FOOTBALL NOTES
Thought we'd start off passing a few things along the we've observed/thought/picked up during football camp
*Barry Odom told us Niko Hea is going to play this year. That's not a surprise if you've been paying attention. Sure some of it has to do with injuries at the position, but Hea has been one of the standouts for a while now.
*We also wrote earlier this week about Thalen Robinson, who is looking like a possibility as a rare offensive lineman who skips a redshirt. It may not be a necessity, but there's a definite possibility.
*We'd be very surprised if Maurice Massey took a redshirt. He's made the biggest impression among the freshman receivers. Almost no way Jalani Williams redshirts either. We see Stacy Brown as a guy that plays, probably primarily on special teams early and maybe putting himself in position to get defensive snaps later in the year.
*Anthony Watkins might be the most interesting case among the freshmen. Physically, he's ready to play. But he talked a lot about working to pick up the playbook. Cornell Ford said early in camp he had a long way to go. He's probably good enough to play. But he's not going to play if there's a risk of him lining up in the wrong spot and getting the quarterback killed.
*Taylor Powell seems entrenched as the backup QB. Have been told he's taken another step since the spring. He's steadily improved and we get the feeling the staff feels more comfortable about the backup spot now. Odom said on Thursday that he wouldn't eliminate Lindsey Scott from the competition at this point, but it seems pretty obvious Powell is going to be No. 2. Odom said they'd have conversations about how to handle Connor Bazelak. We could see him getting a mop up series here or there in up to four games because why not, but it would be a major surprise if he were to go over that threshold at this point.
*Speaking of quarterback, just from watching camp, it's kind of reinforced our opinion that Missouri is going to go about this in a different way than the last couple years. Largely because they'll need to. The passing game simply isn't going to be at the same level. We try not to put too much stock in preseason practices, especially at quarterback (I've seen some camps and spring games where I was convinced Missouri would never be able to complete a forward pass that turned out just fine). But they're also really all you've got to go on. We don't think it's going to be a seamless transition. Missouri should still be good on offense. But it's going to be much more because of Larry Rountree and Kelly Bryant's legs than it is because of an offense that's capable of throwing the ball all over the yard...especially early in the season.
*Nothing has really happened that would alleviate concerns at defensive end. Trajan Jeffcoat still isn't practicing and now Tre Williams hasn't for a few days. Sci Martin seems like a situational guy at best at this point in time. Chris Turner and Jatorian Hansford are the starters. After that? Franklin Agbasimere and walk-on Chris Williams are the healthy second teamers. Again, there are two weeks till the opener and you don't need to run screaming for the panic button, but the biggest question mark coming into camp is still the biggest question mark halfway through.
*We think the return specialists will be the same as last year. Tyler Badie should be the primary kickoff guy and Richaud Floyd is expected to handle punt returns (kudos for him for being willing to do it because after the hit he took late last year, most of us would have told the coaches we were never fielding a punt again).
FOOTBALL RECRUITING
- On Tuesday, Missouri got another boost in its 2020 recruiting class when three-star defensive tackle Montra Edwards announced his commitment to the Tigers. Many, including us, didn't see this one coming and Rivals.com Southeast analyst Chad Simmons told us that many among Edwards' inner circle were surprised of his decision as well. Rumors have also circulated that there could be grade issues with the 6-foot-3, 290-pound prospect, but there doesn't appear to any issues there. There are a lot question marks regarding how solid his commitment actually is, which we're hoping to get a clearer picture on at some point next week.
- In terms of the next commitment to keep an eye on (aside from James Sylvester and Jalen Logan-Redding...tick, tick, tick), we're hearing that the A&M Consolidated (Tex.) product could be close to pulling the trigger for Mizzou. Floyd took an official visit to Columbia back in June and was also drawing interest from Arizona, SMU, Utah, and Texas Tech.
- In case you missed it, Chad Simmons caught up with defensive end target Bradyn Swinson earlier this week who is going to make his commitment on September 20th. The three-star prospect named a top five that included Arizona State, Florida State, North Carolina, Oregon, and Missouri. Swinson took an unofficial visit to Missouri back in June and has made previous stops to Florida State and North Carolina as well. He is expected to take officials to Oregon and Arizona State in early September before his decision date.
NEW RIVALS 250 RANKINGS:
Two Missouri commitments are now in the updated Rivals250 rankings with Antonio Doyle only dropping two spots in the rankings to No. 233. Jalen St. John made his debut in the rankings, coming in at No. 241.
