Nothing says local like Billiards on Broadway! Billiards has reopened the dining room and is also still providing curbside pickup service of their menu plus beer, cider and seltzer for customers daily. Stop in or call 573-449-0116 to place your order today. Click here for a special offer on your next order. And don't forget to join us next Wednesday for our second of three Meet the Tigers events for a chance to hang out with Jalani Williams, Mekhi Wingo, Ja'Mori Maclin and Tyler Macon.
So this week got a little busy with SEC Media Days, conference realignment rearing its head again and @Sean_Williams getting a well deserved week off after a wild start to the summer and before the upcoming season. Of course, that doesn't mean recruiting stopped. It's slowed down some for sure, but it never stops.
*The first note worth mentioning is what Eli Drinkwitz told local media in Hoover on Wednesday. He said that due to the potential return of seniors again next year and with eligibility so much in flux, the staff has to closely monitor the 2022 class and how many players they'll be able to sign (every staff in the country is going to have to do this). Drinkwitz indicated that Missouri probably wouldn't go past 15 or 16 commitments before the end of the season. That means you're looking at probably only three or four more commits between now and about December 1. Obviously there are players that Missouri would absolutely take a commitment from, but they're not going to get much past 16, if at all, before they know what this year's senior class is doing.
We've got Mizzou at 76 scholarship players for this season right now. We know three are almost certainly coming off the board with Blaze Alldredge, Akayleb Evans and Allie Green IV. That gets you down to 73, which means you have 12 spots, so theoretically if no other players left, Missouri is full. That's obviously not going to happen, but it does underscore the difficulty in assessing the numbers in this class.
We have the Tigers with 14 players who could be done after this year or opt to take another year. Some of them will probably stay, but certainly not all of them will. Then you've got to assume you're looking at three or four transfers out after the season ends. So let's say half of the super seniors decide to leave, add in four transfers and you're looking at a class potentially of 23 players. That's right around the neighborhood. We expect Mizzou to end up with somewhere between 20 and 25 in this class. But again, while there very well could be 10-12 spots left in this class, you can't get TOO full and then find you're out of room come December. You also have to probably hold back at least a couple of spots to plug holes with incoming transfers next spring. Such is the new way of the world in college sports now.
Is this reason to outright panic? No. But it is worth paying attention to. We're confident in saying the staff would prefer that Gracial not be making this visit. They're not going to tell him he can't and they're not going to drop him, but if they had their way, he wouldn't trip to Tuscaloosa. We'll monitor it and try to touch base with him after the trip.
White picked up an offer from Mizzou this week and immediately added the Tigers to his list of top schools. We're not sure how soon a decision will come, but he's definitely one to keep an eye on. We'd think a visit would need to occur before he's ready to pull the trigger, but we'll keep you updated.
Markway tweeted this week that he is committing on Tuesday. It's very, very early for 2023 kids to pull the trigger and would indicate he's pretty confident of his choice. We don't have any reason to believe Missouri will be that choice. Most of the buzz right now seems to be on Florida, though Notre Dame or LSU isn't out of the question.
*The dead period ends on Sunday and we're expecting a few players to be on campus for unofficial visits next week
Gaskins has picked up quite a few offers over the summer. Missouri would love to add him to the commitment list. If the Tigers can do so, along with Marcus Scott and Isaac Thompson, they might be done at defensive back for 2022.
The 2023 class is loaded on the offensive line and Otting doesn't yet have an offer, but he's a name to monitor. You guys know all the big names on the line, but Missouri has shown it will always have contingencies in place and Otting is a guy they'll be evaluating.
Markway has gotten a lot of the attention as far as in-state 2023 tight ends, but Norfleet is a guy the staff has liked for a long time. He was on campus for Night at the Zou in early June and should be back next week at some point. He's also a highly touted baseball prospect and that could factor into his ultimate decision. Tennessee is believed to be a major player here as well.
*The Tigers are set to have another major recruiting event a week from Saturday, on July 31st. We'll spend next week tracking down visitors and getting more details on the event for next week's Chamber. Until then, back to realignment rumors.
