The Chamber is back in business after a long first ten days of August camp. With football back in session, the recruiting season is beginning to pick up again.
YOUR WEEKLY REMINDER: The Chamber is an exclusive, subscribers-only post. We ask that you keep all discussion and mentions of The Chamber to PowerMizzou.com only.
— Official offers started rolling out Aug. 1, and that always means some targets (for a myriad of reasons) are just now learning of their Mizzou offers. It’s something that happens every year. The typical reason for this is that the offer was extended through a coach or a family member and was never communicated, but occasionally targets are not told purposely so the written offer makes more of an impression. The case can be made that this is a risky move because it means that the offer is coming fairly late in the process.
Emmett Rice, Zach Hall, Romeo Finley, Antione Webster, Emmit Gooden, Mat Boesen, Kyle Davis, Darel Middleton, Emmanuel Belmar, Shyler Staton and Briston Guidry are all names that we first heard as Mizzou having offered during the last week or so.
(SIDENOTE, and this is very unsubstantiated: A source told The Chamber that Davis knows current Missouri receiver Nate Brown, and had been pining for a Missouri offer for a while. Now, that desire was long before Davis blew up into the top recruit he is now, but it may be interesting to see if the Tigers can somehow find a way into the race for him.)
When PowerMizzou.com spoke with Shyler Staton, he said he was surprised by the Mizzou offer and had not been in contact with a coach before that. He said the offers was big for him and he was hoping that it would help show other schools what he can bring to the table.
He’s taking that approach because A.J. Ricker told him the day before that Mizzou was full at corner. Now, that can be the case for one recruit and not another sometimes, but it does sound like Mizzou is looking more at safety at this point.
We were also able to talk some with Emmit Gooden. He said that Ryan Walters is recruiting him, and the two of them have a good relationship and talk (usually) a couple times a week. His offer had already been extended verbally, so the official offer was not a surprise. Golden has seven schools he wants to officially visit, but there is a limit of five so two will have to be unofficial — if they all even happen.
Generally, prospects do not use all five official visits. Mississippi State, Tennessee and LSU are definitely getting official visits by Gooden. Missouri, Alabama and Texas A&M are the the schools Gooden said were fighting for the last two visits. It sounds like Kentucky may also be in the mix now. A decision about the final two official visits should be made soon.
Antione Webster was another prospect completely surprised by the Mizzou offer. He was listed as an FAU commitment, but he told us it’s not solid. He went on to say he was open with this recruitment. Webster was about to talk to Josh Henson when PowerMizzou was in contact with the three-star cornerback. Since then, we have been unable to reach him for further comment. It could be related to the fact that Mizzou is telling some recruits they are full at cornerback.
Virginia Tech commitment Emmanuel Belmar added a Mizzou offer recently. The Georgia linebacker told PowerMizzou.com that all schools are still in consideration, despite his commitment. The Mizzou offer was mostly a surprise for him. Ryan Walters had been in contact quite a bit, but he was not sure an offer was on the way. Mizzou was Belmar’s first official offer and he said that falls in the “cool” category.
— As of now, no official visits have been set up by Mizzou’s staff. They are almost exclusively focusing on getting defensive line prospects in right now. That is the priority position. They will take two, maybe three, at those positions (DE and DT). From what we are hearing, the staff considers having 13 2016 commitments. The consensus is that the coaches are very confident that Tyler Howell will make it in December as part of the 2016 class.
So, if the class is sitting at 13, then there will most likely be only five or six more recruits added to the group. PowerMizzou.com would be somewhat surprised if this class reaches 20 members, unless there are some prospects that were known academic risks.
Two-to-three defensive linemen, one tight end (or maybe receiver), one defensive back (most likely safety) and one linebacker seems like the most reasonable finish for this group. Maybe one more running back and one more offensive linemen, depending on what prospects they are in on down the stretch. Andy Hill told us during the week that the staff is more focused on 2017 quarterbacks at this point, so unless there are sudden transfers or injuries, it looks like they’ll avoid taking a QB this year.
(Also, if there are to be any transfers at quarterback, they likely wouldn’t happen until after spring ball next year — which would be too late for the 2016 signing class.)
But, with only a bit over a handful of spots left, the coaches feel like the can afford to be a little more selective now.
