Mizzou signs 19 new football recruits as 'foundational' part of roster-building

The Missouri Tigers football program kept stacking high school talent on Wednesday, even as college football tilts further toward the transfer portal.

Mizzou coach Eli Drinkwitz announced a 19-man signing class on the first day of the early period, the Tigers' fourth consensus top-30 high school class in the last five years.

Among the newcomers is Gavin Sidwar, the latest Pennsylvania quarterback to join Missouri's roster. The state has become a notable pipeline under Drinkwitz, with Sidwar set to follow former Pennsylvania prep standouts Matt Zollers and Beau Pribula into the Tigers' quarterback room.

Mizzou's 2026 signees:

Quarterback

• Gavin Sidwar, 6-3, 190, La Salle College (Wyndmoor, Pa.)

Running back

• Maxwell Warner, 5-10, 185, Whitney Young (Chicago)

Wide receivers

• Jabari Brady, 6-1, 205, Monarch (Pompano Beach, Fla.)

• Devyon Hill-Lomax, 6-4, 180, Edwardsville (Ill.)

Tight end

• Isaac Jensen, 6-6, 230, Millard South (Omaha, Neb.)

Offensive line

• Johnnie Jones, 6-6, 305, Venice (Fla.)

• Brandon Anderson, 6-3, 326, North Cobb (Kennesaw, Ga.)

• Khalief Canty, 6-5, 305, Cass Technical (Detroit)

• Brysen Wessell, 6-5, 260, Jackson (Mo.)

• Braylon Ellison, 6-4, 285, Boonville (Mo.)

Defensive line / Edge

• Tajh Overton, 6-3, 275, Owasso (Okla.)

• Demarcus Johnson, 6-7, 260, Hutchinson CC (Kan.)

• Jayden McGregory, 6-2, 195, Valley (West Des Moines, Iowa)

• Ahmod Billins, 6-2, 175, Abbeville (Ala.)

Linebackers

• JJ Bush, 6-3, 210, Theodore (Ala.)

• Keenan Harris, 6-1, 210, St. Louis University High

Defensive backs

• Jaxson Gates, 6-1, 170, Damien (La Verne, Calif.)

• Brody Jones, 6-3, 175, Fayetteville (Ark.)

• Carter Stewart, 6-1, 170, Shadow Creek (Pearland, Texas)

"We're continuing to recruit at a high level even in a time where high school recruiting has been de-emphasized because of the portal," Drinkwitz said. "We got 19 signees, 10 on offense, nine on defense. Eight different signees were rated four-star or higher. We signed players from 13 different states."

Out of the commits, 15 are expected to enroll in January, giving them a full offseason in the strength program and an early start on learning the system. The group also includes one of the top junior-college players in the country in defensive lineman Demarcus Johnson, whom Drinkwitz said was viewed as either the No. 1 or No. 2 JUCO prospect nationally.

Drinkwitz framed the class as another piece of his long-stated formula: build around high school recruits, then use the portal to patch misses and fill immediate needs.

"We're always going to be a foundational recruiting of high school players," he said. "You look at our current roster, Daylan Carnell, Connor Tollison, Marvin Burks, Josh Manning, Marquis Johnson, Brett Norfleet, Jordon Harris, Jamal Roberts. These are guys that have come in, developed and are significant contributors to us. That's always going to be a key piece to what we do."

Drinkwitz said Missouri will typically have 18 to 22 high school signees per cycle, with the rest of the roster coming from transfers. He also doubled down on something he has hit on often the past two years: He wants to see senior-year film before finalizing most offers.

"If you're investing money in a product, you want to see that product's senior tape," he said. "Can you imagine if the NFL drafted its players a year before they signed? We like June commitments, but we're going to reevaluate your senior tape before we send you the offer you can finalize."

The class also arrives in a very different financial landscape. This group is one of Missouri's first in the formal revenue-sharing era, in which written agreements replace handshake NIL promises and programs operate under hard budgets instead of, "pass-the-hat" fundraising.

"You have a rev-share amount. You have a third-party NIL that is potentially there, but not guaranteed," Drinkwitz said. "You have a budget. Much like people have to balance their checkbook, you have to balance the budget based off, 'This is what we have slotted for this player. If I change this number, it's going to have to come from here.' "

Missouri has leaned heavily into multi-year contracts to create some stability on both sides.

"We like them," Drinkwitz said. "We want to be a developmental program, and we understand that gives them a level of security to grow and develop, and it gives us a level of security of not getting invested in somebody who's already trying to negotiate the next opportunity."

Drinkwitz added that three signees are still playing for state championships this weekend, a detail he pointed to as a sign of the kind of programs and players the Tigers targeted.

At the same time, Wednesday also underscored how volatile roster building has become.

True freshman running back Brendon Haygood told PowerMizzou he plans to enter the transfer portal. The 5-foot-10, 190-pound back from Wylie, Texas, appeared in one game this fall, recording four carries for 12 yards in Missouri's 52–10 win over Louisiana. He sat behind a crowded backfield that includes Ahmad Hardy, Jamal Roberts, Marquis Davis and Tavorus Jones.

On the recruiting front, three-star edge rusher Micah Nickerson flipped his commitment from Missouri back to Mississippi State on Wednesday, costing the Tigers a 6-foot-5 pass rusher in their 2026 class. Nickerson put up 59 tackles, 19 tackles for loss and 10 sacks as a senior, plus 11 catches for 257 yards and five touchdowns on offense.

Those losses, Drinkwitz would argue, are part of the new normal in a system built on revenue sharing, short-term contracts and a two-week January portal window. He expects this offseason's transfer cycle across the sport to be as busy as any yet.

"What we're being asked to do has never been done in the history of college football before, and so we're all learning at the same time," he said. "For our guys, it's about chasing dreams, developing an elite edge and competing for championships. Money doesn't lead. It follows."

Copyright 2025 Columbia Missourian

This story was originally published December 3, 2025 at 5:30 PM with the headline "Mizzou signs 19 new football recruits as 'foundational' part of roster-building."