Mizzou Links: Nickelbacks, Teki, and the silliness of the freshman eligibility debate

Hello! I'm Bill C.! You might remember me from previous Mizzou Links posts and nerd stuff! I'm back after a trip to lovely, exotic, not-at-all-snowy Boston, Mass. You should visit there some time! Lovely this time of year.

What's on

TEKI!

Spring previews continue

The Trib (Behind the Stripes): Position Primer: Secondary

Now...who gets the boundary spot? That safety usually busies himself with run help on near-side plays and inhabiting short to moderate zones in pass coverage. So, really, a run-stop safety could be the best bet. [Thomas] Wilson could make a similar move to [Ian] Simon -- shifting back out of the box from being a backup nickel last year -- but then who would start at nickelback? Wilson, I believe. He didn't have to do all that much in pass coverage but was solid in run support as a true freshman and should get a chance to build on it. And who will back him up? Let's circle back to [Logan] Cheadle. Missouri seemed to like sending him on corner blitzes and -- generally -- having him near the line of scrimmages during live action in the spring and fall. He'd be a bit undersized for a nickel, but he's got a Gaines-type mentality that would fit the position.

PowerMizzou.com - Spring Preview: TE

Toward the end of last season, Missouri started using multiple tight-end sets more frequently than we've seen. Usually, it was one tight end acting as an H-back, motioning just behind the line of scrimmage and helping in blocking, while another tight end acted as an in-line blocker. That's something to watch this spring. The position evolved from a big receiver to more of a true tight end in the last three years at Missouri. Now, we could see more wrinkles added where the tight ends are lining up in more spots to get more involved in the pass game, or as blockers on the perimeter.

Meanwhile, after spring...

KC Star: Quarterback Drew Lock ready to compete for spot at Missouri despite late start

"He’s going to come in and compete," Pinkel said. "I want everybody, even him, to come in and do whatever he can. That’s what we want him to do. That’s what everybody does."

Lock acknowledged that he’ll be a bit behind the curve without the study time and reps he’d get during the spring had he enrolled early.

But Lock also ran a similar spread offense at Lee’s Summit and has a reputation as an unflappable competitor.

"Just because I am going in there, and I’ll be 18 years old with a little less knowledge of their playbook and won’t have digested as much of that, doesn’t mean much to me," Lock said. "I’m going to go in there and try to get things done."

GET EXCITED

The Trib (Courtside View): Anderson complimentary of Missouri's seniors
Post-Dispatch: Mizzou, Auburn trudge to finish line at bottom of SEC
The Missourian: Missouri and Auburn to play in battle of bottom dwellers
The Missourian: Auburn's Mason won't play at Missouri after father's death
Fox Sports MW: Yes, the Missouri Tigers are as bad as you thought -- historically bad, in fact

I actually laughed out loud at the collection of those thrilling titles.

Another Mizzou hoops team is smoking hot, though

The Trib: Signs of life for MU women
Post-Dispatch: Pingeton's Tigers finish strong
The Missourian: Red-hot Missouri set to play Georgia in SEC women's basketball tournament
MUTIGERS.COM: Frericks Earns SEC Player of the Week Honors

And another Mizzou team is No. 1 in the country

Post-Dispatch: Smith built Mizzou wrestling from bottom up to national powerhouse
The Missourian: Missouri wrestling embracing pressure of its No. 1 ranking
ABC 17: J'Den Cox previews MAC Championships

Such a transparently awful idea

Statement from SEC commissioner Mile Slive on freshmen ineligibility. To sum up, not a big fan of the idea. pic.twitter.com/9H8ZjGlVZG

— Ralph D. Russo (@ralphDrussoAP) March 2, 2015

Part II of Slive statement on freshmen ineligibility. pic.twitter.com/NW3pD59H5Z

— Ralph D. Russo (@ralphDrussoAP) March 2, 2015

SEC the first power conference to raise concerns about freshman ineligibility - SBNation.com
Theories behind freshman ineligibility; college football analysis - College Football - SI.com
Why it’s hard to take Jim Delany at face value. | Get The Picture

One side question, by the way: how exactly would Mizzou have fielded a basketball team this year if freshmen were ineligible? Granted, the Tigers have barely fielded one as is, but ... do you get more than 13 scholarships if three or four guys are going to be glued to the bench? Consider that Reason No. 1,193 why this conversation is stupid.

Meanwhile...

Makes sense...
MUTIGERS.COM: Mizzou Baseball Cancels Midweek Series vs. Central Arkansas

Another top-20 squad
MUTIGERS.COM: Tigers Maintain Spot in Top 20 on National Rankings

Pretty interesting how large a role...

...the Post-Dispatch plays in the top chart at this link. It might be the most miserable user experience on the Internet, which is frustrating considering it houses Dave Matter's work.