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It doesn't get anymore official than this...
MUTIGERS.com: Anderson Completes Staff With The Hiring Of Rob Fulford
Fulford comes to Mizzou after five seasons in Huntington, W. Va., where he helped build one of the country's elite prep school programs, going a remarkable 138-17 over his tenure. Last season Huntington Prep finished No. 3 nationally, going 28-4, and qualified for the Dick's Sporting Goods High School National Tournament. His final five teams finished among the Top 25 programs nationally and his 2012-13 club opened the year ranked No. 1 in the country by USA Today.
The list of players that has come out of Huntington Prep is long despite only being around since 2008. Perhaps the most well known player is Andrew WIggins, who is projected to be a top pick in the NBA draft this year. Other names you may recognize: Sim Bhullar, Moses Kingsley, Negus Webster-Chan, Stefan Jankovic.
What is exciting about this hire is that it immediately puts into play some very top talent for next year. The three that most will probably start talking about are Montaque Gill-Caesar (2015), who is the 22nd ranked player according to Rivals.com. A 6'6" wing, Gill-Caesar boasts offers from Mizzou, Michigan State, Illinois, West Virginia and Memphis. 5-star Thomas Bryant (2015) is an agile 6'10" Center with offers from Florida, West Virginia, Syracuse and Villanova and the 18th ranked player in his class. Last is Miles Bridges, the 33rd ranked player in the 2016 class who plays for the same AAU team as our own Wes Clark. A 4-star small forward, Bridges is an explosive athlete as you can see from the YouTube video below.
In other news, Mizzou is getting a visit from Thon Maker, the 3rd ranked player in the 2016 class who might reclassify to 2015 and Mizzou's recent hire might play into his decision:
As I reported earlier, Thon Maker will visit Missouri tomorrow. Tim Fuller is tied in there, as is Fulford. Fulford will be in town by then.
— Evan Daniels (@EvanDaniels) June 23, 2014
How this all plays out is anyone's guess. But it's clear that Kim Anderson has no intentions of just getting the band back together for Ol' Mizzou's sake. He could have hired Corey Tate and very few of us would have scoffed at the hire and it would have been considered safe. He didn't do that. This is a hire that may be a bit of a gamble, but with serious intentions of making Mizzou a destination for the nations elite players. With Tim Fuller and Rob Fulford on staff now at Mizzou, they are going to be serious players for just about anyone. And that will likely include Jayson Tatum as well.