‘He’s got a lot of weapons:’ Kelly Bryant commitment excites current Mizzou players
Wide receiver Johnathon Johnson walked into a tutoring session not knowing who would throw him passes in 2019. By the time he left, Missouri had found its next quarterback.
Former Clemson standout Kelly Bryant committed to transfer to Missouri last week, giving Barry Odom an experienced passer to replace senior Drew Lock. Bryant will be immediately eligible as a graduate transfer and is set to enroll at MU in January. He signed financial aid paperwork Thursday, allowing the football program to publicly address the commitment.
“I had a feeling,” said Johnson, who found out from an alert on his phone Tuesday. “How could you not want to play with the receivers we’ve got here?”
Johnson said he sent a message to the wideout group text immediately. His teammates shared his excitement.
Bryant led Clemson to an Atlantic Coast Conference championship and the College Football Playoff semifinals as a junior in 2017. He passed for 13 touchdowns and ran for 11 more.
He started four games for Clemson in 2018 but lost his job to highly recruited freshman Trevor Lawrence. Because Bryant played in fewer than five games, he retained his final year of collegiate eligibility.
“Having a good player come in kind of elevates the play of everybody,” offensive lineman Case Cook said. “It’ll bring competition to the team, and I think competition makes everybody better.”
Missouri junior Tre’Vour Wallace-Simms will be one of Bryant’s primary blockers next season. The offensive lineman searched Bryant’s name on Twitter while receiving a massage Tuesday and saw the quarterback’s commitment announcement.
“It’s always good to have another good quarterback coming in and carry on the momentum rolling into next season,” Simms said.
Simms met Bryant when the quarterback visited Missouri for the Tigers’ game against Kentucky in October. Johnson said he also talked to Bryant before the game and encouraged the transfer to consider Missouri.
“I get the best of both worlds at quarterback,” Johnson said. “I can play with a great guy like Drew and a dual-threat like Kelly Bryant.”
Multiple players expressed excitement on social media the evening of Bryant’s announcement. Arkansas graduate transfer Jonathan Nance committed to Missouri moments after Bryant, and Tigers receiver Jalen Knox tweeted, “It’s finna be dangerous.”
Offensive coordinator Derek Dooley did not comment on Bryant at practice last week, saying he’s focused on Missouri’s upcoming bowl game. The Tigers play Oklahoma State in the Liberty Bowl Dec. 31.
Missouri should return three of its five starters on the offensive line next season, including Simms, who earned All-SEC honors. The Tigers top three running backs are also underclassmen and — even with the departure of senior receiver Emanuel Hall — Knox, freshman Kam Scott, Johnson and Nance keep a capable core of wideouts intact for Bryant. Tight end Albert Okwuegbunam could also be back. He is weighing his NFL Draft options.
“I’ll be an outsider looking in, so I can be honest about it: I think we have a really good chance to win a lot of games,” said Lock, a projected first-round draft pick. “He’s got a lot of weapons around him. For whoever is out there playing quarterback, it’s going to be a good season for him.”