****Official 2018 Missouri Tigers Football Thread****

['Hamas' Jenkins]

The beginning of the 2018 season is a little under five weeks away. Missouri enters the year projected to finish 4th in the East, and may be a borderline Top 25 team according to some projection systems. After a disappointing recruiting cycle last year, pressure is on Odom to restock the cupboard after the senior years of Lock and Beckner, who will go down as two of the better Tigers in history and likely first round draft picks.

Schedule:

Spoiler!

9/1: vs. Tenn-Martin
9/8: vs. Wyoming
9/15: @Purdue
9/22: vs. Georgia
10/6: @SCar
10/13: @Alabama
10/20: vs. Memphis (homecoming)
10/27: vs. Kentucky
11/3: @Florida
11/10: Vandy
11/17: @Tennessee
11/23: vs. Arkansas

Recruiting:

Spoiler!

Commits:

Martez Manuel, DB: ***, 5.6 RR, Columbia, MO
Chris Shearin, DB:***, 5.5 RR, Bradenton, FL
Connor Bazelak, QB: ***, 5.6 RR, Dayton, OH
Anthony Watkins, ATH: **, 5.4 RR, Fort Worth, TX
Jack Buford, OL: ***, 5.7 RR, St. Louis, MO
Aidan Harrison, DB: ***, 5.5 RR, New Lothrop, MI
Thalen Robinson, OL, ***, 5.6 RR, Arlington, TX
Maurice Massey, WR, ***, 5.7 RR, St. Louis, MO
Ishmael Burdine DB, ***, 5.7 RR, Slidell, LA
Stacy Brown, DB, ***, 5.6 RR, Duncanville, TX
Jalani Williams, DB, ****, 5.8 RR, St. Louis, MO
CJ Boone, WR, ***, 5.6 RR, St. Louis, MO
Luke Griffin, OL, ***, 5.7 RR, Chatsworth, GA
Devin Nicholson, LB, ***, 5.6 RR, Detroit, MI
Niko Hea, TE, ***, 5.5 RR, St. Louis, MO
Isaiah McGuire, DE, ***, 5.5 RR, Tulsa, OK
Darius Robinson, DE, ***, 5.7 RR, Canton, MI
Chris Daniels, DT, ***, 5.5 RR, Wesson MS
Jamie Pettway, LB, ***, 5.7 RR, Albany, GA
Shemar Pearl, DE, ***, 5.6 RR, Plano, TX
Arvell Ferguson, DE, ***, 5.5 RR, Kirkwood, MO

Transfers:

Kelly Bryant, QB, Clemson Grad Transfer (former 4*)
Shawn Robinson QB, TCU Transfer (former 3*)
Jonathan Nance WR, Arkansas Grad Transfer (former 3*)

At this point, the class is ranked 68-69 nationally by Rivals and 24/7. Odom is going to have to rely on Pinkel's diamond-in-the-rough approach. It looks like they've pulled back considerably from Georgia, focusing more upon Texas, which is what they should have always done. Unfortunately, they've done horrific in-state, and I think that will likely end up being the nail in Odom's coffin after the 2019 season.

12/19 Update: A strong finish late in the cycle moved the class up significantly. Securing commitments from grad transfer Kelly Bryant and TCU transfer Shawn Robinson has solidified the QB position in the short and intermediate term. A class that was ranked in the 60's at the beginning of the season is now a top 20-30 class factoring in transfers.

Hamas' Crystal Ball: 8-4; 4-4 in the SEC (wins vs. Ark, Tenn, Vandy, Kentucky)

[bowener]

Is Bryant legit enough of a player that Mizzou could potential sneak a victory away from Bama in the SEC Championship? Bama always seems to have a game a season where they don't play to their full potential and it bites them in the ass with a loss they shouldn't have taken.

[OmahaChief]

Originally Posted by bowener

Is Bryant legit enough of a player that Mizzou could potential sneak a victory away from Bama in the SEC Championship? Bama always seems to have a game a season where they don't play to their full potential and it bites them in the ass with a loss they shouldn't have taken.

No. Mizzou D could not get enough stops on the Bama O to make that happen not matter how good Bryant is. Lock is the better QB and he could not get it done.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by kchero

I’ve heard this from some KC area football coaches that currently have legitimate division 1 recruits playing for them. Odom’s team has had little presence in KC.

