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(A quick note here, we're undergoing some cosmetic changes to the site this morning. While writing this, I've discovered that one of the side effects of this is that links are not showing up in blue on the message board. I'll send a note to see if we can get that fixed, but right now, they appear in the same color as the rest of the text. So there are links embedded below, but you have to scroll over the words for them to show up as links).
1) Missouri's commitment list now stands at 12. Since the last time I wrote this particular piece, the Tigers have picked up commitments from
wide receiver Shaun Terry and
cornerback Mark Manfred. That puts Mizzou at
No. 25 in the Rivals team rankings as of this morning. USC and LSU are the only schools that rank higher than Mizzou with an equal or lesser number of commitments. Mizzou is currently tied with Kentucky at No. 20 in terms of average star ranking per recruit.
2) There were 12 recruits in town on official visits this past weekend. In addition to Manfred, who already committed, the Tigers hosted seven previously committed players and four others who have not yet made a decision. We had some reactions from those that we were able to reach
in this thread. We also wrote a separate story on
Matt Zollers and
you can read that right here. Manfred was the first one to jump on board after the weekend, but he won't be the last. The truth is, most guys probably know where they're going to go, or at least have a very short list, at this point. A lot of what's going on now is deciding when they're ready to announce, getting graphics and videos made, etc. That's not specific to Mizzou. That's what's going to happen around the country over the next couple of weeks. Some will make announcements during that time. Others may have a specific date that's significant to them in mind that's later. So they may know where they're going, may even have informed coaching staffs, but won't let the world know until a little later.
3) So what everyone surely wants to know is who else is Missouri going to get? Let's talk about that. There are four other uncommitted prospects who were here this weekend.
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We have had Bass predicted to Missouri for a couple of months now. We would be surprised if he isn't a Tiger. We think it will likely happen in the next week or two.
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Many here had given up on Simms after he had a glowing review of his USC visit. And he may end up at USC. But Mizzou isn't out of this. Those two are in his top three with Penn State. We believe Penn State is the least likely destination of those three. Last we knew, he's announcing on Sunday.
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This one's tough to predict because nobody's talked to the kid. He visited USC, Washington and Florida. Geographically, he's all over the map. Missouri is more in the mix here than we perhaps thought last week, but whether they're one or four, we really can't say at this point in time.
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It's Mizzou or UCF. An announcement will come on July 4. We've felt pretty good about Mizzou's chances throughout here. I haven't heard anything to change my mind.
Overall, the goal is to get two of the three receivers who were here this weekend to go with Shaun Terry. Sure, Mizzou would love to get all three. But the people I've spoken to view two out of three as a more realistic haul. Again, we feel good on Boggs. Then it's a matter of whether they can land Simms or Olugbode. If they get one (or both) they'd probably be done at receiver. If they miss on those two,
Jacob Washington is still in the picture, though he did visit Michigan this weekend.
4) Obviously there are still other players on the board who weren't in town this weekend. Here's a quick rundown of where we believe things sit with the uncommitted players who visited earlier in the month.
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We still like Mizzou's chances here. He also visited Arkansas and Kansas State. We haven't seen a time frame for a decision and will try to follow up with him this week now that the visits are in the books.
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As discussed above, this is a bit of a holding pattern.
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Epenesa has given nothing away in his interviews. Penn State, Iowa, Miami and Utah all got visits. We still primarily view this as an Iowa/Mizzou battle, but nothing is off the board here. He's the top defensive line prospect on Mizzou's board right now.
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Missouri has long been viewed as a favorite in this one, but he hasn't really talked to anyone during the visit process. Until we hear otherwise, we like Mizzou's chances.
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Missouri hung around here, but he's likely going to stay in the state of Texas. Oklahoma is a potential darkhorse here.
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The longer we go without a commitment, the better for Mizzou. Stanford was viewed as a prohibitive favorite, but it hasn't happened yet. Missouri isn't dead. Michigan and Oklahoma are in the mix too. We'd probably term this one as a bit unlikely, but it's not a foregone conclusion.
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The top target at tight end. Also visited Texas A&M, Florida State and Nebraska. The Aggies are seen as the biggest threat, but FSU is there too. If Mizzou doesn't get him, it's possible they don't take a tight end in this class. There have already been seven 2026 tight ends who have taken unofficial visits and with
Brett Norfleet, Jordon Harris, Whit Hafer and possibly J
ude James at the position, Missouri doesn't necessarily have to take one in this class.
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We're expecting an Ohio State commitment, probably relatively soon.
5) So what's that mean for the class overall? Let's give Mizzou Bass, Boggs, another wide receiver, Rogers, and Jones. That would bump the commitment list to 17. That leaves about three spots in the class. Obviously there's a spot there for Loftin, Epenesa and one for Babalola if they want it. Then we know the Tigers are interested in a second running back in the class. If three of those things happen, that's pretty much the class. If not, you could see some circling back for official visits early in the season to players who Missouri had previously offered, but didn't bring to campus in June. But we're expecting the class to be at least 80% done probably by the start of SEC Media Days on July 15. In the new calendar, most players are making decisions prior to the start of fall camp and their own high school seasons.
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