The Missouri Tigers football program represents the University of Missouri (often referred to as Mizzou) in college football. The Tigers are members of Southeastern Conference (SEC) of the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).
History
Missouri's football program dates back to 1890, and has appeared in 37 bowl games (including 11 major bowl appearances: four Orange Bowls, four Cotton Bowls, two Sugar Bowls, and one Fiesta Bowl). Missouri has won 15 conference titles and 5 division titles. Entering the 2025 season, Missouri's all-time record is 721–593–52 (.547).
Missouri has been a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) since 2012.http://www.secdigitalnetwork.com/NEWS/tabid/473/Article/229185/university-of-missouri-to-join-southeastern-conference.aspx University Of Missouri To Join Southeastern Conference Home games are played on Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium, in Columbia, Missouri, named for hall of fame coach Don Faurot. The student section originally became known as "The Zou", a nickname that has since been applied to the entirety of the Memorial Stadium environment.
Gary Pinkel, a Hall of Fame coach who led Missouri from 2001 to 2015, is the winningest coach in Missouri football history. He earned his 102nd victory in the AT&T Cotton Bowl on Jan. 3, 2014, setting the school record, and finished his tenure with a 118-73 record and a .618 winning percentage.
Barry Odom became Missouri’s coach in 2016 after Gary Pinkel retired. He was fired after the 2019 season, compiling a 25-25 overall record and a 13-19 mark in SEC play over four seasons.
Eliah Drinkwitz took over in 2020 and led Missouri to back-to-back 10-win seasons and top-25 finishes in both 2023 and 2024.
Conference affiliations
Independent (1890–1892) Western Interstate University Football Association (1893–1897) Independent (1898–1906) Big Eight Conference (1907–1995) Missouri Valley 1907–1927, unofficially called Big Six 1928–1947, Big Seven 1947–1957 and Big Eight 1957–1964 Big 12 Conference (1996–2011) Southeastern Conference (2012–present)
Championships The Missouri Tigers have one claimed national championship, one unclaimed national championship, 15 conference championships, and five conference division titles.
National championships Although Missouri has never been selected as a "Consensus National Champion" by any of the six NCAA-designated polls, the Tigers were selected as national champions by one major selector in both 1960 and 2007. On August 6, 2026, the United States Senate passed a resolution recognizing the 1960 Missouri Tigers for their undefeated regular season, Orange Bowl victory, and claim to the 1960 national championship. Mizzou Athletics subsequently announced that it would honor the 1960 team as national champions, citing the Poling System's selection of Missouri as the 1960 national champion and noting that the Senate resolution had brought renewed attention to the team.
1960 Dan Devine Poling System 11–0† No. 5 No. 4 2007 Gary Pinkel Anderson & Hester 12–2 No. 4 No. 5 † The Tigers' original 1960 record was 10–1 but was later changed to 11–0 after the Big Eight retroactively awarded a forfeit victory to Missouri.
Conference championships Missouri has won 15 conference championships.
1893† WIUFA H.O. Robinson 4–3 2–1 1894† 4–3 2–1 1895† C.D. Bliss 7–1 2–1 1909 Big Eight William Roper 7–0–1 4–0–1 1913 Chester Brewer 7–1 4–0 1919 John F. Miller 5–1–2 4–0–1 1924 Gwinn Henry 7–2 5–1 1925 6–1–1 5–1 1927 7–2 5–1 1939 Don Faurot 8–2 5–0 1941 8–2 5–0 1942 8–3–1 4–0–1 1945 Chauncey Simpson 6–4 5–0 1960‡ Dan Devine 11–0 7–0 1969† 9–2 6–1 † Co-champions ‡ The 1960 Big Eight title was retroactively awarded after a loss to Kansas was reversed due to Kansas' use of a player who was later ruled to be ineligible.
Division championships The Tigers were previously members of the Big 12 North division between its inception in 1996 and the dissolution of conference divisions within the Big 12 in 2011. The Tigers joined the SEC as members of the SEC East starting in 2012. Missouri has won five division championships.
