Exit Interview: Mitch Morse
Over the next few weeks, PowerMizzou.com is catching up with Missouri's departing players and taking one look back at their college careers, in their own words. We ask each player the same 12 questions for an exit interview on their life as a Missouri Tiger.
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Today, we begin with left tackle Mitch Morse, a three-year starter. Morse recently received an invitation to the NFL Combine and is training in Atlanta, Ga.
What was the main reason you chose Mizzou out of high school?
Mitch Morse: The main reason why I chose Mizzou, honestly, was the camaraderie. It's not something I was just told, I could see it from outside the team. I liked how you really got what you saw. You hear about coaches kissing your butt and then when you get there they're completely different. The Missouri coaches were real with you. They told you what they expected from you and everything is earned by what you do. They said how they would be your mentors and help you play your best football.
Besides Missouri, which schools came closest to landing you?
Morse: If it wasn't Mizzou -- and these schools said they would offer me if I went to their camps -- then it would have been Stanford, Vanderbilt or Oklahoma. My whole's dad side, except for my dad, went to Oklahoma. My grandmother was Barry Switzer's secretary for a long time.
How difficult was the adjustment from high school to college football?
Morse: Everything will tell you the same thing. It's getting used to the speed of the game and becoming a real student of the game. Filmwork became a key component of the college level. In high school, you watched film once a week. In college, it wasn't a joke. You have hours of film work a day, analyzing everything.
What was the one moment or period of time when you felt like you were completely adjusted?
Morse: By my redshirt freshman spring, I felt like I was in the mix. I won a starting job the year after. After a year and a half in the program, going through a few offseasons and conditioning sessions, I felt ready.
What was the high point of your college career, on a personal (non-team) level?
Morse: The first time I got to fly first-class to an away game. When we travel to games, the offensive linemen (and defensive linmen) starters get to sit in first class. The first time I did that, I thought, 'This is awesome. My hard work is paying off.' Always seeing those older guys sitting there, I always thought, man, I hope one day I get there.
What was the low point, again on a personal level?
Morse: There was that few game stretch in 2012 when my snapping was suspect. It was a horror story then. First game in the SEC, one of the first snaps, and I sail it over James's head. I was feeling like absolute crap. One thing I knew is that I would be all right. Coach Pinkel just told me to settle down instead of ripping me a new one. He said it would be all right. That's the kind of guy he is.
Were the majority of the pitches that Missouri made during the recruiting process true, after your time at MU?
Morse: I would say so. I came in -- some guys come in with high expectations. I came in thinking, 'Whatever happens, happens.' I got everything I was promised.
What was the best thing Missouri's staff did in your development?
Morse: They put you in competitive situations where you're forced to find it within you to strive. The competition they put into practice -- not bad competition, they're not always screaming or yelling -- but they're relentlessly positive. When you would try hard, they did a good job of understanding how you were feeling at certain times. Those competitive situations force you to develop fast.
If you could give one piece of advice to Missouri's staff, what would it be?
Morse: I can't really think of anything. It would just be to continue what they're doing. What I thought was great was, Coach (Brian) Jones, my first summer in school, he invited me over to his place for lunch with a couple of the other guys he recruited. He welcomed me into his home. At that point I knew I was in the right place.
In your opinion, what is the biggest necessary improvement from a facilities-standpoint that Missouri needs to make?
Morse: I think they're on the right track. I'm super bummed I'm catching all the cool stuff they're doing on the tail end. If they're trying to keep up with making recruits go 'Ooh' and 'Ahh', they should get cold tubs and hot tubs the size of swimming pools.
Also, moving walkways between Faurot Field and our locker room so we don't have to walk up that damn hill (laughing). It's so demoralizing, especially after those scrimmages in the spring and summer.
What are the differences in the Missouri program you came into and the one you're leaving?
Morse: The biggest change with the program was just a change of mentality from freshman year to senior year. I'm sure, as a freshman, I knew it was special and everyone was really tight, but a few would do their own thing. As the years progressed, we got tighter and tighter. This year and last year, no one disliked each other. On a personal level, I would be comfortable hanging out with anyone of those guys. We were one tight knit family.
In ten years, what will you be doing and what do you want Mizzou fans to remember about you?
Morse: I will probably have a giant beer gut. No, I don't know. In a perfect world, I'll probably start my professional life outside of football, hopefully with a nice financial cushion to go after my dreams. But I might want to stick around the game.
I want Missouri fans to remember that I had a full head of hair when I started (laughing). Hopefully I'm remembered as a guy who was the ultimate teammate and stuck it out when we were 5-7 and then helped us last year and this year get to 12-2, 11-3. A stable guy that the football team could count on -- I mean, I was good for at least one false start a game (laughing).