There is a POSSIBILITY that Mizzou will have two unofficial visitors this weekend. There has been talk that George Ranch (TX) running back Darius Anderson and 2017 Kansas City (Mo.) athlete DaRon Davis would be visiting, but neither has been confirmed. Davis told us a few weeks ago he was trying to set up a visit for the first part of preseason camp. When we know more, we will let you know.
— PowerMizzou.com caught up with Jasper (Texas) tight end Cody Mitchell recently. He said he was very high on Mizzou and that they were a school he was planning to officially visit.
“Mizzou is definitely, still in my books, the top school,” Mitchell said. “Maybe in the top two, only because I haven’t seen it yet. When I come visit on an official, I’m sure it’s going to be the first place all-around. I’ve always been a true Texan guy, but I’ve always rooted for Mizzou. My friends never knew why I rooted for Mizzou. I never knew why. I just liked them.”
That seems like a visit that may happen, but it depends on what goes on with some tight ends ahead of Mitchell on Missouri’s list. Mostly Albert Okwuegbunam (who visited Mizzou for the second time last week, and who we hear the coaches feel like they have a good chance with), and Buford (Ga.) tight end Brett Shepherd.
— It seems like most of the focus has rightfully been on the tight end position for the 2016 class, but that does not mean that adding a wide receiver can be completely ruled out. J.C. Flowers is a receiver prospect that Mizzou offered in the spring. He likes Mizzou quite a bit, but is not set on which schools he will officially visit.
Flowers’ high interest in Mizzou is because he believes he would fit in well to the Tigers’ offense. Flowers is also a very good baseball player and could be drafted in 2016. He will take the same approach as Marquise Doherty. That means he will sign with a school and then see where he is drafted. If he is able to secure the money he wants, then he will play baseball professionally. If not, it’s off to college.
— The Top Tiger Targets series will continue, but it’s going to be scaled back to six because that is how many more commitments we see Mizzou taking. Again, this is NOT who we think Mizzou is most likely to land. It is who we think the coaches like the most to finish out the class (and that they have at least some chance of landing them).
YOUR WEEKLY REMINDER: The Chamber is an exclusive, subscribers-only post. We ask that you keep all discussion and mentions of The Chamber to PowerMizzou.com only.
— Official offers started rolling out Aug. 1, and that always means some targets (for a myriad of reasons) are just now learning of their Mizzou offers. It’s something that happens every year. The typical reason for this is that the offer was extended through a coach or a family member and was never communicated, but occasionally targets are not told purposely so the written offer makes more of an impression. The case can be made that this is a risky move because it means that the offer is coming fairly late in the process.
Emmett Rice, Zach Hall, Romeo Finley, Antione Webster, Emmit Gooden, Mat Boesen, Kyle Davis, Darel Middleton, Emmanuel Belmar, Shyler Staton and Briston Guidry are all names that we first heard as Mizzou having offered during the last week or so.
(SIDENOTE, and this is very unsubstantiated: A source told The Chamber that Davis knows current Missouri receiver Nate Brown, and had been pining for a Missouri offer for a while. Now, that desire was long before Davis blew up into the top recruit he is now, but it may be interesting to see if the Tigers can somehow find a way into the race for him.)
When PowerMizzou.com spoke with Shyler Staton, he said he was surprised by the Mizzou offer and had not been in contact with a coach before that. He said the offers was big for him and he was hoping that it would help show other schools what he can bring to the table.
He’s taking that approach because A.J. Ricker told him the day before that Mizzou was full at corner. Now, that can be the case for one recruit and not another sometimes, but it does sound like Mizzou is looking more at safety at this point.
We were also able to talk some with Emmit Gooden. He said that Ryan Walters is recruiting him, and the two of them have a good relationship and talk (usually) a couple times a week. His offer had already been extended verbally, so the official offer was not a surprise. Golden has seven schools he wants to officially visit, but there is a limit of five so two will have to be unofficial — if they all even happen.
Generally, prospects do not use all five official visits. Mississippi State, Tennessee and LSU are definitely getting official visits by Gooden. Missouri, Alabama and Texas A&M are the the schools Gooden said were fighting for the last two visits. It sounds like Kentucky may also be in the mix now. A decision about the final two official visits should be made soon.
Antione Webster was another prospect completely surprised by the Mizzou offer. He was listed as an FAU commitment, but he told us it’s not solid. He went on to say he was open with this recruitment. Webster was about to talk to Josh Henson when PowerMizzou was in contact with the three-star cornerback. Since then, we have been unable to reach him for further comment. It could be related to the fact that Mizzou is telling some recruits they are full at cornerback.