They seem to be operating under the presumption that they're just going to be in on anybody from KC given the down nature of the Kansas programs.

But they're ignoring the fact that the top talent in the area is getting pursued by the Big 10 and other B12 schools as well. Maybe losing Finley's ties in TX will convince them that they need to strengthen some local ties as well.

It's been frustrating to see their relative lack of success in locking down their own borders. They have a lot of advantages there that they're not using well at all.

[Sassy Squatch]

Originally Posted by bowener

Is Bryant legit enough of a player that Mizzou could potential sneak a victory away from Bama in the SEC Championship? Bama always seems to have a game a season where they don't play to their full potential and it bites them in the ass with a loss they shouldn't have taken.

We couldn't even beat Kentucky in that scenario with a better QB.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by OmahaChief

No. Mizzou D could not get enough stops on the Bama O to make that happen not matter how good Bryant is. Lock is the better QB and he could not get it done.

Lock's a different QB but in some ways Bryant can be better than him.

Lock's more aggressive; makes more splash plays but also more poor decisions. Now against 'Bama maybe that's the better route, but Bryant's less likely to make those god-awful decisions that we've seen from Lock too often.

Lock's a better pro prospect for sure, but Bryant could easily be as good or better as a college QB. Mizzou's not going into Alabama and beating them. Ever. But on a neutral site with a couple of good breaks, they could steal one. Again - they played Georgia to a near draw and just made too many mistakes in the process. They had the talent to win that game, they just didn't play their best game. And Georgia had 'Bama on the ropes.

If someone like Johnson or Knox takes a step forward, Albert O comes back and the DBs develop just a little more - they'd be in a situation where their BEST game could be Alabama if Alabama wasn't in top form. It's not likely, but its not impossible.

The problem is that they have GA on the road next year. That's going to be a huge hurdle for them.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by Superturtle

We couldn't even beat Kentucky in that scenario with a better QB.

They didn't beat Kentucky. But they absolutely could have. And there's no question that they SHOULD have.

Again - the question is whether or not Mizzou could go steal one; not if they'd simply be the better team. Can Mizzou go out there with a little development and take that squad, play their best game and beat 'Bama? No, not if 'Bama plays their best game as well. But if they aren't sharp? Sure, that could happen. Especially if they can somehow get Graves in here and he gives them the pass rush and ability to create problems on the DL that they'll lose with Beckner leaving.

I'd say it puts them in the conversation as among the top 20 teams in the nation heading into next season. When you're there, you're one or two breakout players away from being a top 10 squad. If you're a top 10 squad, you can beat anyone in the country if you're playing your best game and they aren't on top of theirs.

[kchero]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

They seem to be operating under the presumption that they're just going to be in on anybody from KC given the down nature of the Kansas programs.

But they're ignoring the fact that the top talent in the area is getting pursued by the Big 10 and other B12 schools as well. Maybe losing Finley's ties in TX will convince them that they need to strengthen some local ties as well.

It's been frustrating to see their relative lack of success in locking down their own borders. They have a lot of advantages there that they're not using well at all.

It perplexes me because regardless of the level of program your number one priority in recruiting should be to lock down your home state....especially a state like Missouri, which has legit high school talent every year.

[O.city]

So, is Beckner an option for the Chiefs in the draft?

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by O.city

So, is Beckner an option for the Chiefs in the draft?

He should be. I'm not sure he got himself into 1st round consideration and by the 2nd round weird stuff just happens; guys slide sometimes and you can't figure out why.

If he fell to one of the picks in the 2nd I'd take him in a heartbeat. What would worry me about him in the 1st is that there's some Jones in his game; disappears for stretches. And his injury history isn't great.

If the Chiefs are sitting at 32 with their premium need/talent combinations already off the board, they could do worse than take a chance on Beckner and rely on that 5th year option giving them enough time to iron out the rough edges. If you get him focused, he has the ability to wreck shit just like Jones does.

I like the guy a lot and I like how the Tigers have moved him in and out a bit so he has some versatility there. He can do a lot of things from anchoring the point of attack to splitting the gap and attacking. But/for the focus concerns I have he's a clear 1st round pick. If given enough time, I could be probably be convinced to take him in the 1st anyway depending on the board at the time.

[WhawhaWhat]

Reminder: University of Missouri Curators meet at 4 p.m. today. The topic at hand is approval of a contract/extension for Barry Odom.

