HOOVER, Ala. -- Barry Odom, Charles Harris, Sean Culkin and Michael Scherer represent Missouri during Wednesday's SEC Media Day session. Before the group meets with local and national media, we're breaking down the most important story lines to follow during the Tigers' trip down media line.

This will be our first chance to get (hopefully) concrete injury updates since spring practice ended. Missouri was relatively healthy out of spring, but the concerning injuries affect the position group with the least depth and the position group that may be Missouri's best.

On the offensive line, left guard Nate Crawford saw his spring cut short with back surgery. It was his second such procedure in a calendar year. At the time, Barry Odom said Crawford would be back for summer workouts; but, according to sources, that still has not happened. Missouri is certainly in the market for more offensive linemen, despite already adding two (JUCO transfer Kyle Mitchell and late prep qualifier Darvis Holmes), and that could hint that Crawford's rehabilitation is going slower than expected.
If Crawford can't go, Missouri suddenly drops from 14 career starts ... to three, all of which are by center Alec Abeln.

Yikes.

The other injuries to update are on the defensive line, which again is expected to be a strongsuit for Missouri. Terry Beckner, Jr., tore his ACL and MCL last November, but he returned after spring break for limited practice -- definitely a good sign. Star defensive end Charles Harris had two shoulder procedures in the offseason, one that ended his spring season early (but was planned). No lingering effects are expected, but it's always good to hear that a team's best player is good to go.

Finally, the status of Harold Brantley will be addressed. PowerMizzou.com that he is eligible to play this fall after getting a waiver for missed coursework following his very serious car accident, but we're still unsure how physically ready Brantley will be. His possible addition to that line would just be the cherry on top of a stacked sundae.

Yes, there's a new crop of signees that are making their way through summer workouts, but a big focus on Wednesday will be on graduate transfer running back Alex Ross. Ross' transfer has been announced, but Odom has yet to discuss the senior running back's move from Oklahoma to Missouri. Ross is expected to add some immediate fire power to a group that last two scholarship players this spring, and is returning a largely unproven group of redshirt freshmen, walk-ons and new signees.

Another topic will certainly be JUCO OL transfer Kyle Mitchell. Mitchell, at 6-foot-4, could potentially play either inside or outside, but that's yet to be announced. Either way, Missouri has holes all over the line, and Mitchell has to be ready to compete for playing time.

Add in the surprise qualification of Natereace Strong, the transfer of Kansas State safety Kaleb Prewett (who has to redshirt this year) and the situation with Kirkwood (Mo.) 2016 signee Jerod Alton's eligibility, and Wednesday's media availability will be jam-packed with information.

It sure SEEMS like Drew Lock will be the starting quarterback by Sep. 3, but Barry Odom has been very evasive about his top-22 players since the spring. We still have yet to see a depth chart, so we'll continue to speculate.

At some point, Odom and offensive coordinator Josh Heupel will have to officially make a decision on their QB1. Even if it is Lock, as expected, Heupel has used two quarterbacks in games before at Oklahoma, and a well-placed source raved to PowerMizzou.com about the improvement of Marvin Zanders, both in the read option and as a passer. It's still likely that both will play this season, but at some point, the team will have to move forward with one as the starter and leader.