Arkansas passed on MU tailback Damarea Crockett. Now he can show them what they missed

Damarea Crockett is trying to put his health first, but right now that’s easier said than done.

Missouri’s junior tailback is nursing a sprained right ankle but is doing everything he can to play in Friday’s game against Arkansas. Crockett, a Little Rock, Ark. native, didn’t get offered by the hometown Hogs out of high school, which is partly how he wound up at Mizzou.

He also has yet to play against them, thanks to a one-game suspension his freshman year for a marijuana citation and a shoulder injury that sidelined him the last six games in 2017.

“I’m trying not to focus on that,” Crockett said. “I’m not trying to focus on playing Arkansas. Or that I haven’t played them yet.”

Crockett injured his ankle in Missouri’s win over Tennessee on Saturday but both he and Mizzou coach Barry Odom are optimistic he’ll play on Friday.

Despite splitting carries with sophomore Larry Rountree this season, Crockett is within striking distance of his second career 1,000-yard rushing season in three years. He has 709 yards rushing and seven touchdowns. Rountree is 107 yards shy of the 1,000-yard plateau at 893 rushing yards.

Coming out of high school, former Arkansas coach Bret Bielema “really liked” Crockett as a prospect but chose current Hogs tailback T.J. Hammonds instead. But Crockett got the last laugh. Entering Friday’s game, Hammonds has 383 career rushing yards for the Hogs. Crockett has 2,252 career rushing yards for MU.

“It’s all good,” Crockett said with a smile. “Things worked out for the best.”

When Missouri flipped Crockett from Boise State shortly before National Signing Day in 2016, he was seen as an under-the-radar recruit for the Tigers. Arkansas’ decision not to offer Crockett ended up affecting his recruitment nationally, as well.

Jeff Weaver, Crockett’s high school coach at Little Rock Christian Academy, noted that the state isn’t a hotbed for talent like California or Texas. If a Power Five school is going to come in and offer a prospect, he has to be worth their time and resources.

“Arkansas not offering him hurt him,” Weaver said. “Programs from other parts of the country want to come in and offer on a kid that Arkansas wants.

Being spurned by his hometown school put a chip on Crockett’s shoulder. It was a motivator for his freshman season, where he rushed for 1,062 yards.

Senior offensive lineman Paul Adams said a few players realized in MU’s offensive meetings on Sunday that Friday would be Crockett’s first game against the Hogs, which led to some excitement from his teammates.

“He’s going to be running the ball pretty hard on (Friday),” Adams said. “I’m very excited for him.”

Quarterback Drew Lock went a step further, saying Crockett is going to be “on fire” when he gets the ball on Friday.

Crockett isn’t trying to put any extra pressure on himself to play if he’s hurt. He missed last year’s bowl game with the shoulder injury and doesn’t want to hurt the team by trying to rush things.

Crockett needs two good games to break 1,000 yards for the season, and if there’s any team that could help him reach that mark, it’s Arkansas. The Hogs are ranked No. 67 nationally in rushing defense and 82nd in total defense, which shouldn’t be a problem for MU’s top 20 offense.

“He always wanted to show them, ‘Hey this is what you missed out on,’” Weaver said.

Friday could be his chance.

Alex Schiffer

Alex Schiffer covers University of Missouri athletics for The Star.

This story was originally published November 20, 2018 at 5:45 PM.