Missouri football outlook for National Signing Day
Top five recruits
Name | Pos. | Rank* | Ht. | Wt. | School |
1. Drew Lock | QB | 7 | 6-3 | 205 | Lee’s Summit HS |
Lock, who is Rivals’ top-ranked player in Missouri and No. 177 overall, emerged as one of the top quarterbacks in the nation during the last two seasons. Lock, whose father and grandfather played for the Tigers, is a redshirt candidate, but he arrives with NFL potential after a strong showing at last summer’s Elite 11 camp.
2. AJ Harris | OL | 23 | 6-3 | 297 | Blue Valley HS |
Harris, the top-ranked player in Kansas, is an interior-line prospect with potential for dominance. He blends ideal athleticism and grit for Missouri’s system with a high football IQ. Harris helped the Tigers win the 2013 Class 5A championship and immediately could crack MU’s two deep.
3. Natereace Strong | RB | 26 | 6-0 | 202 | East St. Louis (Ill.) HS |
Strong rushed for 1,612 and eight touchdowns as a senior, but he’s already enrolled at Hinds (Miss.) Community College for the spring semester with an eye toward being NCAA Division I eligible by 2016.
4. Marquise Doherty | RB | 31 | 6-0 | 193 | Winnetonka HS |
The lightning-fast Doherty is a supremely talented athlete who also starred at safety for the Griffins. He plans to play baseball for the Tigers, assuming he doesn’t go high enough in June’s baseball draft that he skips college altogether.
5. Chase Abbington | RB | NR | 6-2 | 209 | Hutchinson (Kan.) CC |
Abbington originally committed to Missouri from Fort Zumwalt South in suburban St. Louis two years ago, but needed a junior-college detour. He will have three years of eligibility remaining and provides a bigger back than the Tigers normally utilize.
*Rivals.com national position ranking
The one who got away
Make that two. Blue Springs defensive tackles Khalil and Carlos Davis were back in play for Missouri after Bo Pelini was fired at Nebraska, but the Davis twins wound up sticking with the Cornhuskers. Missing out on Rock Bridge wide receiver Alex Ofodile, a Rivals four-star recruit, also hurts. He will sign with Oregon.
Still fishing for …
East St. Louis (Ill.) defensive tackle Terry Beckner Jr. is expected to pick Missouri during a signing-day announcement at 9:45 a.m. on ESPNU. Beckner, who is the consensus No. 1 player in Illinois, is rated as the No. 2 overall player in the 2015 recruiting class by ESPN and No. 36 overall by Rivals.
Position answered for …
Offensive line, which added three players who could make a quick impact — Harris, early enrollee Malik Cuellar from City College of San Francisco and Butler (Kan.) Community College tackle Tyler Howell, a Bonner Springs graduate. Each, at minimum, bolsters the Tigers’ depth. Howell or Cuellar might replace left tackle Mitch Morse.
Position unanswered for …
Missouri seemingly did a terrific job filling in the gaps on its roster, adding depth at its biggest positions of need — wide receiver, offensive line and defensive line. The Tigers are a bit light at linebacker, which only has Kentrell Brothers for one more season. Montverde (Fla.) Academy’s Franklin Agbasimere is a raw prospect. Landing Terez Hall from Lithonia, Ga., would be a big coup for MU.
Early enrollees (2)
Player | Pos. | Ht. | Wt | School |
Malik Cuellar | OL | 6-5 | 295 | City College of San Francisco |
Tanner Owen | OL | 6-6 | 265 | Kearney HS |
Signed Wednesday (21)
Player | Pos. | Ht. | Wt | School |
Franklin Agbasimere | LB | 6-2 | 220 | Montverde (Fla.) Academy |
Chase Abbington | RB | 6-2 | 209 | Hutchinson (Kan.) CC |
Terry Beckner, Jr. | DT | 6-4 | 298 | East St. Louis (Ill.) HS |
Marquise Doherty | RB | 6-0 | 193 | Winnetonka HS |
Corey Fatony | P/K | 5-11 | 185 | Franklin (Tenn.) HS |
Richaud Floyd | WR | 5-11 | 165 | Gulfport (Miss.) HS |
Marcell Frazier | DE | 6-4 | 245 | College of the Siskiyous (Weed, Calif.) |
Emanuel Hall | WR | 6-3 | 196 | Centennial HS (Franklin, Tenn.) |
Terez Hall | LB | 6-3 | 208 | King HS (Lithonia, Ga.) |
AJ Harris | OL | 6-3 | 297 | Blue Valley HS |
Cam Hilton | DB | 6-0 | 172 | Webster Groves HS (St. Louis) |
Nate Howard | DE | 6-5 | 220 | Ladue Horton Watkins HS (St. Louis) |
Tyler Howell | OL | 6-9 | 305 | Butler CC (El Dorado, Kan.) |
Tyrell Jacobs | DE | 6-4 | 260 | Rummel HS (Metairie, La.) |
Johnathon Johnson | WR | 5-8 | 174 | Melrose HS (Memphis, Tenn.) |
Drew Lock | QB | 6-3 | 205 | Lee’s Summit HS |
Josh Moore | DE | 6-5 | 250 | Olathe North HS |
Ronnell Perkins | WR | 6-1 | 175 | University City (Mo.) HS |
Justin Smith | WR | 6-7 | 200 | West Laurens HS (Dublin, Ga.) |
T.J. Warren | DB | 6-0 | 190 | Rockdale County HS (Conyers, Ga.) |
Ryan Williams | RB | 5-10 | 178 | Lee’s Summit West HS |
This story was originally published February 3, 2015 at 11:44 AM with the headline "Missouri football outlook for National Signing Day."