Notebook: Mizzou Football’s August 17th practice

It was a quick turnaround from yesterday’s night practice at Stankowski Field, but Missouri ramped up the intensity and got right back to it on Thursday.

One-on-one drills: Running backs and tight ends versus linebackers

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Looking at the running back room, Nathaniel Peat looks to be the sharpest running back in regards to running routes and consistently catching the football out of the backfield. He had a nice contested catch today on Carmycah Glass. With Missouri transitioning to more of a pass-heavy offense under Kirby Moore, it’ll be intriguing to see how Peat and his skillset are utilized throughout the season. In the four previous years between MU and Stanford, he caught no more than 11 passes in a season, expect that number to increase this year. Cody Schrader is still receiving the first reps. He beat his defender coming out of the backfield but dropped the wide-open pass.

The tight end room was impressive in creating separation during this period with Max Whisner and Tyler Stephens standing out. Stephens created huge separation on a linebacker but had trouble securing the ball. Ryan Hoerstkamp made a nice catch, while Brett Norfleet snagged one close to the sideline. Hoerstkamp and Jordon Harris made catches while being defended.

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To the surprise of no one, Ty’Ron Hopper was sticky in his one-on-one coverage. Both Will Norris and true freshman Brayshawn Littlejohn recorded pass-breakups on Michael Cox and Tavorus Jones.

Quarterback battle update

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Giving my two cents on the quarterback battle, it would appear it’s Brady Cook’s job to lose at this point. From what we’ve been able to watch He appears to be the sharpest QB all the way down to his mechanics. Sam Horn is taking the No. 2 quarterback reps, with Jake Garcia being the No. 3 option. While Garcia appears to be third on the depth chart, his zip on the ball after his release is impressive.

Offensive Line Speculation

Marcellus Johnson struggled a bit again Jay Jernigan in offensive line drills. This is interesting as Armand Membou worked in at right tackle earlier in the week with Cam’Ron Johnson at the right guard position. It’s also where Membou played during the 2022 season. The team is still sorting through finding the best five players for the unit, but if it stands, the line could look like this:

LT: Javon Foster

LG: Xavier Delgado

C: Connor Tollison

RG: Cam’Ron Johnson

RT: Armand Membou

Special Teams Notes

While Harrison Mevis was present, he did not attempt a single field goal at the beginning of practice. Blake Craig attempted a total of four field goals. He made the first three. It wasn’t clear if he knocked in the fourth one. Luke Bauer stepped in as the first team placeholder, which has been a common theme all week. Brady Cook started fall camp as the No. 1 placeholder but is now with the No. 2’s.

Other Notes:

Representation from the Buffalo Bills and Indianapolis Colts was present at today’s fall camp practice.