Thought we'd start off passing a few things along the we've observed/thought/picked up during football camp
*Barry Odom told us Niko Hea is going to play this year. That's not a surprise if you've been paying attention. Sure some of it has to do with injuries at the position, but Hea has been one of the standouts for a while now.
*We also wrote earlier this week about Thalen Robinson, who is looking like a possibility as a rare offensive lineman who skips a redshirt. It may not be a necessity, but there's a definite possibility.
*We'd be very surprised if Maurice Massey took a redshirt. He's made the biggest impression among the freshman receivers. Almost no way Jalani Williams redshirts either. We see Stacy Brown as a guy that plays, probably primarily on special teams early and maybe putting himself in position to get defensive snaps later in the year.
*Anthony Watkins might be the most interesting case among the freshmen. Physically, he's ready to play. But he talked a lot about working to pick up the playbook. Cornell Ford said early in camp he had a long way to go. He's probably good enough to play. But he's not going to play if there's a risk of him lining up in the wrong spot and getting the quarterback killed.
*Taylor Powell seems entrenched as the backup QB. Have been told he's taken another step since the spring. He's steadily improved and we get the feeling the staff feels more comfortable about the backup spot now. Odom said on Thursday that he wouldn't eliminate Lindsey Scott from the competition at this point, but it seems pretty obvious Powell is going to be No. 2. Odom said they'd have conversations about how to handle Connor Bazelak. We could see him getting a mop up series here or there in up to four games because why not, but it would be a major surprise if he were to go over that threshold at this point.
*Speaking of quarterback, just from watching camp, it's kind of reinforced our opinion that Missouri is going to go about this in a different way than the last couple years. Largely because they'll need to. The passing game simply isn't going to be at the same level. We try not to put too much stock in preseason practices, especially at quarterback (I've seen some camps and spring games where I was convinced Missouri would never be able to complete a forward pass that turned out just fine). But they're also really all you've got to go on. We don't think it's going to be a seamless transition. Missouri should still be good on offense. But it's going to be much more because of Larry Rountree and Kelly Bryant's legs than it is because of an offense that's capable of throwing the ball all over the yard...especially early in the season.
*Nothing has really happened that would alleviate concerns at defensive end. Trajan Jeffcoat still isn't practicing and now Tre Williams hasn't for a few days. Sci Martin seems like a situational guy at best at this point in time. Chris Turner and Jatorian Hansford are the starters. After that? Franklin Agbasimere and walk-on Chris Williams are the healthy second teamers. Again, there are two weeks till the opener and you don't need to run screaming for the panic button, but the biggest question mark coming into camp is still the biggest question mark halfway through.
*We think the return specialists will be the same as last year. Tyler Badie should be the primary kickoff guy and Richaud Floyd is expected to handle punt returns (kudos for him for being willing to do it because after the hit he took late last year, most of us would have told the coaches we were never fielding a punt again).
FOOTBALL RECRUITING
- On Tuesday, Missouri got another boost in its 2020 recruiting class when three-star defensive tackle Montra Edwards announced his commitment to the Tigers. Many, including us, didn't see this one coming and Rivals.com Southeast analyst Chad Simmons told us that many among Edwards' inner circle were surprised of his decision as well. Rumors have also circulated that there could be grade issues with the 6-foot-3, 290-pound prospect, but there doesn't appear to any issues there. There are a lot question marks regarding how solid his commitment actually is, which we're hoping to get a clearer picture on at some point next week.
- In terms of the next commitment to keep an eye on (aside from James Sylvester and Jalen Logan-Redding...tick, tick, tick), we're hearing that the A&M Consolidated (Tex.) product could be close to pulling the trigger for Mizzou. Floyd took an official visit to Columbia back in June and was also drawing interest from Arizona, SMU, Utah, and Texas Tech.
- In case you missed it, Chad Simmons caught up with defensive end target Bradyn Swinson earlier this week who is going to make his commitment on September 20th. The three-star prospect named a top five that included Arizona State, Florida State, North Carolina, Oregon, and Missouri. Swinson took an unofficial visit to Missouri back in June and has made previous stops to Florida State and North Carolina as well. He is expected to take officials to Oregon and Arizona State in early September before his decision date.
NEW RIVALS 250 RANKINGS:
Two Missouri commitments are now in the updated Rivals250 rankings with Antonio Doyle only dropping two spots in the rankings to No. 233. Jalen St. John made his debut in the rankings, coming in at No. 241.
