Gabarri Johnson, QB; C/O 2023

In my last update, Johnson had just received his Missouri offer. The proximity of his hometown, coupled with the fact Missouri had offered him somewhat late in the process, I figured they were probably in the secondary group of teams Johnson was considering.

I figured wrong.

Johnson adds a dimension of explosiveness as well as a very big arm in the class of 2023, and will join a quarterback room that has Sam Horn (4-Star) and Tyler Macon (4-Star). That also doesn’t include the probable starter for 2022, Brady Cook. I’m a fan of Johnson, and to pull him from the Pacific Northwest is a nice little merit badge for his recruiter, Bush Hamdan. More on him in a little bit.

Demariyon Houston, WR; C/O 2023

Missouri got a commitment from JUCO wide receiver Demaryion Houston, who’s previous stops included Nebraska and Hutchinson Community College. He’s a former four-star recruit, and previously held an offer from Missouri back in 2017.

Houston profiles as a speedster, most likely from the slot. He has a bit of a slight frame, but he has track speed. Film is limited, as is his actual production, but he stands out on the field at the JUCO level. I’m interested to see what the jump back up to the division one level looks like for Houston.

Chandavian Bradley, DE; C/O 2023

At the end of April, a monster ended up on campus in CoMo, and it was Chandavian Bradley.

Bradley is a five-star EDGE talent, and until recently there hasn’t been a lot of momentum on his front. Like a lot of in-state kids who have the options Bradley does, the priority to visit Mizzou is somewhat low. It’s close enough for a lot of them to simply drive to Columbia. With Bradley being from North Platte, MO (roughly 2.5 hours away) he’s no exception to that.

However, a recent unofficial visit to Missouri has me a bit more optimistic. For starters, I’ve learned not to count Drinkwitz out when it comes to recruiting the elite high school players from Missouri. It may not always work the way we want it to, but he somehow finds a way to make it competitive with the elite competition they’re fighting against. Bradley is by no means a sure thing to sign to Mizzou, but we should continue to monitor his recruitment and see if they can’t get him to burn one of those official visits on Mizzou.

Amir Herring, OL; C/O 2023

Recently, a pretty interesting prospect in Amir Herring made a list cut, and Missouri was among the top eight. Also notable is the geographical breakdown in the schools that made the cut. Missouri is the only SEC team, but there is a lot of Big 10 influence in this group.

I’m keeping my eye on this one. The SEC may be a big draw for him, and he sure would fit fine in this conference. When you watch the film, you see a nice mix of mobility and power. I think in college, he’ll probably wind up at guard. Technically he’s solid, but still has a way to go. Though it’s pretty easy to take the bet that you can coach him up when you see the plus athleticism from a kid this size.

Extra Point

With the commitment of Gabarri Johnson, I think some of us were taken aback just a bit because of the timeline. Usually recruits, especially quarterbacks, of his stature and recruiting profile don’t pull the trigger on a commitment so quickly after receiving an offer. The fact that he did so is a testament to his primary recruiter, Bush Hamdan.

Missouri usually doesn’t just land players in the pacific northwest, so I wondered how this came about and after a bit of research I stumbled on an article by Mike Vorel of the Seattle Times that spoke pretty well of Missouri QB’s coach Bush Hamdan.

Here’s a small snippet:

“It’s not like Bush Hamdan was going out of his way to troll UW by taking him. But there was some familiarity with Bush,” 247Sports national recruiting editor Brandon Huffman said. “Gabarri’s trainer trained Dylan Morris and Sam Huard, and both those guys committed to (or signed with) Bush. Bush obviously knows the Washington football high school market, so he understands the talent level he’s playing with here.”

I think it’s a great sign that Missouri’s position coaches (not just Hamdan) really are finding success recruiting the territories where they’ve previously coached. Not just that, but they’re now also getting Missouri in conversations across the country that they just aren’t usually in. Whether it’s Hamdan going into Tacoma, Wa. and signing a 4-star QB or Coach Luper going down to El Paso, Texas and pulling a 4-star RB, this staff is getting after it and producing at levels we haven’t seen before at Missouri.

Specifically in regards to Hamdan though, he’s done some major work across the recruiting trail bringing in some of Eli Drinkwitz’s biggest recruiting wins. Dominic Lovett, Tyler Macon and JaMarion Wayne all were recruited primarily by Hamdan. So, on a staff that has a head coach who is an ace recruiter himself, it also helps to have him surrounded by guys like Hamdan to help him get into these conversations so that he can then close the deal.

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