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It’s been quite the decade from Mizzou football. From the 2010 Homecoming win over Oklahoma to back-to-back SEC East titles to, well, the rest of the decade; we’ve seen plenty of ups and downs at ‘ole Mizzou.
But this is about the good. It’s time to celebrate the good. If you haven’t done so already, I would highly recommend checking out our series on the top Tigers of the decade. Mizzou has been stocked full of tremendous athletes over the years. But today, I want to focus on the football team. And more specifically, the offense.
What a glorious decade it was for the offense. Well, at times. Drew Lock’s deep ball. Henry Josey weaving through defenders. The 2013 offensive line paving the way.
The memories are countless. The choices were plentiful. It wasn’t easy, but without further adieu, this would be my completely unbiased Mizzou All-Decade team.
QB: Drew Lock, 2015-2018
Lock is a no-brainer choice for the roster. Lock finished his career with more than 12,000 passing yards and more than 100 total touchdowns. The team didn’t have the kind of success people hoped it would with Lock at the helm, but that wasn’t his fault. Nobody cared about the program the way Lock did, and without him manning the quarterback position it’s hard to know for certain the depths that the program could have fallen. Lock was the stability at the most important position that always prevented such a collapse. I’ll forever remember the deep ball that he threw while he was in a Tigers’ uniform. And the win at Florida was the signature moment we were all waiting for.
Drew Lock, your quarterback for the 2010’s All-Decade team.
Honorable mention: James Franklin (2010-2013)
RB: Henry Josey, 2010-2013
Josey’s story alone is worthy of a spot on the All-Decade team, but the player makes him an obvious choice. He may have earned an honorable mention spot on the list simply for his 2011 season when he racked up more than 1,200 yards from scrimmage. But then he came back better than ever in 2013 when his run clinched Mizzou a spot in its first SEC Championship Game. Josey finished his career at Mizzou averaging nearly seven yards per carry. It just doesn’t get much better than that.
Honorable Mention: Larry Rountree III (2017-2019)
WR1: L’Damian Washington, 2010-2013
A 2-star receiver out of Shreveport, LDW was never supposed to become the player he developed into in his time at Mizzou. But in 2013 he developed into one of the better receivers in the SEC. His 21 yards per reception in SEC play that season led the conference, and his 10 touchdown receptions were tied with Jarvis Landry, and one more than future NFL All-Pro Odell Beckham, Jr.
WR2: J’Mon Moore, 2014-2017
One of the most underrated Mizzou players of the decade, Moore is connected as much with the events of 2015 as he is with his success on the field. It’s unfair, because Moore was a heck of a player. He and Jeremy Maclin remain the only Tigers to every post back-to-back 1,000-yard receiving seasons.
WR3: Emanuel Hall, 2015-2018
The second half of one of the best deep threat passing duos in recent college football history. There isn’t a power-five player in the last 20 years who averaged more yards per reception (min. 90 receptions) in their career than Hall. Drew Lock to Emanuel Hall struck fear every opposing defensive coordinator.
Honorable Mention: TJ Moe (2010-2012)
TE: Michael Egnew, 2010-2011
Mizzou is now known as D-Line Zou, but there was a time not too long ago when the Tigers were known nationally more for the production they got out of their tight ends than they were the defensive linemen Coach Kool was producing for the NFL. Egnew burst onto the scene in 2010 by leading all tight ends nationally with 90 receptions, and finished the year as Mizzou’s 11th consensus All-American in program history.
Honorable Mention: Albert Okwuegbunam
OT: Elvis Fisher (2010-2012), Justin Britt (2010-2013)
Fisher seemingly started 100 games in his time at Missouri despite battling through countless injuries. He was a two-time team captain, and that leadership is part of what paved the way for guys like Britt, McGovern, Morse and Boehm to become the players they developed into during their time at Missouri.
Britt came to Mizzou as a developmental prospect, and that’s exactly what he did. A supremely athletic tackle who could play wherever needed on the offensive line, Britt was one of the better offensive tackles in the conference by the time he graduated. So good that the Seahawks decided to take him at the back end of the 2nd round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He was the first in what would soon be a stretch of multiple Mizzou offensive linemen being selected high in the draft
Honorable Mention: Paul Adams
OG: Connor McGovern (2013-2015), Mitch Morse (2011-2014)
Morse took a similar development curve to Britt in his time at Mizzou. He played meaningful snaps at every position along the offensive line before eventually manning the left tackle position as a senior. His athleticism, smarts and leadership ultimately led to another 2nd round selection, this time by the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2015 NFL Draft.
McGovern was a different style of player from Morse and Britt. What he lacked in their athleticism he more than made up for in brute strength. Known as one of Mizzou’s hardest workers and strongest players, McGovern went on to be selected by the Broncos in the 5th round of the 2016 NFL Draft.
Honorable Mention: Tre’Vour Wallace-Simms
C: Evan Boehm (2012-2015)
Boehm was the rare lineman that Gary Pinkel trusted to start as a true freshman. He was smart, he was athletic and he held every leadership quality you could possibly want from a center. He broke Mizzou’s all-time record for most consecutive starts and still holds the record to this day. Boehm was drafted by the Cardinals in the 4th round of the 2016 NFL Draft.
Honorable Mention: Trystan Colon-Castillo
So there you have it. Those are my selections. Who would you have? There’s no shortage of tremendous choices. The most difficult position for me to narrow down was the receivers. I couldn’t even get Dorial Green-Beckham an honorable mention! What a great decade of football for Mizzou.
Here’s to hoping Eli Drinkwitz is able to make the 2020s every bit as fun to watch as the 2010s were.