Review and Preview: Wide Receivers
The 2018 football season is officially in the books. In this series, PowerMizzou will go position-by-position to look back at the Tigers' 8-5 2018 campaign while also previewing the depth chart for the 2019 season. Today, we take a look at the wide receivers.
2018 recap
The story of Missouri's receiving corps this season is really the story of Emanuel Hall's health. Hall, who had played second fiddle to J'Mon Moore last season, told reporters before the year started that he had diversified his repertoire beyond his trademark go route, and then he showed it in the early season. Hall racked up a combined 342 yards and three touchdowns in the first two games of the season. Then, Hall injured his groin and the entire Missouri passing attack began to struggle. The Tigers, lacking depth behind Hall, got a few big games from junior Johnathon Johnson as well as true freshmen Jalen Knox, Kam Scott and Dominic Gicinto, but no one else in the receiving group could match Hall's consistency. Hall ended up rejoining the starting lineup (though he left the Liberty Bowl due to reinjury) but when he was absent, no one else could match his vertical ability, which opened up the field for the rest of Missouri's receivers.
2019 preview
Departing: Emanuel Hall, Nate Brown
Missouri is losing its leading receiver, from a yardage perspective, in Hall. Brown, too, battled an injury all season, but he didn’t play nearly as large a role, catching just 12 passes on the year.
Returning: Johnathon Johnson, Jalen Knox, Kam Scott, Dominic Gicinto, Richaud Floyd, Barrett Banister
Johnson, a two-year starter, had his best career game in the Liberty Bowl, catching nine passes for 185 yards and a touchdown. He’ll be joined by a host of rising sophomores who showed impressive flashes this season. Knox caught 27 passes on the year and was twice named the SEC freshman of the week. Scott made several explosive plays, including a touchdown against Florida that helped Missouri pull away. Gicinto didn’t play a high snap volume, but he seemed to have a knack for making timely receptions out of the slot. The Missouri staff will count on those players, plus fellow redshirt freshman Khmari Thompson to take a step forward during the offseason.
Incoming: Jonathan Nance, Maurice Massey, C.J. Boone
Kelly Bryant wasn’t the only player Missouri landed in the graduate transfer market. Former Arkansas wide receiver Nance announced his commitment to Missouri minutes after Bryant. Nance caught 37 passes for 539 yards and five touchdowns as a junior. The Missouri staff will look for him to make an instant impact.
Nance will be joined by two St. Louis prospects in Massey and Boone. Boone is considered more of a straight-line burner, while Massey may have the more polished overall game. It’s likely at least one of the two, if not both, will redshirt during the 2019 season.
Projected 2019 starters: Johnson, Knox, Nance
If Nance is able to adapt to the offense quickly and work his way into the starting lineup, Scott would likely be the first wideout off the bench. It also wouldn’t be surprising to see Scott earn a starting role. If we had to guess right now, Richaud Floyd will serve as the backup to Knox, and Gicinto will be the No. 2 slot receiver.
Offseason storylines to watch:
The biggest key for Missouri will be whether it gets the 2017 version of Nance or the 2018 version. After a big junior season, Nance caught just one pass for negative-2 yards this year before he decided to transfer. It’s not as if the Razorbacks have bunches of other explosive options at wideout, either. If Nance is able to step seamlessly into the offense, he could help replace both the vertical ability and the experience of Hall.