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1. Kind of a busy day on Wednesday!
The Missouri contingent went through the SEC Media Day carwash. A lot was said! Some news broke (Kaleb Prewett — gone, officially. As are Barry Odom’s defensive playcalling duties).
Miss something? Here’s a good place to start:
What we learned about Mizzou at SEC Media Days
Did you miss Barry Odom’s turn at the podium? Here’s a full transcription. Odom had quite the opening statement.
More #content below.
2. Drew Lock doesn’t shy away from the spotlight.
Lock definitely stole the show as he bluntly addressed multiple issues — Tom Herman’s mocking of his TD celebration, Cece Jefferson’s quote about Missouri fans, etc. — but I thought this column by Gabe DeArmond of PowerMizzou.com really summed up all the stakes nicely.
So this is the new Drew Lock. Doubt him if you will. He wants you to. He wants to prove you wrong. And when he does, he wants to tell you about it.
“It’s not going to change the way I play,” Lock said. “It’s not going to change the way people play us. Talk is talk, but once the ball gets snapped, nobody is thinking about the shit that was talked, no one’s thinking about any of that. Just thinking about, I’m going to do my job and play the best game of football I can.”
We can also finally put to rest what Lock drank out of the water bottle that was thrown at him during the South Carolina game in 2016.
Drew Lock confirms it was indeed water in the bottle that fans threw at him at South Carolina two years ago. He drank from it. Says he won’t do that this year.
— Dave Matter (@Dave_Matter) July 18, 2018
3. Lock, Beckner address their returns
Via Brendan Lavell of the Columbia Missourian:
“Me and Terry had a moment after Arkansas where we talked about, ‘This is why we came here, to do special stuff like this,’ Lock said. “Get to a bowl game, beat our rival in Arkansas. We’ve been through some stuff. Terez has as well, so I’m happy to see success come for all three of us at the end of our careers.”
Beckner said the decision to come back was easy.
“Really, it was just coming back for my brothers,” Beckner said, “finishing up with them one last time and getting my degree.”
4. Another surgery for Michael Porter, Jr.
I mean, it’s another back surgery, which can’t be good — but this time, it might be good? I don’t know.
F Michael Porter Jr., who slid to Denver at No. 14 in NBA Draft due to ongoing back issues, had another surgery last week. His camp believes latest procedure = breakthrough grasp of his herniated-disks problem. Not their plan to have him sit out 2018-19 season.
— Steve Aschburner (@AschNBA) July 18, 2018
5. Set your calendars for Sep. 3, 2022.
Missouri will host South Dakota on Sep. 3, 2022. That’s four years away. So you have time to make preparations.
From South Dakota coach Bob Nielson, via the Argus Leader:
“This is an exciting matchup for our program, fans and alumni,” said Nielson. “It marks another great opportunity for us to compete against one of the best teams in the country.”
Yesterday at Rock M
More Links:
- Beckner finds his voice at SEC Media Days, via Daniel Jones of the Columbia Daily Tribune
- Drew Lock happy to trade stats for wins in senior season, via Daniel Jones of the Columbia Daily Tribune
- Ryan Walters takes over defensive playcalling duties, via Dave Matter of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch
- Amid Heisman hype, Drew Lock clings to chip on shoulder, via Vahe Gregorian of the Kansas City Star (soft paywall)
- How Terez Hall became a leader, via Aaron Reiss of the Kansas City Star (soft paywall)