Eli Drinkwitz has made the decision to let go defensive line coach Jethro Franklin, the school has announced.
Drinkwitz shared the following in a statement today:
"After careful review, I believe a change in direction at the defensive line coach was needed. Jethro is a professional and man of high character, and we wish him all the best moving forward."
Franklin came to Missouri when defensive coordinator Steve Wilks was hired back in January and brought with him 16 years of college coaching experience, and 13 seasons in the NFL, including working with the Raiders from 2015-17 and with the Seahawks from 2018-19.
At the college level, Franklin worked with the defensive line units at Fresno State, Temple, USC, and UCLA.
Defensive analyst Al Davis is stepping into the defensive line role. Davis previously coached the defensive line at Illinois in 2020 and at Hutchinson CC (JC - KS) for a few seasons prior to that.
The moves come after the Tigers dropped a disappointing 62-24 decision to Tennessee yesterday. The defense came close to giving up a school record for yardage in that game, allowing 677 yards in total.
The loss dropped the Tigers to 2-3 on the year, with games against North Texas, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt and Georgia on tap the next several weeks.
Stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.