They don't do another BCS poll. Can't complain about another top 5 finish.

Sure can't, feels good man.

I will chime in on this and say that I know coaches on the team that are aware of his proclivities. They went to far as to say Sam and Aldon Smith were pretty close when Aldon was still in school.

Great season for MU.

Who is gone next year?

I know Franklin, Washington, and Sam are gone.

Is Josey expected to declare? Anyone else?

I've actually heard that rumored as well...again, not from anyone who would have direct knowledge, though.

Britt, Lucas, Wilson, EJ Gaines (our best DB of my life), Ponder (decent-ish CB), Donovan Bonner; The rest are mostly forgettable: Matt White, Max Copeland, and the like.

I agree completely. Did you read the story in the Houston Chronicle about the '93 Oilers?

Gaines will be a huge loss. Britt, our right tackle, is gone. Ealy is leaving early.

We have a lot of talent leaving, but we are deep in most of those areas. I like our chances to repeat in the east.

So overall how many starters gone from offense & defense excluding individuals like Franklin when you have Mauk ready to go?

Fourteen, I believe, but White and Copeland were awful. Ealy will be a devastating loss.

We just don't have anyone like Ealy on the team right now.

<table id="sortable_roster" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td align="right">48</td><td align="left">Andrew Wilson</td><td align="left">Linebacker</td><td align="left">6-3/240</td><td align="left">RS SR</td><td align="left">Peculiar, Mo.</td><td align="left">Raymore-Peculiar</td> </tr><tr> <td align="right">17</td><td align="left">Matt White</td><td align="left">Safety</td><td align="left">6-0/195</td><td align="left">RS SR</td><td align="left">Keller, Texas</td><td align="left">Keller</td> </tr><tr> <td align="right">2</td><td align="left">L'Damian Washington</td><td align="left">Wide Receiver</td><td align="left">6-4/205</td><td align="left">RS SR</td><td align="left">Shreveport, La.</td><td align="left">Green Oaks</td> </tr><tr> <td align="right">52</td><td align="left">Michael Sam</td><td align="left">Defensive Lineman</td><td align="left">6-2/255</td><td align="left">RS SR</td><td align="left">Hitchcock, Texas</td><td align="left">Hitchcock</td> </tr><tr> <td align="right">7</td><td align="left">Randy Ponder</td><td align="left">Defensive Back</td><td align="left">5-10/195</td><td align="left">RS SR</td><td align="left">Edmond, Okla.</td><td align="left">Santa Fe</td> </tr><tr> <td align="right">94</td><td align="left">Marvin Foster</td><td align="left">Defensive Lineman</td><td align="left">6-1/300</td><td align="left">RS SR</td><td align="left">Fort Worth, Texas</td><td align="left">North Crowley</td> </tr><tr> <td align="right">61</td><td align="left">Max Copeland</td><td align="left">Offensive Lineman</td><td align="left">6-3/300</td><td align="left">RS SR</td><td align="left">Billings, Mont.</td><td align="left">West</td> </tr><tr> <td align="right">68</td><td align="left">Justin Britt</td><td align="left">Offensive Lineman</td><td align="left">6-6/315</td><td align="left">RS SR</td><td align="left">Lebanon, Mo.</td><td align="left">Lebanon</td> </tr><tr> <td align="right">8</td><td align="left">Donovan Bonner</td><td align="left">Linebacker</td><td align="left">6-1/245</td><td align="left">RS SR</td><td align="left">Dallas, Texas</td><td align="left">Lincoln</td> </tr><tr> <td align="right">81</td><td align="left">Eric Waters</td><td align="left">Tight End</td><td align="left">6-5/245</td><td align="left">SR</td><td align="left">Mansfield, Texas</td><td align="left">Summitt</td> </tr><tr> <td align="right">85</td><td align="left">Marcus Lucas</td><td align="left">Wide Receiver</td><td align="left">6-5/220</td><td align="left">SR</td><td align="left">Liberty, Mo.</td><td align="left">Liberty</td> </tr><tr> <td align="right">31</td><td align="left">E.J. Gaines</td><td align="left">Defensive Back</td><td align="left">5-11/195</td><td align="left">SR</td><td align="left">Independence, Mo.</td><td align="left">Fort Osage</td> </tr><tr> <td align="right">1</td><td align="left">James Franklin</td><td align="left">Quarterback</td><td align="left">6-2/230</td><td align="left">SR</td><td align="left">Corinth, Texas</td><td align="left">Lake Dallas</td> </tr></tbody></table>
Add in Josey+Ealy=:Lin:

L'Damian Washington is gone. WRs next year will be DBG, Hunt and Sasser, and they will all be gone after 2014.

