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Missouri's highly anticipated football season kicks off Sept. 1 against Southeastern Louisiana and will reach a pinnacle Sept. 8 when Georgia visits Columbia for the Tigers' first Southeastern Conference game.
But there's a whole lot of football to play between now and then.
Players report Wednesday and preseason camp begins Thursday with the first of 24 practices. With so many challenges and unknowns lurking along the SEC's treacherous path, the 12th season under Gary Pinkel figures to be the most scrutinized since his first. As the Tigers take shape over the next month, here are the 10 most prominent story lines to follow before the opener.
FRANKLIN FULLY ARMED?: The most important limb on most teams is the quarterback's throwing arm, and that's especially true for the Tigers.
Second-year starter James Franklin underwent surgery on March 23 to repair a torn labrum in his right arm. Pinkel has said the team's medical staff expects Franklin to be fully cleared to play in the season opener, but it's unclear how much he'll be allowed to practice over the next month. In an interview on ESPN last week, Pinkel touched on some unanswered questions about Franklin's readiness for camp.
"We'll have to see where he is from a function standpoint," Pinkel said. "In other words, they can release him to play, but how will his accuracy … how's he throwing the ball downfield and those things? We'll work around that."
"He's going to want to make more throws than he's capable of at the beginning," receiver T.J. Moe said at SEC media days. "But his arm's stronger than anybody knows."
Franklin is the only quarterback on the roster who has played in a college game. Redshirt freshman Corbin Berkstresser opens camp as the top backup, having taken all the first-team spring snaps after Franklin was hurt. With junior Ashton Glaser's transfer to Missouri State, freshman Maty Mauk begins third on the depth chart.
INSTANT IMPACT: Like every newcomer, freshman receiver Dorial Green-Beckham will begin camp at the bottom of the depth chart. It's not expected to be a long stay.
After a few months of summer workouts, veteran players have praised the rookie from Springfield for his abilities and leadership. They don't hope he'll be an instant impact player; they know it.
"He just does things you don't see people that big do," Moe said of the 6-foot-6, 220-pound freshman.
Green-Beckham could quickly figure into the mix at the inside receiver positions. Just don't expect to hear much from the freshman during camp. For the first time in Pinkel's 12 seasons, freshmen will only be available for interviews on a few designated days during camp — unlike returning players, who are available every day.
"He's going to get a lot of publicity, and there's going to be a lot of focus on him," Pinkel said last week on ESPN. "My goal is to take that away from him and let him focus on what he needs to do, and that's just become a good football player."
REGARDING HENRY: The closer the season gets, the more unlikely it seems that tailback Henry Josey will play in 2012. An All-Big 12 player last year, Josey underwent his third knee surgery in May to repair the extensive damage suffered in last year's season-ending injury. Pinkel has been careful to express hope that Josey could return this fall — perhaps, more than any reason, as an incentive for Josey to push through his rehab — but he was more blunt during an ESPN.com chat last week when he said, "We don't think he'll be back this year."
That leaves the Tigers with senior Kendial Lawrence as the starter, the same position he held this time last year before his broken leg cleared Josey's path to stardom. There could be another breakout runner this year.
"The guy nobody knows about is Marcus Murphy," Moe said of the sophomore who missed last year with a shoulder injury. "This year he's going to be as good as anybody we have on the team. He's fast and explosive and quick. His hips are so fluid that when he turns and runs, nobody can run with him."
BACK FOR MORE: When the Tigers hold practice Aug. 15, it will mark the one-year anniversary of Elvis Fisher's worst day in football pads. That was the day his senior year was shattered when he ruptured the patellar tendon in his left knee, putting the rest of his college career in the hands of the NCAA.
Granted a sixth year of eligibility, Fisher is fully healed and back at his old job at left tackle. Fisher is unfazed by returning to full-contact drills.
"If anyone knows me, they know I like to joke around a lot," he said. "So that's not going to be in the back of my mind."
The coaches might be cautious in limiting Fisher's reps in scrimmages, but unlike last August, when the Tigers had to rotate several starters along the front, the projected top five are intact.
HELP WANTED: On the defensive line, starting end Brad Madison and tackle Sheldon Richardson are recovered from offseason shoulder surgeries, but the team's thinnest position will be down a big body for a few weeks while nose guard Lucas Vincent recovers from a torn pectoral. Matt Hoch, the revelation of the spring, earned the No. 1 job ahead of Vincent, but the Tigers could use some freshman reinforcements to bolster the depth. That could mean Harold Brantley or Evan Winston — or both.
BATTLE FOR THE BACKUP: With Franklin barely four months out of surgery, the backup competition is a story of greater importance than usual. Berkstresser has gone through a full season of college practices, knows the offense and ran the first unit during spring drills and scrimmages. Mauk, the national prep record-holder for most passing stats, will have the chance to unseat him with a strong camp. Ideally, Missouri would redshirt Mauk and let him run the scout team, but August will be his stage to audition for a bigger role.
POWER PLAY: On most weeks in the SEC, Missouri's defense will face a different style of offense than it sees in practice from MU's no-huddle, spread attack. That means MU will have to adjust its practice drills to simulate its future opponents. The Tigers began that process in the spring and will continue over the next several weeks.
"You're going to play a lot of power football," Pinkel said. "We understand that."
ROOKIE RADAR: Green-Beckham isn't the only freshman with a chance to contribute immediately. Missouri might need tailbacks Morgan Steward and Russell Hansbrough to join the rotation. Tight end Sean Culkin could be a factor as a backup or special-teams player, along with linebackers Donavin Newsom and Michael Scherer. After Green-Beckham, the highest rated recruit was offensive lineman Evan Boehm. Boehm already has the strength and footwork to train alongside the veterans, Fisher said.
"If he gets the plays down, there's no telling," Fisher said. "I'm not going to sit here and say he can't" play this year. "We'll see how he learns the plays and picks up blitzes. It's a lot faster pace than high school."
IN NEED OF SPECIALISTS: Trey Barrow returns as the incumbent punter and kicker but could be challenged by some walk-ons. The Tigers need to settle on a long snapper to replace four-year steady starter Beau Brinkley. The return jobs should be up for grabs, too, although Moe handled the bulk of those duties last year. MU also will have to adjust to the NCAA's new kickoff rule that encourages touchbacks.
Reach Dave Matter at 573-815-1781 or e-mail
dmatter@columbiatribune.com.