Keisha Taylor awoke to music blasting from another room.
It was her son, Brendon Haygood, getting ready for his first day as a member of the Missouri football team, but it wasn't normal of Haygood to be up and moving around that early in the morning.
The running back, who the Tigers signed in the 2025 class, wasn't known to be an early riser, especially after a nine-hour drive that brought him and his family to Columbia at 3 a.m. on move-in day.
Yet the excitement of finally getting into his college apartment and seeing his coaches and teammates reminded his mother of why Missouri always felt like the place to be.
"I know it's cliche, because everybody says it, but he's home," Taylor said. "From the moment we stepped out of the car on the campus, the first time (in December), he said, 'This is my home.'"
When Taylor brought Haygood back to Missouri this past week, she saw that excitement again in her son's demeanor. Haygood, who enrolled as a freshman this summer, showed a readiness for the opportunity.
"He's never taken his foot off the gas," Taylor said. "He's focused more now than ever to get to that next level."
With that focus, Taylor still wanted to remind her son of his own worth. Through the competition, ups and downs and transition to a new world, Taylor fixed five signs to her son's wall as a morning testament to be a leader.
"We actually went to Hobby Lobby and got all the signs with all the words," Taylor said. "So every morning he wakes up, whether he keeps them on his walls or not, we left him with all the words: be kind, be a leader, keep your faith and never give up."
Though Haygood has a tendency to be hard on himself. He's felt behind in regards to football before, seeing his recruitment pick up during his senior season at Sachse (Tex.) High.
"I keep telling him, 'You're in the right place,'" Taylor said.
But since he was 6 years old, Haygood was instilled with self pride by his stepfather, Courtney Taylor. His mother leaned more into her faith, giving Haygood a balance of both mindsets.
"We've always told him, 'We're proud of you, but you should be proud of yourself,'" Haygood's mother said. "Because I've never carried a ball, I've never ran a yard, I've never made a touchdown, and that's all on him. He got himself to this point, and we just helped him."
Leaving behind his 8-year-old sister at home and seeing his brother, Corey Taylor, head to Texas Tech for freshman classes this fall, Haygood's still on a skyrocket launch, according to his mother.
As Haygood's now immersed in his college workouts, he's called his mother with daily updates. At the same time, Taylor, who never dove into football terms, has turned to her husband to learn more on this next chapter for her son.
"He's so excited to share what he's doing, and he's so excited to be there," Taylor said. "It's very quiet around the house, but I'm glad he's comfortable. ... If anything, I'm so comfortable that he's there, because they have their arms wrapped around him just like we would at home."
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