He mentioned Sam, Franklin, and LDW in his post.

Losses:

OFFENSE

QB James Franklin
LT Justin Britt. Likely a middle-round NFL pick, from what I've seen (4th/5th)
LG Max Copeland. Former walk-on was the weak link on the OL but brought an attitude to the group that was crucial.
WR Marcus Lucas: Steady senior was a weapon in the slot.
WR LaDamian Washington. Led the team in receiving yards and feasted off of single coverage due to teams
TE Eric Waters. Was not used as a receiving target very often but had a good year as an in-line blocker.

DEFENSE
DE Michael Sam
DE Kony Ealy. Rs. JR has already declared for the draft. Has come a long way from the raw basketball player who barely qualified for college out of HS. Lock to be a first-round pick, may go as high as Top 10.
MLB Andrew Wilson. Steady, hard-hitting defensive captain. Didn't have great sideline-to-sideline range, but generally made the right calls, got the team in position, and delivered a blow when he arrived.
OLB Donavan Bonner. Didn't play much - he was the odd LB out in the nickel package.
CB EJ Gaines. Missouri's best corner since the 60s. 2nd-4th round pick in the draft, depending on the scout.
CB Randy Ponder. Former walk-on who was a steady starter opposite Gaines. Undersized and not that fast, but solid in run support and had good instincts.

So quite a few losses. Josey is the only other potential early entry loss, probably depends on his draft grade. I'm not sure if he declares or not. Here's a guess at what next year's two deep looks like (returning starters in BOLD, players with experience in BOLD/ITAL)

QB Maty Mauk/Eddie Printz
RB Josey/Russell Hansbrough/Marcus Murphy
WR Dorial Green-Beckham/Darius White
WR Bud Sasser/Nate Brown (incoming freshman)
WR Jimmy Hunt/Levi Copelin
TE Sean Culkin/Brandon Merrifield
LT Clay Rhodes/Taylor Chappell
LG Anthony Gatti/Brad McNulty
C Evan Boehm/Alec Abeln
RG Connor McGovern/Mitch Hall
RT Mitch Morse/Jordan Williams

Offense returns 3/5 OL, good, experienced talent at WR (though it will go 6-6/6-4/6-2 rather than 6-6/6-5/6-4), a very effective RB group and a potentially dynamic QB. Big question will be who plays LT. They could slide the experienced Mitch Morse over there, but redshirt freshman Clay Rhodes has drawn rave reviews from practice and might have the highest upside on this OL.

RDE Shane Ray/Ricky Hatley or Marcus Loud
LDE Markus Golden/Ricky Hatley or Charles Harris
DT Matt Hoch/Josh Augusta
DT Harold Brantley/Lucas Vincent

OLB Donavin Newsome/Darvin Ruise
MLB Michael Scherer/Eric Biesel
OLB Kentrell Brothers/Clarence Green

CB Aarion Penton/Logan Cheadle or Anthony Sherrils
CB John Gibson/Earnest Payton

S Braylon Webb/Greg Taylor (freshman)
S Ian Simon/Duron Singleton

The defense has a pair of strong DEs in Ray and Golden - who were nearly as effective as Sam/Ealy this year - but depth behind them is a real question. The middle of the line should be ascending, with standout young guys like Brantley and Augusta joining quality vets like Hoch and Vincent.

At LB, they need to replace the man in the middle but should remain strong in the nickel set, which is the primary set. I think they're a little more athletic at the OLB spot. Secondary is a big question. Both Penton and Gibson played a lot and played well this year, but Gaines is still a big loss. They lose Matt White at S, which is addition by subtraction.

I'd expect a step back defensively, though not a complete drop-off. Offense will need to rev up to compensate.

Congrats on finishing top 5 this season.

Impressive season.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Missouri announces Henry Josey has declared for NFL draft.</p>&mdash; Joe Walljasper (@JoeWalljasper) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeWalljasper/statuses/420639401526722560">January 7, 2014</a></blockquote>
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I dont blame him, considering his injury history, but it is a hard pill to swallow.