach.

Head coach Eli Drinkwitz is now tasked with hiring his second defensive coordinator in his three seasons in Columbia. He’d previously retained Ryan Walters, the defensive coordinator under Odom. It has not been made public as to whether Drinkwitz will hire an internal candidate or look outside of the program for a replacement.