2007† Big 12 North Gary Pinkel Oklahoma L 17–38 2008† Oklahoma L 21–62 2010† N/A lost tiebreaker to Nebraska 2013 SEC East Auburn L 42–59 2014 Alabama L 13–42 † Co-champion
Bowl games Missouri has appeared in 39 bowl games, including 11 New Year's Six bowl appearances: 4 Orange Bowls, 4 Cotton Bowls, 2 Sugar Bowls, and 1 Fiesta Bowl, with an all-time bowl record of 17–22. The team also accepted a bid to the 2020 Music City Bowl against Iowa, which was subsequently canceled due to COVID-19.
Missouri's entire bowl history is shown in the table below.
1924 Gwinn Henry Los Angeles Christmas Festival USC L 7–20 1939 Don Faurot Orange Bowl Georgia Tech L 7–21 1941 Sugar Bowl Fordham L 0–2 1945 Chauncey Simpson Cotton Bowl Classic Texas L 27–40 1948 Don Faurot Gator Bowl Clemson L 23–24 1949 Gator Bowl Maryland L 7–20 1959 Dan Devine Orange Bowl Georgia L 0–14 1960 Orange Bowl Navy W 21–14 1962 Bluebonnet Bowl Georgia Tech W 14–10 1965 Sugar Bowl Florida W 20–18 1968 Gator Bowl Alabama W 35–10 1969 Orange Bowl Penn State L 3–10 1972 Al Onofrio Fiesta Bowl Arizona State L 35–49 1973 Sun Bowl Auburn W 34–17 1978 Warren Powers Liberty Bowl LSU W 20–15 1979 Hall of Fame Classic South Carolina W 24–14 1980 Liberty Bowl Purdue L 25–28 1981 Tangerine Bowl Southern Miss W 19–17 1983 Holiday Bowl BYU L 17–21 1997 Larry Smith Holiday Bowl Colorado State L 24–35 1998 Insight.com Bowl West Virginia W 34–31 2003 Gary Pinkel Independence Bowl Arkansas L 14–27 2005 Independence Bowl South Carolina W 38–31 2006 Sun Bowl Oregon State L 38–39 2007 Cotton Bowl Classic Arkansas W 38–7 2008 Alamo Bowl Northwestern W 30–23OT 2009 Texas Bowl Navy L 13–35 2010 Insight Bowl Iowa L 24–27 2011 Independence Bowl North Carolina W 41–24 2013 Cotton Bowl Classic Oklahoma State W 41–31 2014 Citrus Bowl Minnesota W 33–17 2017 Barry Odom Texas Bowl Texas L 16–33 2018 Liberty Bowl Oklahoma State L 33–38 2020 Eli Drinkwitz Music City Bowl Iowa No Contest 2021 Armed Forces Bowl Army L 22–24 2022 Gasparilla Bowl Wake Forest L 17–27 2023 Cotton Bowl Classic Ohio State W 14–3 2024 Music City Bowl Iowa W 27–24 2025 Gator Bowl Virginia L 7–13
Rivalries
Currently active
Kansas
Missouri leads the series with Kansas 59-54–9 through the 2026 season. With history dating back to Bleeding Kansas in the 1850s, the "Border War" rivalry is well known as one of the longest-lasting and fiercest rivalries in college sports. The teams met annually, traditionally for the final game of the regular season, from 1891 through 2011 when Missouri left the Big 12 for the SEC. The series was contested again in 2025 at Farout Field in Columbia, Missouri, where Missouri won 42-31.
Arkansas
Missouri and Arkansas first met in 1906 in Columbia, Missouri, and played each other five times prior to Missouri joining the SEC in 2012, and then becoming Arkansas' permanent cross-division rival in 2014. The annual meeting was dubbed the Battle Line Rivalry. On November 23, 2015, a new rivalry trophy was unveiled for the annual game. Missouri leads the series 13–4 as of the conclusion of the 2025 season, which saw the Tigers beat Arkansas 28–21 in Columbia.
Oklahoma
Oklahoma leads the series 67–25–5 through the 2024 season. From 1940 through 1974, the teams played for the Tiger-Sooner Peace Pipe trophy. The rivalry was renewed in 2024, as the teams are members of the same conference again. Missouri won the 2024 matchup 30–23.
South Carolina A new rivalry was started in 2012 when Missouri joined the SEC East. With both schools located in cities named Columbia (Columbia, Missouri, and Columbia, South Carolina), the mayors of the cities commemorate the winner with the "Mayor's Cup" trophy for the annual game. Missouri leads the series 10–6 as of the conclusion of the 2025 edition of the rivalry.
