Mizzou Links, 4-12-10

Another loaded set of weekend links ... not a perfect weekend, due mostly to diamond sports combining to go 1-4 ... but between basketball recruiting, gymnastics, and a successful football scrimmage, it was still pretty strong.

Pressey! Ratliffe!!

• PowerMizzou: Two for two
• PowerMizzou: Ratliffe: I didn't want to wait

  Playing time is something Ratliffe has talked about throughout the recruiting process. But while the Tigers offer that, it was their success on the court the last couple of seasons that played a major factor in the end.
  
  "That was a big plus," Ratliffe said. "A lot of the other schools I was looking at, they were up and coming programs. It felt good going to a program that was already established, already went to an Elite eight and has a very successful coach. He knows what he's doing and has a lot of experience."
  
  Of Ratliffe's final five, the Tigers were one of just two who went to the NCAA Tournament this year. And the other finalist that made the field, Clemson, was beaten by Missouri in round one. He had already visited Clemson, Arkansas and Alabama and was supposed to take a trip to Cincinnati next weekend, which he has now cancelled.
  
  "I didn't want to wait. I didn't want them to waste their time or their money on a plane ticket or food or anything," Ratliffe said. "I figured I'd save them some time and some money because I knew where I wanted to go."

• The Trib: MU basketball lands two commitments
• The Missourian (Full-Court Press): Two junior college players commit to Missouri

Other Mizzou Basketball Links

• MUtigers.com: Mizzou Hoops Season in Review
  

Big 12 Basketball Links

So Bzdelik has NOT accepted the Wake job yet??  What an odd coaching search...

• Colorado
  The Ralphie Report: Daily Camera: Bzdelik Tells Players He Does NOT Have Offer from Wake Forest
• Iowa State
  Clone Chronicles: ISU Basketball Is A Bigger Mess Than I Thought Was Possible
• Oklahoma
  Daily Oklahoman (Berry Tramel): Honeymoon at OU has ended quickly for Jeff Capel

FOOTBALL!!!

Defense dominated the first scrimmage, so I was wanting to see the offense begin to strike back.  Mission accomplished.

• Scrimmage Reports!!!
  MUtigers.com: Washington Scores Four Times As Offense Claims Football Scrimmage

  Senior TB Derrick Washington was the star of the day, as he scored on four touchdown runs, and finished with 68 yards on 10 carries overall.  His first score came on a 1-yard plunge on a 4th-and-1 situation which capped a 75-yard drive by the #1 offense against the #2 defense.  His second score was also on a 4th-and-1 snap, but it came from the 31-yardline, as the #1 offense matched up with the #1 defense.  On 4th-and-1 from the 31, Washington took a handoff and burst quickly over left tackle, thanks to a huge hold created by the offensive line.  He weaved his way back to the right and angled virtually untouched into the endzone for the score.

  Washington later tacked on TD runs of eight yards and four yards, the final one finishing off a sterling two-minute drive that covered 70 yards by the #1 offense against the #1 defense.  His run came with just :01 second left on the clock as the offense needed a touchdown in the situational scenario.

  The Trib: Derrick Washington runs wild in Mizzou scrimmage
  The Trib (Dave Matter): MU's offense perks up in scrimmage

  ● A few weeks ago Yost told WR T.J. Moe that once the team returns from spring break the second-year slot receiver would become more involved in the offense. He wasn’t lying. Moe, the former prep quarterback, was the most active receiver on the No. 2 unit today, even running a pair of jet sweeps that netted 6 yards each, including one that ended in the end zone. Moe is still behind Jackson on the depth chart at the H position, and I don’t expect that to change this fall, but the staff will undoubtedly find ways to get him involved in the game plan.

  ● TB Kendial Lawrence’s quiet spring is no longer. From his own 35, Lawrence took a handoff and burst through the middle of the line and zipped through a crowd of defenders for a 49-yard gain, the day’s longest play from scrimmage. Lawrence juked CB Munir Prince out of a tackle then tried to angle his way into the end zone but was eventually snagged from behind. Granted, the run came against the No. 2 defense, but Lawrence had been bottled up by the defense for most of the spring. The big run helped boost the tailback crew’s yards-per-carry average to a blistering 8.4.

  The Trib (Dave Matter): Missouri's scrimmage stat leaders
  PowerMizzou: PMTV: Second Scrimmage
  PowerMizzou: PMTV: Pinkel talks scrimmage
  PowerMizzou: Photo Gallery: Second spring scrimmage
• The Trib: Return of the run game
• The Trib: Michael Egnew inherits spot on bubble
• KC Star: MU has top talent at defensive ends with the Smiths
• PowerMizzou: Weighty matters
• PowerMizzou: Breaking Out

Big 12 Football Links

Just an awesome piece from DTN about Leach-Tuberville...

• Texas Tech
  Double-T Nation: Tale of the Tape (Leach vs Tuberville): How They Did It
• Kansas
  Topeka Capital-Journal: KU's DBs only secondary concern
• Colorado
  The Ralphie Report: Tyler Hansen, Gold Team Win 2010 Spring Game
• Tulsa World: Oklahoma stampede: State looks to have unprecedented draft with 6 first-round projections

Mizzou Softball Links

Things are falling apart without Chelsea Thomas...

• Texas 5, Mizzou 2
  MUtigers.com: Tigers Fall to Longhorns, 5-2
  The Trib: MU softball team stymied at Texas
  The Missourian: Missouri loses in Texas
• Texas 10, Mizzou 2
  MUtigers.com: Tigers Drop Finale to Horns, 10-2
  The Missourian: Texas sweeps Missouri softball team
  

Mizzou Baseball Links

• Oklahoma 6, Mizzou 4
  MUtigers.com: Missouri Drops Series Opener With No. 12 Oklahoma
  The Trib: Critical error does in Tigers
  The Missourian: First baseman extends hitting streak, but Missouri loses to Oklahoma
  Crimson and Cream Machine: Sooners Tame Tigers 6-4, Snap Four Game Conference Losing Streak
• Oklahoma 10, Mizzou 4
  MUtigers.com: Tigers Suffer Second-Straight Loss to OU
  SimmonsField.com: Game Day: Ouch!
  Crimson and Cream Machine: Sooners Beat Tigers 10-4, Win Series
• Mizzou 12, Oklahoma 11
  MUtigers.com: Senne's Homer Gives Mizzou Victory
  The Missourian: Senne's home run leads Missouri to victory
  

Gymnastics on to Nationals!

• MUtigers.com: Tigers Advance to Nationals
• The Trib: MU gymnastics team makes history
• The Missourian: Missouri advances to NCAA Championships for first time
  

Other Mizzou Links

• Mizzou Women's Basketball
  The Trib: Drawing a crowd is hard part
  The Trib: Pingeton promises era of change