COLUMBIA, MO. • College football’s new December signing period has stripped some luster off the traditional February signing date, but with a few boxes unchecked, Barry Odom put the final touches on Missouri’s latest recruiting haul with six additions Wednesday, a class Odom and Mizzou fans surely hope becomes remembered for the out-of-state prospects the staff uncovered, not the in-state targets who got away.
The area’s final recruit on the market, Parkway North lineman Michael Thompson Jr., picked up a red Oklahoma cap over the black Mizzou option at Wednesday’s signing ceremony, clinching Odom’s second straight class that doesn’t include a St. Louis high school prospect. The only area players among MU’s class of 25 recruits are junior college transfers, receiver Harry Ballard III from McCluer North and defensive tackle Antar Thompson from Maplewood-Richmond Heights, both of whom signed with MU out of high school but didn’t qualify academically.
Overall, MU’s newcomers come from 11 states, led by nine from Texas and five from Missouri. MU signed two recruits from Florida and Georgia and one each from Arizona, Louisiana, Michigan, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. By Rivals.com’s rankings, MU’s class included two four-star players, defensive end Daniel Parker (Blue Springs, Mo.) and linebacker Chad Bailey (Missouri City, Texas), with the rest rated as two and three stars. Parker was Mizzou’s only catch among the high-priority “Tiger Ten” in-state targets Odom’s staff hosted on campus last February.
Scouting services consistently ranked Mizzou’s class near the bottom of the Southeastern Conference and in the 40s nationally. ESPN rated MU’s class No. 40 and 13 in the SEC, while Rivals.com had MU at No. 41 and 12 and 247Sports.com at No. 42 and 13.
Last year’s class, Odom’s second as Mizzou’s head coach, ranked in the same range. His staff hopes the early returns are similar and the latest collection of talent outperforms the underwhelming rankings. Ten freshmen from last year’s class saw the field during MU’s 7-6 season, including a few who generated little buzz this time last year.
“People get so hung up on star ratings and amount of offers and those things. For us, it’s physical traits,” said receivers coach A.J. Ofodile, who served as Odom’s director of recruiting the last two years. “We don’t feel like we have compromised anything. When we look at our 2017 class, and some of the guys that weren’t viewed as great prospects because of the amount of offers and stars by their names, and you see what they did on the field for us in their first year in the SEC, and what their physical traits are — speed, strength, flexibility — we feel like we have worked really hard on not compromising on that.”
Ofodile’s position group will undergo the biggest makeover this offseason. Ballard and freshman receiver Dominic Gicinto (Raytown, Mo.) are already enrolled and going through offseason workouts, while the other four new receivers should be on hand this summer as the Tigers must replace All-SEC senior J’Mon Moore and improve a depleted cast of wideouts.
Ballard spent the last two years at Jones, Miss., Junior College after first signing with Mizzou in 2016 and becomes the latest high-profile area target to resurface at MU after a juco detour. Others who fit that description — the late running back Damien Nash, defensive lineman Sheldon Richardson and linebacker Markus Golden — ended up in the NFL.
“He just needed another opportunity to start with a clean slate,” said MU running backs coach Cornell Ford, the team’s St. Louis recruiter since 2001. “Of all the junior college kids I’ve ever worked with, his was the easiest. I had to do very little work. He went in. He started over. He got nothing but A’s and B’s. He was on time. Got nothing but glowing reports about Ballard. He is going to work hard. He’s a talented kid. He just needed another chance. And this is his opportunity.”
Mizzou missed on CBC receiver tandem Kamryn Babb and Cameron Brown, both headed to Ohio State, but landed three Texas receivers.
“Hopefully one or two of them can get in there and make an impact for us,” new offensive coordinator Derek Dooley said. “Because we need them to.”
Mizzou went beyond the state border to address other needs, including both defensive players signed Wednesday, linebacker Nick Bolton from Frisco, Texas, and defensive end Jatorian Hansford from Forsyth, Ga. Wednesday’s final batch of recruits included Memphis running back Tyler Badie, quarterback Lindsey Scott Jr., who began his career at Louisiana State and led Eastern Mississippi Community College to a national championship, and offensive tackles Bobby Lawrence (St. Joseph, Mo.) and Xavier Delgado (Glendale, Ariz.)
Among athletes who backed off their pledges to Mizzou in recent months, quarterback James Foster signed with Texas A&M, while safety Cam Taylor picked Nebraska and linebacker La’Dedric Jackson chose Tulane. All three players are from Montgomery, Ala., and dropped their commitments during Mizzou’s early-season struggles. Tyrus Wheat, a linebacker from Amite, La., committed to MU in July but did not sign with a Division I school and could be headed to junior college.