Virginia Tech commitment Emmanuel Belmar added a Mizzou offer recently. The Georgia linebacker told PowerMizzou.com that all schools are still in consideration, despite his commitment. The Mizzou offer was mostly a surprise for him. Ryan Walters had been in contact quite a bit, but he was not sure an offer was on the way. Mizzou was Belmar’s first official offer and he said that falls in the “cool” category.
— As of now, no official visits have been set up by Mizzou’s staff. They are almost exclusively focusing on getting defensive line prospects in right now. That is the priority position. They will take two, maybe three, at those positions (DE and DT). From what we are hearing, the staff considers having 13 2016 commitments. The consensus is that the coaches are very confident that Tyler Howell will make it in December as part of the 2016 class.
So, if the class is sitting at 13, then there will most likely be only five or six more recruits added to the group. PowerMizzou.com would be somewhat surprised if this class reaches 20 members, unless there are some prospects that were known academic risks.
Two-to-three defensive linemen, one tight end (or maybe receiver), one defensive back (most likely safety) and one linebacker seems like the most reasonable finish for this group. Maybe one more running back and one more offensive linemen, depending on what prospects they are in on down the stretch. Andy Hill told us during the week that the staff is more focused on 2017 quarterbacks at this point, so unless there are sudden transfers or injuries, it looks like they’ll avoid taking a QB this year.
(Also, if there are to be any transfers at quarterback, they likely wouldn’t happen until after spring ball next year — which would be too late for the 2016 signing class.)
But, with only a bit over a handful of spots left, the coaches feel like the can afford to be a little more selective now.
There is a POSSIBILITY that Mizzou will have two unofficial visitors this weekend. There has been talk that George Ranch (TX) running back Darius Anderson and 2017 Kansas City (Mo.) athlete DaRon Davis would be visiting, but neither has been confirmed. Davis told us a few weeks ago he was trying to set up a visit for the first part of preseason camp. When we know more, we will let you know.
— PowerMizzou.com caught up with Jasper (Texas) tight end Cody Mitchell recently. He said he was very high on Mizzou and that they were a school he was planning to officially visit.
“Mizzou is definitely, still in my books, the top school,” Mitchell said. “Maybe in the top two, only because I haven’t seen it yet. When I come visit on an official, I’m sure it’s going to be the first place all-around. I’ve always been a true Texan guy, but I’ve always rooted for Mizzou. My friends never knew why I rooted for Mizzou. I never knew why. I just liked them.”
That seems like a visit that may happen, but it depends on what goes on with some tight ends ahead of Mitchell on Missouri’s list. Mostly Albert Okwuegbunam (who visited Mizzou for the second time last week, and who we hear the coaches feel like they have a good chance with), and Buford (Ga.) tight end Brett Shepherd.
— It seems like most of the focus has rightfully been on the tight end position for the 2016 class, but that does not mean that adding a wide receiver can be completely ruled out. J.C. Flowers is a receiver prospect that Mizzou offered in the spring. He likes Mizzou quite a bit, but is not set on which schools he will officially visit.
Flowers’ high interest in Mizzou is because he believes he would fit in well to the Tigers’ offense. Flowers is also a very good baseball player and could be drafted in 2016. He will take the same approach as Marquise Doherty. That means he will sign with a school and then see where he is drafted. If he is able to secure the money he wants, then he will play baseball professionally. If not, it’s off to college.
— The Top Tiger Targets series will continue, but it’s going to be scaled back to six because that is how many more commitments we see Mizzou taking. Again, this is NOT who we think Mizzou is most likely to land. It is who we think the coaches like the most to finish out the class (and that they have at least some chance of landing them).
1. Amani Bledsoe, DL, Lawrence (Kan.)
2. Boss Tagaloa, DL, Concord (Ca.)
3. Donte’ Vaughn, DB, Memphis (Tenn.)
4. Michael Divinity, LB, Marrero (La.)
5. Emmit Gooden, DL, Brownsville (Tenn.)
6. Albert Okwuegbunam, TE, Springfield (Ill.)
2. Boss Tagaloa, DL, Concord (Ca.)
3. Donte’ Vaughn, DB, Memphis (Tenn.)
4. Michael Divinity, LB, Marrero (La.)
5. Emmit Gooden, DL, Brownsville (Tenn.)
6. Albert Okwuegbunam, TE, Springfield (Ill.)
