Five Downs: Tuesday, March 19
Missouri held its eighth spring football practice Tuesday afternoon. As usual, here are five takeaways.
Thin RB group ready to rely on Rountree
When junior running back Damarea Crockett, a former 1,000-yard rusher for Missouri and co-starter last season, declared for the NFL Draft in early January, it didn’t generate much concern outside of the Missouri locker room. The Tigers will still have Larry Rountree III, who has rushed for 1,919 yards during his two seasons at Missouri, including 1,216 yards last season, in the backfield in 2019. Plus, rising sophomores Tyler Badie and Simi Bakare both saw the field and showed some flashes a season ago.
But during spring practices, running backs coach Cornell Ford said, the position has felt short-handed due to Crockett’s departure. Incoming freshman Anthony Watkins will add to the depth when he arrives on campus next fall, but for now, Ford said, an injury to Rountree, Badie or Bakare would be costly. Ford admitted that, had the coaching staff known sooner that Crockett would declare for the NFL Draft, it would have added a second running back in the signing class in addition to Watkins.
“It didn’t come soon enough,” Ford said of Crockett’s decision. “We needed the bodies at other positions, so we felt like we could get away with one tailback at that time. Had we known Crockett wasn’t coming back, we probably would have taken two, but at that time, we really didn’t know it yet.”
That said, Ford is not worried about giving Rountree a heavy workload. Rountree carried the ball at least 21 times in each of the Tigers’ final four games last season, including 29 carries against Arkansas and 27 in the Liberty Bowl.
“He earned it, and we needed it down the stretch,” Ford said. “He was very strong, and people kind of shied away from 34 when he was coming around the corner. But he’s a power back, he’s a downhill kind of running back, and he wants that. He’s been dying to be the guy.”
Ford said Missouri has been fortunate with its injury luck the past few seasons, though Crockett did miss nine games across the past two years due to injury, and Badie sat out a couple games last year as well. Ultimately, Ford would like to have a three-man rotation at tailback like he had last year, but if he has to lean on Rountree, he feels comfortable doing so.
“If we’re fortunate enough to have three or four, we’ll play three or four,” Ford said. “If not, we’ll just go with what we got.”
Backs, Bryant helping each other
The good news for Missouri is that, while it may be a tad thin at tailback, new quarterback Kelly Bryant should add more to the ground game than Drew Lock did a season ago. Ford, who spent three years as the safeties coach at Missouri and 11 years coaching cornerbacks, said he knows from experience that a mobile quarterback can make an opponent’s running game more difficult to stop.
“It will take a little bit of stress off of us, from a run game perspective,” Ford said of Bryant’s running ability. “Being on the other side of the ball for 15 years, it’s really stressful on defenses when you’ve got a quarterback that can run and throw. He can extend plays, and it just drives people crazy. So that will help us.”
At the same time, Ford said that, while Bryant’s legs could help the running backs be more productive this season, the running backs can return the favor. A strong rushing attack is a quarterback’s best friend, and Ford wants Bryant to be able to lean on the Tiger running backs as he adjusts to a new scheme.
“The thing that I’ve told our guys is, he’s new, he’s coming in having to learn a whole new system, terminology, he’s got a lot going on in his head,” Ford said. “We’ve got to take stress off of him by doing our part and playing at a high level, and that will make his job a lot easier.”
Knox feeling rejuvenated
Following Saturday's scrimmage, head coach Barry Odom singled out sophomore wide receiver Jalen Knox, saying “I don’t know that anybody has out-practiced” Knox. Tuesday, Knox said his productive offseason stemmed from a sense that he let his teammates down at the end of last season. Knox burst onto the scene as a true freshman and was twice named the SEC freshman of the week, but he caught just four total passes for 22 yards across the team’s last five games.
“I just felt like I could have did way more,” Knox said. “I let my body get way out of whack, I wasn’t taking care of it like I should have, I wasn’t lifting weights like I should have. I was just getting lazy and getting complacent with where I was.”
As a result, Knox has dedicated more efforts to the team’s weight lifting workouts, and he’s seeing the results. He said he’s gained 12 pounds since the end of last season, currently weighing in at 204. Despite the added weight, however, he doesn’t believe he’s lost any speed.
“I feel so much better,” he said. “On top of my body feeling better, I feel stronger, faster, and my confidence is higher. I just feel like this is what I’m here to do.”
Thompson to compete in track meet this weekend
Redshirt freshman wide receiver Khmari Thompson has been dedicating the majority of his time to football training during the offseason, but he’s still found some time to pursue his other sport of interest: track. Thompson competed in his first track meet for Missouri’s at the Larry Wieczorek Invitational in January, running the 60-meter and 200-meter dashes. Now, he’s set to compete in his first outdoor track meet this weekend, when Missouri travels to the Herm Wilson Invitational hosted by Wichita State.
Thompson, who moved from the outside to the slot during the offseason, believes the track training he has done during the offseason has helped him on the football field, and vice versa.
“It helps me get off the line (of scrimmage).” Thompson said. “I think actually it’s a crossover for both, because the strength from lifting for football and the speed work for track, it helps with both.”
Competition underway for holder
Missouri will have to fill a void at punter this offseason due to the graduation of four-year starter Corey Fatony. But that’s not the only spot where the Tigers will miss Fatony. He also served as the holder for field goal and extra point attempts the past few seasons.
So far, special teams coordinator Andy Hill has given most of the reps at holder to three players: wide receiver Barrett Banister, backup kicker Sean Koetting and walk-on linebacker Chance May. Banister, who played meaningful snaps at slot receiver a season ago and earned a scholarship as a result, said he’s new to holding, he never did it in high school, but he has embraced the opportunity to further expand his role.
“(The coaches) talked to me about it and I’m just working on it and practicing on it,” Banister said. “I guess anything that can help me get in the rotation is a good thing.”