The Missouri football roster in 2022 will look drastically different than a season ago. Eli Drinkwitz and his staff have added a whopping 34 scholarship newcomers to the team since last season ended, thus turning over more than one-third of the roster. Nineteen of those newcomers arrived on campus earlier this month to begin summer conditioning.
As we continue to count down the days to fall camp, PowerMizzou is going to profile each of those 20 newcomers who have arrived since the end of spring practices in order to help fans get to know all the new faces on the roster. Today, we profile one of the last additions to the class in junior college transfer cornerback LJ Hewitt.
Position: CB
Height: 6-2
Weight: 184
Year: Sophomore
Last School: Mississippi Gulf Coast C.C.
Not long ago, the plan was for Hewitt to play another season of junior college ball before making the jump to Division I. That plan changed drastically within the span of a few days in May.
Seeking to fill its final few roster spots, the Missouri coaching staff reached out to Hewitt. He came on an official visit on May 19, then announced his commitment to the Tigers three days later. He also announced that he would reclassify to the class of 2022, meaning he will join the roster this fall.
Hewitt recorded 18 tackles and an interception in nine games with Holmes Community College last season. The 6-foot-3 cornerback should bring length and depth to a Missouri secondary that has seen more than its fair share of injuries. By the end of last season, the Tiger defensive backfield got so thin that a linebacker Devin Nicholson had to play a few snaps at cornerback in the team’s Armed Forces Bowl loss to Army. Missouri also saw three defensive backs with starting experience — Ennis Rakestraw, Martez Manuel and Kris Abrams-Draine — miss spring practices as they recovered from offseason surgeries.
All three of those players are expected to be back in action by the start of fall camp, but Hewitt should have a chance to compete for a spot on Missouri’s two-deep. Even with just one year of post-high school football under his belt, he’s one of the team’s most experienced corners. Following the departures of Akayleb Evans, Allie Green and Ish Burdine, only four of Missouri’s eight cornerbacks have ever played meaningful college snaps, and only Rakestraw has played on the defensive side of the ball for more than one season. While Abrams-Draine and Rakestraw should be the favorites to start (assuming they’re healthy), the competition should be wide open behind them.
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