So apparently one Mr. 'Spoon came a lot closer to leaving for the NFL than any of us had thought...but all's well that ends well...
“They said that” projection “wasn’t based on the Alamo Bowl or the combine workout,” he said. “So it was a tough decision because I felt like if I worked out at the combine, I could impress people and slide up a few boards. And I felt like the Alamo Bowl was one of my best games of the season, so that could also help.”
It would be another 10 days before he officially made a decision. Finally, a call from MU linebackers coach Dave Steckel convinced Weatherspoon the third-round projection was a clear message — right across the cheek.
“He said, ‘You know what, that’s kind of like a slap in the face,’ ” Weatherspoon recalled. “ ‘You come back this year and we’ll go take home the Butkus Award and show them how we really play ball.’ ”
Sold.
The Missourian takes a look at the guys unlucky enough to try to step into Jeff Wolfert's shoes...
muvigs asks: Thinking back to when Chase was a sophomore, how does Gabbert's progression as a quarterback compare? Is Gabbert behind Chase's development at that point, on par or just plain different? And if you say "just plain different," can you explain why?
I'll take the copout answer and go with just plain different. Daniel had uncanny accuracy that you just can't teach. But he didn't have Gabbert's arm, which can cover up some mistakes. I think Daniel had more to work with, considering Coffman, Rucker, Franklin were all there and Maclin was coming in as well, plus a healthy Danario Alexander and Perry. I will know more about Gabbert when I see him working with a full arsenal in August, but I've been very impressed with what I've seen so far.
PowerMizzou continues its ongoing series about the 2010 class by looking at the top DB names on Mizzou's board...
So some interesting things have been going on in basketball recruiting. Whereas people were thinking that Mike Anderson and staff were basically done with the 2009 class, and Jarrid Famous was the only remaining candidate on the board, a couple new names have come out of nowhere. First, there's awesomely-named prep school wing Martino Brock, who doesn't have an offer yet but may receive one when he visits Columbia in a couple weeks; next, there's Brooklyn big man Anali Okoloji (Rivals profile here), an apparent late bloomer who says he has a Mizzou offer, with more on the way. Looks like he's likely to stay on the east coast, but apparently Mizzou isn't nearly as 'done' with this class as we thought they were.
Mizzou Softball continues to make it look easy. As you read from The Beef's updates yesterday, Mizzou finished a 30-3 non-conference record with 10-2 and 6-0 wins over UMR MOST MUST Missouri S&T.
Oh, and you've gotta love Ehren Earleywine calling out teams that wouldn't play Mizzou...
Beating up overmatched opponents isn't Earleywine's idea of strategic scheduling.
“Nobody will play us, and that’s just the truth," Earleywine said, before firing off a list of teams within driving distance that he tried to schedule. "Drake, Wichita State, Arkansas, Illinois, Southwest Missouri State, Southeast Missouri State, UMKC and on and on and on. Team’s won’t play (us)."
Finally, to baseball, where Mizzou kept the bats hot against an overmatched Indiana State squad. A day after beating the Sycamores 8-1, they finished off the mini-sweep with a 12-2 win. Johnny Wholestaff came through once again, stymying ISU with bigger names (Nick Tepesch, Ian Berger) and smaller ones; meanwhile, the top four in Mizzou's order (Austin Holt, Ryan Lollis, Greg Folgia, Aaron Senne) went 9-for-16 with 6 RBIs and 6 runs scored. Clearly this didn't come against top-flight competition, but anything that can serve as a confidence builder is good at this point. The Missourian has more.
And a quick note on a Mizzou alum as Ian Kinsler hits for the cycle AND goes 6-6 on the night
Rachel Phelps Watch: 15 wins to go for this team, with a huge weekend trip to Manhattan looming.