Historic
Illinois
The rivalry between Missouri and Illinois is modeled after the two schools' longstanding basketball rivalry, and it garners the most interest around St. Louis, with both schools having alumni and fans in the area. It has not been played annually, with 24 matchups occurring from 1896 to 2010, with Missouri leading the series 17–7. Between 2000 and 2010, the schools met in St. Louis six times, with Missouri winning each time. The series was set to be renewed for a four-year period, to be played on campus sites, in 2026, before being pushed to resume in 2027.
Iowa State
Missouri and Iowa State first met in 1896 and the regional rivalry was born. Before the 1959 match-up between the two schools, which took place in Ames, Iowa, field testing showed that the telephones the two schools used to communicate with their coaches in the coaches' box were wired so that either school could hear what was happening on the other sideline. The problem was fixed before the game, but neither of the two coaches knew that. Northwestern Bell Telephone Company of Ames then decided to have a trophy made to commemorate the incident, thus the Telephone Trophy was born."Telephone Trophy ""Mascot & Football Traditions " When Missouri left the Big 12 for the SEC, the rivalry was essentially ended. Missouri leads the series with Iowa State 61–34–9 through the 2022 season.
Kansas State
Separated by 245 miles, these bordering state rivals have played 99 times dating back to their first meeting in 1909. The schools were members of the old Big Eight Conference from 1928 to 1995 and the modern Big 12 Conference from 1996 to 2011. After Missouri left the Big 12 to join the Southeastern Conference in 2012, the annual rivalry went on hiatus. However, on November 16, 2017, the teams agreed to a home-and home series in 2022 and 2023. As of January 2025, Missouri leads the all time series 61-33-5.
Nebraska
Nebraska leads the series 65–36–3 through the 2022 season. From 1892 through 2010, the teams played for the Victory Bell trophy.
Individual honors
All-Americans Missouri has produced 16 Consensus All Americans with 15 total individuals being recognized. Jeremy Maclin won the honor in two different seasons. Missouri also has two unanimous All Americans.
Darold Jenkins, C 1941 Danny LaRose,† DE 1960 Johnny Roland, DB 1965 Roger Wehrli, DB 1968 Kellen Winslow, TE 1978 John Clay, OT 1986 Rob Riti, C 1999 Martin Rucker, TE 2007 Jeremy Maclin, AP 2007 Jeremy Maclin (2), AP/KR 2008 Chase Coffman, TE 2008 Michael Egnew, TE 2010 Michael Sam,† DE 2013 Shane Ray, DE 2014 Cody Schrader, RB 2023 Ahmad Hardy, RB 2025
† Unanimous selection
Award winners Amos Alonzo Stagg Award – For Contributions to Football Don Faurot – 1964 Walter Camp Coach of the Year Award Warren Powers – 1978 John Mackey Award – Best Tight End Chase Coffman – 2008 Burlsworth Trophy – Best Former Walk-On Player Cody Schrader — 2023
Retired numbers
Missouri has retired six jersey numbers representing seven players as of 2017.
Missouri Tigers retired numbers No. Player Pos. Tenure Ref. 23 Johnny Roland HB 1962, 1964–1965 Retired and revered SEC jersey numbers by Nick Cole on Saturday Down South.com Roger Wehrli CB 1966–1968 27 Brock Olivo RB 1994–1997 37 Bob Steuber E/HB 1940–1943 42 Darold Jenkins C 1939–1941 44 Paul Christman QB 1938–1940 83 Kellen Winslow TE 1975–1978
Hall of Fame inductees
College Football Hall of Fame Missouri has 11 inductees into the College Football Hall of Fame.
Paul Christman QB 1956 Don Faurot Coach 1961 Bob Steuber HB 1971 Ed Travis T 1974 Darold JenkinsC 1976 Dan Devine Coach 1985 Johnny Roland HB 1998 Kellen Winslow TE 2002 Roger Wehrli CB 2003 Gary Pinkel Coach 2022 Jeremy Maclin WR 2023
In addition, Bill Roper, Jim Phelan, Frank Broyles, and Lloyd Carr are all inductees who spent brief time at Missouri.
Pro Football Hall of Fame Two Missouri players have been enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame:
Kellen Winslow TE 1995 Roger Wehrli CB 2007
Mascot