Missouri just lost its QB and two of three games … and Eli Drinkwitz is still selling belief like it’s Black Friday.

Early this week, the No. 19 Tigers’ coach told his locker room exactly where they stand before No. 3 Texas A&M shows up.

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“If you would have told us when we started fall camp that we would be ranked coming out of the second bye week with an opportunity for everything we want in front of us, and we get to play a top-10 team at home, would everybody have signed up for it? We all said yes.” Then he doubled down: “You know, there’s really nothing to fear. It’s just a hell of an opportunity laying out there for us.”

Translation? Mizzou (6-2, 2-2 SEC, No. 22 CFP) still has a pulse. But the margin is razor-thin. To even keep the SEC title and CFP math alive, it starts with beating 8-0 A&M, something Mizzou hasn’t done since 2014, and the Tigers haven’t clipped a top-five team since 2010.

On the other sideline, Mike Elko isn’t downplaying what’s at stake. He’s pouring gasoline on it.

“Yeah, I think we are desperate. I tell them all the time, we have earned everything that we’ve got, right? We’ve got a record, we’ve got a ranking, we’ve got opportunities that we have worked really, really hard to earn. And every single Saturday someone’s coming in and trying to take all of that from us. That’s the urgency that we have. In terms of Missouri,  this is the challenge that you have in college football today, they’re still very much alive for the playoff.”

Barely. But alive.

“They obviously know they’re going to have to win out in order probably to get in,” Elko added. “So this is a huge opportunity for them at home on a big stage to make a statement that they’re going to go chase a spot in the playoff.”

With Beau Pribula done for the year, true freshman Matthew Zollers makes his first start, Mizzou’s first true frosh starter since Drew Lock in 2015. Expect a streamlined plan.

“It’s about playing to what his strengths are,” Drinkwitz said. “Are there things that we’re going to add? Probably not. But are there things that he’s more comfortable with than maybe Beau was? Absolutely.”

A&M’s offensive line was supposed to be a question. It’s become an answer. The Aggies haven’t allowed a sack in three straight games and in five of eight this season. Elko loves the trend, but he’s not sugarcoating Saturday’s test.

“You’ve seen them go out and play really well. Now they have a massive challenge in front of them. This is the best defensive line that we’ve seen to date. They’re an extremely talented group.”

Star RB Le’Veon Moss (ankle) has missed two straight. Elko says there’s hope for a return down the stretch, while Rueben Owens II (team-high 440 rush yards) carries the load in the meantime.

“We’re hopeful that by the end of the regular season, we’ll have a chance to get them back out there, Elko said. “Certainly, we feel very confident for anything beyond the end of the regular season if that presents itself.”

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The Thin Edge

• Series: A&M leads 10-7 overall. Mizzou won the first two SEC meetings; A&M’s taken the last two.

• Setting: Columbia, under the lights, with a ranked home dog and a true-freshman QB.

• A&M’s runway: South Carolina, Samford, then a Texas finisher, making Mizzou, arguably, the toughest remaining regular-season hurdle.

This is exactly the kind of night where unbeaten dreams go to die … or get hardened. A&M calls it “desperation.” Mizzou calls it “opportunity.” Only one of them gets to be right on Saturday.