Football practice reports! PowerMizzou, Dave Matter, Graham Watson. The big news is, of course, that Marquis Booker was kicked off the team. It appears that Maclin and Weatherspoon were really just there, though I'm assuming they got pretty massively chewed out nonetheless. Booker's dismissal is disappointing (The Beef loved that guy!), but it's the same type of swift disciplinary action that we've more-or-less become accustomed to with Pinkel. EDSBS can say we're an out-of-control program, but a) their Fulmer Cup point system is screwy, and b) kids are going to be stupid--it's how you handle their stupidity that causes or alleviates problems. Pinkel seems to do a pretty solid job overall--though obviously if Maclin and Weatherspoon were more involved than they appeared and got star treatment, then that's different. I doubt that's the case, though.
Mike Dearmond reports on the progress of DB-turned-WR La'Roderick Thomas. You have to love the "was the scout team Darren McFadden in December and did so well that he got switched to offense" story. Hopefully he sees some success.
Plenty of recruiting stories to share. PowerMizzou caught up with Mizzou signee Marcus Denmon and his state tournament opponent (and 2-way 2009 recruit) Bryant Allen, while Inside Mizzou checked in on 2009 recruit Michael Snaer. PowerMizzou catches up with the big fish for football in '09: Ronnie Wingo. Have to think we're in pretty damn good shape there.
The Trib has a nice story on Mizzou wrestler Nick Marable and his wrestler family. Mizzou is obviously predicting a pretty strong base of fans in St. Louis this weekend.
#4 Mizzou Baseball 13, South Dakota State 1. You know your pitching staff is kicking butt when Greg Folgia can come in and throw five shutout innings, striking out 7. Jacob Priday and reserve Dan Pietroburgo carried the offense, though nobody really needed to carry the offense in this one. The Missourian has a nice story on the depth of the pitching staff and how that could pay off massively with the cramped schedule coming up.
Finally, Mizzou Softball goes for a Rockets-esque 20th (and 21st) straight win this afternoon with a doubleheader against SLU.