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Camp preview: Five storylines to watch

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The Missouri football team finally starts practices for the 2018 season on Friday. During the last two weeks, PowerMizzou has previewed the season by breaking down the roster by position group. You can find those here. Today, we continue our previews by identifying five storylines we’ll be monitoring during the next three weeks.

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Sophomore Joshuah Bledsoe is one of several players who will contend for a starting safety spot during fall camp.
Sophomore Joshuah Bledsoe is one of several players who will contend for a starting safety spot during fall camp. (Jordan Kodner)

1. Who will start at safety?

Missouri’s biggest concern entering camp has to be its secondary. The Tigers ranked No. 107 nationally against the pass a season ago, and since then they have lost both starting safeties, as Anthony Sherrills graduated and Kaleb Prewett was dismissed from the team. For this team to live up to fans’ expectations, someone yet unproven will have to step up and fill the void there. The coaching staff seems high on sophomore Tyree Gillespie, who has only seen action on special teams thus far. Former linebacker Joshuah Bledsoe and Jordan Ulmer are also lightly experienced sophomores who have a chance to play. Khalil Oliver played a bit at Oregon before joining Missouri’s team as a graduate transfer. Senior Cam Hilton is the most experienced of the bunch, but he struggled at times during his first three seasons. If none of those players is able to step up and perform consistently, the Tiger offense might not be able to keep up with opponents’ scoring.

2. Which true freshmen will contribute at wide receiver?

Missouri struggled to land wide receivers in its first two recruiting classes under Barry Odom. The coaching staff addressed the issue by adding seven newcomers (five freshmen, a junior college transfer and a graduate transfer) at the position this year, but following the graduation of leading receiver J’Mon Moore, that has left the team with a young receiving corps. By necessity, at least a couple true freshmen will play all season, and fall camp should give us an indication of who is best equipped to make an instant impact. Kansas City native Dominic Gicinto could be one of those players, as he enrolled early and participated in spring workouts with the team. When Missouri released its first two-deep depth chart of the preseason at SEC Media Days, Gicinto was included. Even though the other freshmen haven’t yet put on pads, Drew Lock has already complimented Jalen Knox, Kam Scott and Khmari Thompson. If some of those players can learn the offense quickly and make a difference this season, the Tiger offense will be better for it.

Missouri hopes defensive ends Tre Williams and Chris Turner can emerge as effective pass rushers this season.
Missouri hopes defensive ends Tre Williams and Chris Turner can emerge as effective pass rushers this season. (Jordan Kodner)

3. Does Missouri have its next elite edge rusher on the roster?

One way Missouri could alleviate the pressure on its safeties is by pressuring opposing quarterbacks. The Tigers are loaded on the interior of the defensive line, but will feature two new starters at defense end this season. Columbia native Tre Williams has drawn comparisons to Aldon Smith for his athletic ability; he and fellow sophomore Chris Turner will likely get the first crack at the starting spots. Behind them are three highly-touted freshmen: Daniel Parker Jr., Jatorian Hansford and Trajan Jeffcoat. The best Missouri teams in recent memory have all featured fearsome pass rushers. If one or two of those players can emerge as a threat off the edge and keep opposing offenses from double-teaming Terry Beckner Jr. every play, the entire defense will benefit.

4. Will any of the backup quarterbacks separate himself from the rest?

Missouri fans don’t want to see anyone other than Lock taking a meaningful snap this season, but it’s time to start wondering if the Tigers have a serviceable successor to Lock on the current roster — and if so, who it is. Sophomore Micah Wilson served as Lock’s primary backup last season and saw a bit of action late in blowouts, but he wasn’t listed among the top three players on the team’s first depth chart of the preseason. Instead, junior college transfer Lindsey Scott Jr. and redshirt sophomore Jack Lowary were listed as co-backups. The backups will probably get more reps during camp than during the regular season, so even though there’s still a season between now and Lock’s departure, there’s an opportunity for one player to build favor with the coaching staff and put himself in position to start in 2019.

5. How will the offense look different under Derek Dooley?

Dooley and his “pro-style” additions to the offense have been the talk of the offseason, but we don’t really know what the unit will look like on the field. The only time the Tiger offense has been visible since Dooley took over from Josh Heupel — last spring’s Black and Gold game — Missouri’s players admitted the team kept its schemes as bland as possible. However, they’ve hinted at some of the changes Dooley has sought to implement this offseason: more complex route trees, formations with multiple tight ends and snaps from under center. What remains to be seen is how often the Tigers actually use those concepts versus the spread style Heupel preferred. The offense is loaded with returning talent; if players adjust well to Dooley’s scheme, it could be a special season for Missouri.

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