Mizzou Football Offensive Presser Notes

Here’s some quotes and notes from coaches and players on the offensive side of the ball:

Kirby Moore | Offensive Coordinator

• “I think he’s done a really good job in terms of extending plays. His eyes are in the right spot, and I thought he did a really good job in live situations on Saturday.” On Miami transfer quarterback Jake Garcia
• “I think it’s been a good transition for Luther [Burden] moving into the slot. He’s done a really good job in terms of his route running and finding things from the quarterback.”
• “When I say FBI, that’s football intelligence. His FBI is very good, and he can play outside or inside and provides a lot of versatility for the offense.” On his early impressions of Mekhi Miller
• “I would say I’ve stayed in this bubble quite a bit. I like the Tacos 4 Life over here, I’ve been there about eight times. Everyone’s excited; in terms of my daughter who’s three, she already knows “Go Tigers!” On what he’s enjoyed most about Columbia thus far

Marcus Johnson | Offensive Line Coach

• “He’s a strong, physical specimen. I was watching a one-on-one pass rush drill from the other day, and he was crappy. But, his ability to recover and get out of bad situations is unique with him because he’s so twitchy and athletic. There’s not a lot of guys that play as first-year offensive lineman in this conference.” On sophomore Armand Membou
• “Attitude and mentality, physicality. Finishing blocks, chasing the ball once it breaks the line of scrimmage. To me, being great at the little things doesn’t even take ability and talent.” On what he wants to see improved in this year’s O-line group
• “These guys know that they’re evaluated day-in and day-out regardless of position. Doesn’t matter what you did last year, everybody has a clean slate.”
• “He’s extremely athletic and twitchy, he just has to get used to playing on the right side, which he’s never done before. So many people think with O-linemen, you just throw big guys out there and let them go. That’s nowhere near the truth.” On Eastern Michigan transfer Marcellus Johnson
• “I can sleep a little better at night. Thank god he made the decision to come back, and this team looks up to him. He’s a no-nonsense, blue-collar player that never complains.” On Javon Foster opting to return for this season

Erik Link | Special Teams Coordinator/Tight Ends

• “We have a number of guys working in both of those positions. We got a couple of new guys to the roster that are getting reps. It’s definitely not one man’s job, and there’s multiple guys working at punt and kick returner.” On what the competition at Punt/Kick Returner has looked like. Theo Wease was not one of the new guys who had been taking reps.

Curtis Luper | Running Backs Coach

• “The beautiful thing is we had and still have so much support.” On what last year was like with going through his son’s health issues. Luper explained that he actually reached out and talked to Trey Smith of the Kansas City Chiefs, who went through something similar in college with blood clots.
• “Cody refuses to be outworked. Cody graduated at 3 o’clock on a Saturday in December, and we had bowl practice that day. He missed it, but coach Drink set a video of someone working out on the field at night when it was in the 20s. And, it was Cody. He was sent the practice script, and he was doing it himself. So, you better be more talented and work as hard as him to beat him out.” On what he’s been so impressed by with Cody Schrader, citing that he came to the team as the sixth or seventh RB on the depth chart

Jacob Peeler | Wide Receivers Coach

• “Experience, it always helps when you’ve got someone that has seen a lot. He’s got the ability to take the top off the defense and put some stress on the safeties.” On Oklahoma transfer Theo Wease Jr.
• “Barrett [Baniser} has been around for a bit, he’s training for the NFL Draft right now so he’s in town. I’ve kinda begged him to come help me a little bit, he’s limited in that he can’t just be coaching but he’s out there observing and I’ll ask him what he sees.” On the role departed WR Barrett Banister has played this offseason
• “I knew immediately after the first couple of times we met that there was going to be a good marriage. He understands how to attack coverage because he’s seen it from playing wide receiver.” On his early impressions of new OC Kirby Moore
• “Last year, we did our first walkthrough right before spring practice and he looked wide-eyed with how fast things were. Things have slowed down for him now, and we call him kinda our ‘glue’ guy. He can play multiple positions.” On Mekhi Miller
• “First one that comes to mind for me is ‘Peanut,’ Demariyon Houston. He was a guy last year that had a freak, weird injury deal that he sustained in the summer. It kept him out until the last four weeks of the season. He just brings it every single day, and he has a speed element to him and works extremely hard. I think he has a bright future.” On what receiver that people aren’t talking about right now can be a major contributor in the fall
• “Last year, we just wanted to limit him in terms of not putting too much on his plate. We thought playing outside, because of how confident we were in our slot room, was the best position for him. In the slot, he’s gonna get a bit more free access and the ball comes out a bit faster because he won’t have to deal with press corners every play.” On Luther Burden making the move to slot receiver

Armand Membou | Sophomore | Offensive Lineman

• “As I got more experienced during the season, I was able to play a bit faster and have more confidence in my place on the line.”
• “I’ll say, a lot of the time last year, you would see plays where it was four guys doing the right things, but then there’s one guy that has a mess-up or something that results in a negative play. The emphasis is on five guys playing as one.” On the mindset of the O-line room this season

Javon Foster | Graduate Student | Offensive Lineman

• “I’ve never seen anything like that, honestly. I know the kind of shape I was in freshman year, and I was not near where he was.” On Armand Membou
• “Me, I have to step up in being a leader. Xavier Delgado has been stepping up as a veteran as well. Marcellus [Johnson], he just came in but he’s a veteran too.” On the leadership he’s seen in the O-line room thus far
• “Our second and third group, they’ve been working very hard. They’re not making it easy for any of us starters; there’s no guaranteed starting positions.” On the depth in the O-line room

Mekhi Miller | Sophomore | Wide Receiver

• “We really don’t try to push one or two people to try to take that role. We all do it amongst ourselves to hold each other accountable.” On the leadership in the WR room with Banister and Lovett now gone

Cody Schrader | Graduate Student | Running Back

• “Now I can work on more skillset things and having relationships with my teammates as opposed to trying to prove myself and win a job. Player development is a huge thing in the spring, and I’m really focused on improving my pass protection.” On how this offseason is different for him compared to last year
• “Just seeing him as a man respond to what he had to go through was truly inspirational, having been in that locker room after the game and seeing everything.” On Nathaniel Peat’s response to the fumble in the Auburn game
• “That’s always been my number since freshman year of high school. We’re a big number family, and number seven was God’s chosen number with the seven days of creation. It’s something that when I became a Christian in high school I just got attached to that number.” On changing to No. 7 this season
• “For those guys to see me as a leader, that’s a huge honor in general. No matter the stats you have, if you can make an impact on people, that’s something that means a ton.”
• “I think pass protection is always going to be pivotal for me, that’s something I’m going to continue to work on. I need to learn types of defenses and schemes so I can recognize blitzes before the snap.” On what he believes he needs to improve upon the most this season