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Mizzou opens its 2025 season on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. by hosting Central Arkansas of the Football Championship Subdivision in a game airing on SEC Network.

The Tigers, picked to finish 12th in the Southeastern Conference, are favored Thursday by more than five touchdowns as of Monday.

The biggest question entering the game is how Mizzou's plan to use two quarterbacks will play out and who will emerge as the full-time starter. Both Penn State transfer Beau Pribula and junior Sam Horn are competing for that spot, and coach Eli Drinkwitz expects the question to be answered Thursday.

Central Arkansas (6-6, 3-5 in 2024) was in the nine-team United Athletic Conference, an FCS league formed two years ago as a merger of the Atlantic Sun and Western Athletic conferences.

Under eighth-year head coach Nathan Brown, the Bears have been respectable in recent games vs. bowl subdivision schools in the last two seasons, including a 27-13 loss at Oklahoma State in 2023 and a narrow defeat at Arkansas State a year ago.

Four Bears made the preseason all-conference team: wide receiver Malachi Henry, offensive linemen Will Diggins and Jamal Mull, as well as defensive lineman Bradley Clark.

Post-Dispatch All-Metro first team linebacker Elmo Gilliam Jr. (East St. Louis) is a .

For more pregame reading, check out all the Post-Dispatch Mizzou coverage from beat writer Eli Hoff and our columnists.

Here's how to watch Mizzou vs. Central Arkansas football:

Mizzou Tigers vs. Central Arkansas Bears TV, live stream and radio

Game time: 6:30 p.m. CDT/7:30 p.m. EDT Thursday, Aug. 28

Location: Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium in Columbia, Missouri

TV channel: SEC Network

Live stream:��

Radio: KTRS (550 AM and 106.1 FM) in St. Louis, across Missouri and online through the

Storylines

Josiah Trotter's dad and older brother have both played in the NFL. Now, he's Missouri's new starting middle linebacker.

Mizzou quiet on plan for split between QBs Beau Pribula, Sam Horn in season opener

Was Eli Drinkwitz's mock road game about a coach seeking to show off his detailed preparation? No, it had much more to do with exorcising a demon, columnist Lynn Worthy writes.

A healthy Brett Norfleet would be valuable to a Mizzou offense that wants to involve the tight end position more in its passing game, so long as he’s able to provide it.