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Thanks to Florida State, Eli Drinkwitz鈥檚 Missouri football team should have at least a No. 10 by its name the next time the AP Top 25 updates, along with something even more valuable.

The Seminoles fumbling their season opener against unranked Georgia Tech didn鈥檛 just free up the No. 10 spot 鈥� it gave Mizzou a fresh reminder that the smaller the number next to your program鈥檚 name shrinks, the bigger the target on your back grows.

Whether you play in Ireland or America, on a Week Zero Saturday morning or Labor Day Thursday night, highly ranked teams must be ready for opponents鈥� best shots 鈥� or else.

Mizzou should win its first four games. If it doesn鈥檛, something very bad happened, and high hopes for a College Football Playoff debut will disappear faster than an unguarded CJ鈥檚 hot wing at a Tigers tailgate. Mizzou taking care of business against Murray State, Buffalo, Boston College and, yes, Vanderbilt before what could become one massive trip to Texas A&M is a more than reasonable expectation. But let鈥檚 not pretend we won鈥檛 learn some things about Mizzou until then.

We will soon find out if the Tigers are able to handle predicted success or if they look determined to self-sabotage. We will learn if the 鈥渟omething to prove鈥� edge of last season dulled after Cotton Bowl success. We will see if the Tigers get caught sleepwalking 鈥� looking at you, 11:45 a.m. kickoff in Game 3 鈥� or behave like a top 10 team should. And more.

Here are the five things I鈥檓 most interested in tracking through Mizzou鈥檚 first four games:

• Style points could mean a lot to this team at the end of the season. Can Mizzou provide them from the start?

Let鈥檚 face it. The Tigers鈥� nonconference schedule could have been sponsored by Charmin. And their SEC schedule is the most forgiving of any team鈥檚 in the league, at least on paper before games start. Perception matters, and perception says Mizzou has an 鈥渆asy鈥� schedule for an SEC member. This could be a talking point if the Tigers eventually find themselves on the CFP bubble.

Strength of schedule will be a big metric for bubble teams. Strength of schedule won鈥檛 be a strength for Mizzou. But style points can combat a soft-schedule narrative to some degree. You鈥檙e probably less likely to get punished by CFP committee members for playing a softer schedule if you are hard on the opponents that fill it. Beating Murray State by multiple touchdowns won鈥檛 get lots of love, but barely beating Murray State by a field goal? That could catch some side eyes later.

Last season, Drinkwitz intentionally tamped things down through Mizzou鈥檚 first two tuneup games. This season, it鈥檚 probably better to let things rip from the start.

• Mizzou鈥檚 hefty bet on instant-impact transfer solutions at positions of need is best illustrated in the backfield, where Nate Noel (Appalachian State) and Marcus Carroll (Georgia State) will get the first cracks at making the NFL departure of Cody Schrader, last season鈥檚 SEC lead rusher, seem manageable. But key transfers are found throughout the top of the depth chart.

Offensive linemen Marcus Bryant (Southern Methodist) and Cayden Green (Oklahoma) are being trusted to protect starting quarterback Brady Cook鈥檚 blind side upon arrival. A defense that lost a lot of talent from a season ago is asking transfers to bolster its front (Florida defensive tackle Chris McClellan) and its back (Clemson corner Toriano Pride Jr.).

Transfers tend to click, or not. You can get some sense of it regardless of the opponent.

• Will freshmen force bigger roles? Running back Kewan Lacy is too fast to not get a few chances to carve out more playing time than originally expected. Pass rusher Williams Nwaneri got one step closer to the field when Georgia transfer Darris Smith suffered a season-ending injury.

Young Tigers the coaches would ideally like to redshirt can still play in four games before they have to be sidelined to preserve their eligibility. If they鈥檙e going to convince the staff to burn the redshirt because of their importance to this season, the convincing has to start early.

• New Mizzou defensive coordinator Corey Batoon gets an enviable SEC introduction. Four games at home to start his new gig. Against teams his team should beat.

I鈥檇 like to see opposing quarterbacks look uncomfortable. If you can鈥檛 create pressure against Murray State, you鈥檙e not going to get much going against Alabama. Mizzou averaged three sacks per game last season, which was third-most in the SEC. Mizzou鈥檚 D under ex-DC Blake Baker also was the best at stopping opponents from scoring touchdowns once they reached the red zone. They bent but they rarely broke compared with their SEC peers.

MU opponents last season scored TDs less than 54% of the time once they reached the red zone. Can Batoon鈥檚 version of defense clamp down like that? Time to find out.

• Last one. Big one. Does Mizzou have a kicker it can trust? Like, really trust?

The Thicker Kicker is not squeezing through that door. SEC record-setter Harrison Mevis is now trying to carve out his NFL career. Any guesses on what percentage of Mizzou field goals Mevis had attempted since he secured old job in 2020? Answer: 100%.

Hopefully, for the Tigers鈥� CFP hopes, they won鈥檛 need any game-winning field goal dramatics through their first four games. But you better believe they will need a game-winning kick (or two) at some point if they are going to crack the first-ever 12-team playoff.

All eyes are on former five-star kicker Blake Craig. His next in-game college football field goal will be his first and the first by a Mizzou kicker not named Mevis since Tucker McCann back in 2019. Coaches should find ways to pressure test the new leg before it decides a game.