— Gabe DeArmond (@GabeDeArmond) December 5, 2018

[O.city]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

He should be. I'm not sure he got himself into 1st round consideration and by the 2nd round weird stuff just happens; guys slide sometimes and you can't figure out why.

If he fell to one of the picks in the 2nd I'd take him in a heartbeat. What would worry me about him in the 1st is that there's some Jones in his game; disappears for stretches. And his injury history isn't great.

If the Chiefs are sitting at 32 with their premium need/talent combinations already off the board, they could do worse than take a chance on Beckner and rely on that 5th year option giving them enough time to iron out the rough edges. If you get him focused, he has the ability to wreck shit just like Jones does.

I like the guy a lot and I like how the Tigers have moved him in and out a bit so he has some versatility there. He can do a lot of things from anchoring the point of attack to splitting the gap and attacking. But/for the focus concerns I have he's a clear 1st round pick. If given enough time, I could be probably be convinced to take him in the 1st anyway depending on the board at the time.

I was kind of wondering if he could replace Bailey. Put him next to Ford and see what happens.

He's such an athlete, some might see him undersized a bit, but I think in today's NFL, he could really play in there.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by O.city

I was kind of wondering if he could replace Bailey. Put him next to Ford and see what happens.

He's such an athlete, some might see him undersized a bit, but I think in today's NFL, he could really play in there.

Agree; he'd be Bailey's replacement.

Well, I mean, in my world he'd play alongside Jones on the interior w/ Houston and Speaks on the ends. That might not be quite enough mass but I think I'm past the point of caring now. If you play a team with a serious rush offense - scheme and sell out to stop it. Otherwise just find athletes that can create havok. I guess.

I'm just tired of seeing our DL force a hole only to watch our LBs take themselves out of it. My frustration with the rank incompetence of our ILBs and safeties would almost certainly have me doing stupid things going forward.

"**** IT!! 3 DTs and 8 cornerbacks!! I'm tired of these mother****ing snakes on this mother****ing plane!!"

[duncan_idaho]

I know the staff has been frustrated on the return on investment for local recruits compared to resources invested. They’ve at least unconsciously shifted some focus as a result, I think.

In KC, part of the issue is that Andy Hill is near the end of the road and just doesn’t go as hard as he used to.

Re: Mertz, Heupel was the main roadblock there. He didn’t want Mertz at all, which delayed Mizzou until it was too late.

In-state recruiting success usually goes hand-in-hand with success and longevity for Mizzou. Odom getting this extension and getting to 9+ wins next year (possible with schedule) would be a boon, I think.

I’m getting a little bit of a 2007 vibe from the current team. Could see 2019 being that type of step forward for Odom.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

I know the staff has been frustrated on the return on investment for local recruits compared to resources invested. They’ve at least unconsciously shifted some focus as a result, I think.

In KC, part of the issue is that Andy Hill is near the end of the road and just doesn’t go as hard as he used to.

Re: Mertz, Heupel was the main roadblock there. He didn’t want Mertz at all, which delayed Mizzou until it was too late.

In-state recruiting success usually goes hand-in-hand with success and longevity for Mizzou. Odom getting this extension and getting to 9+ wins next year (possible with schedule) would be a boon, I think.

I’m getting a little bit of a 2007 vibe from the current team. Could see 2019 being that type of step forward for Odom.

Seems like they are unwilling to do some of the foundation building that Pinkel excelled at. Watching them just kinda quit on Georgia when it was difficult to get started and scramble back to Texas was frustrating.

I know why they did it - Texas was so fertile for them and they had a nice fallback there; getting back in was going to pay immediate dividends at a time that immediate dividends were needed. It was arguably even the right decision to make in many ways. But there was a reason they got into GA (and FL) in the first place; they know the SEC brand carries weight there and the talent is immense. To just chuck all those reasons because it was hard was a red flag, IMO.

They don't have a very good ground game, to my eyes. I could be being too hard on them but they just don't have a lot of people that seem to relish the yeoman's work. They sure love sending out that "To the ZOU!" tweet every few weeks but I get the impression that making the phonecalls to coaches that get you in their good graces is just not high on their priority list.

[ChiefsCountry]

Kansas City just doesn't have the numbers of high end Division 1 talent that St. Louis has. It's crazy to see the recruiting in both cities. The mid-major talent in Kansas City is very high, while St. Louis it's the opposite. It's crazy to see.