Brady Cook revels in earning Mizzou’s starting quarterback job: ‘It means everything to me’

Brady Cook couldn’t stop smiling behind the podium.

The sophomore from St. Louis, a homegrown talent who grew up attending games at Faurot Field and cheering on the Tigers, was facing the media for a happy occasion. He was named Missouri’s starting quarterback on Tuesday.

“It means everything to me,” Cook said Wednesday afternoon. “I’m in a position right now that I used to dream of. I’ve really worked my whole football career for this moment.”

More: 3 things to know about Brady Cook, Mizzou football's new starting quarterback

For a while, the job appeared it could have gone to anyone. Cook started Missouri’s bowl game last season, playing well in a loss to Army to close out 2021.

During the offseason, head coach Eli Drinkwitz hit the transfer portal. After missing on several prospects, including former Georgia quarterback J.T. Daniels, he finally brought in Jack Abraham as a walk-on from Mississippi State.

The Tigers also have four-star recruit Sam Horn on the depth chart, as well as Tyler Macon, who earned a start last season against Georgia. It was the Georgia game, when Macon was selected over Cook, that showed Drinkwitz what his new starter was made of.

“I vividly remember the night before the Georgia game, telling Brady that I was going to start Tyler, and how disappointed he was but how resilient he was to put the team first,” Drinkwitz said. “At that moment I knew he was a special young man.”

More: Kwiecinski: What makes Mizzou quarterback Sam Horn's third-team reps exciting to watch

In the world of the transfer portal, Cook could have packed it in and found another home when the job wasn’t handed to him straight away. Instead, he stuck with his dream school.

Cook said he never got discouraged.

“My plan was to be here for the 2022 season and compete my butt off regardless of who they brought in,” Cook said. “So my plan never really changed, never really wavered. Here we are.”

The competition was tough through the first days of preseason camp. Drinkwitz said Cook separated himself from the pack on Sunday, when the Tigers had live tackling from the defense.

According to Drinkwitz, the others in the group will continue working as the season approaches.

“(Abraham and Macon) were disappointed,” Drinkwitz said Wednesday. “I told them, ‘If you weren’t disappointed, you don’t have the right kind of makeup to be the quarterback,’ and so they’re absolutely disappointed, but they both bounced back today with really good energy and understand that this team is on a bigger mission.”

Now the focus turns to other position battles and the first game of the season, a matchup with Louisiana Tech on Sept. 1. The schedule turns tough after that game, with Missouri facing off with Kansas State on the road in Week 2 and traveling to Auburn in Week 4.

Drinkwitz described how Cook serves his offensive scheme.

“He’s got great arm strength and velocity,” Drinkwitz said. “He’s a tough runner. But his, I think, biggest strength is between his ears. He's got a great mind. He understands exactly what we’re dealing with and he anticipates what defenses are doing.”

As for Cook, he’s ready to spend some time living his dream.

“Just something I’ve been waiting for and working for for a long time,” he said.

Matt Stahl is the Missouri athletics beat reporter for the Columbia Daily Tribune. Follow him on Twitter @mattstahl97.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Brady Cook revels in earning Mizzou’s starting quarterback job