Signing Day Preview
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The Early Signing Period is here and as it stands right now, Eli Drinkwitz and his Missouri staff have compiled a recruiting class that currently has 21 commitments and ranks 20th nationally, according to Rivals.com.
The Tigers are still looking to add a few more pieces to their 2021 puzzle as well between now and the late signing period in February.
PowerMizzou.com takes a snapshot of every commitment as well as signing day storylines to keep an eye on throughout Wednesday.
EARLY ENROLLEES
- Missouri didn't waste a lot of time on getting their quarterback commitment in this year's class. Macon gave his verbal pledge to the Tigers back on March 13th over the likes of Indiana, Iowa, Michigan State, Vanderbilt, Iowa State, Illinois, and others. Macon will sign his NLI at 10 am at East St. Louis High School.
- Ford was another huge St. Louis area pickup for the Tigers back on April 30th. The four-star prospect had 33 offers on his resume and chose Missouri over the likes of Louisville, Illinois, and others.
- Missouri was recruiting Lovett hard before he settled with Arizona State back in September. The Sun Devils didn't have room for him to be a mid-year enrollee, and the Tigers were able to flip him this past Friday.
- Carnell is one of the two crown jewel commitments from the Indianapolis area. Missouri put the full-court press on the the four-star talent, who chose the Tigers over a final three that also included Purdue and West Virginia.
- Robledo is a very under-rated talent coming out of the JUCO ranks in California. He is a former teammate of current Tiger Ben Key and chose Missouri over the likes of Arizona, UCLA, Washington State, Ole Miss, Houston, UCF, and others.
- George began his college career as a fullback at Miami (Fla.) before transitioning to defensive line in the JUCO ranks. His fall practice film caught the eyes of the Mizzou coaches, who were able to land his commitment from the likes of Old Dominion, Arkansas State, Eastern Michigan, and others.
THE REST OF THE COMMIT LIST
- Wingo was the first commitment for Missouri in the 2021 class back on January 19th, who picked the Tigers over the likes of Arkansas, Iowa State, Louisville, K-State, Purdue, Texas Tech, West Virginia, and others.
- McKay had an offer from Missouri's previous staff, but he also had a previous relationship with current tight ends coach Casey Woods that led to him choosing Missouri over the likes of Indiana, Kansas, UAB, Southern Miss, Florida Atlantic, Memphis, Liberty, and others.
MORE: MCKAY TALKS SENIOR SEASON, COMMITMENT, RECRUITING CLASS
- Despite two powerhouse programs in Oklahoma and Alabama making a strong push, Missouri was able to secure the commitment of Tollison on March 8th after a couple of visits to CoMo to start the new year.
- Hoerstkamp was offered by Missouri during a junior day visit in March and fulfilled his dream of playing for the school he grew up rooting for. The Tigers have kept him in the class despite recruiting efforts from Alabama and a late offer from the Washington Huskies.
MORE: HOERSTKAMP TALKS TIGERS
- Butts was the first of two running back commitments for the Tigers. The St. Louis product chose Missouri over other offers from Kentucky, Indiana, Louisville, West Virginia, Purdue, Iowa State, and others.
- A spring practice visit from David Gibbs in 2019 sparked a relationship and eventual commitment from Jackson, who chose the Tigers over other options that included Kansas, Kansas State, UConn, Arkansas State, and others.
- Sistrunk is considered a defensive back that is raw with tremendous upside, having only played football for two years. He caught the eye of defensive coordinator Ryan Walters in 2019 during a recruiting visit and chose Missouri over Illinois, Ole Miss, Colorado, Mississippi State, Pitt, and others.
MORE: SISTRUNK GOES IN-DEPTH ON COMMITMENT
- Reeves is another Florida area long, physical defensive back that caught the eye of defensive coordinator Ryan Walters and that relationship lead to a commitment. Virginia, Pitt, Washington State, South Florida, and others were also involved.
- Pearl is a former Missouri commit in the 2018 class that had to go the JUCO route due to academics. Naturally, when Pearl got things in order the Tigers' welcomed him back into this year's recruiting class. He also held offers from Texas Tech, South Carolina, and Baylor.
- Lovett is another prospect that was offered by Missouri's previous staff, but that interest carried over with linebackers coach DJ Smith heading up his recruiting process. The three-star prospect chose the Tigers over Louisville, West Virginia, Georgia Tech, Iowa State, and others.
- Missouri linebackers coach DJ Smith and Eli Drinkwitz recruited Wilson when they were at Appalachian State and that interest carried over when they went to Missouri. Wilson also held offers from Louisville, NC State, South Carolina, West Virginia, Wake Forest, and others.
MORE: WILSON DISCUSSES MISSOURI DECISION
- Mizzou landed the hard-hitting safety out of the St. Louis are back in June. The three-star prospect chose the Tigers over the likes of Arkansas, Iowa State, Michigan State, Nebraska, Mississippi State, and others.
- Harris was the Tigers' second running back commitment that held other offers from Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Nebraska, South Carolina, and others.
- Jones was Missouri's 17th overall commitment on July 11th, choosing the Tigers over a Top 5 that also included Texas, Baylor, Nebraska, and Colorado.
MORE: COACH ANALYSIS
- Montgomery is the other crown jewel commitment from the Indianapolis area, the four-star is ranked No. 204 in the Rivals150 and chose Missouri over the likes of Minnesota, Florida State, and Purdue.
CHANGE OF PLANS
- Balfour originally planned to make his college decision today with his finalists being Auburn and Missouri. However, the recent firing of Gus Malzahn at Auburn has put things on pause for the three-star prospect. Balfour tweeted on Monday that he will now wait until February before he signs his NLI.
WHAT WILL UKE DO?
- The Dallas product was committed to Holy Cross throughout most of his senior season, then his recruiting process skyrocketed as power five offers started pouring in during the month of November - Missouri among them. The three-star prospect has been focusing on his season with his team winning a state championship this past weekend. With all the new attention, it's likely Uke will wait until February before making his decision.
POUNDERS BACK ON THE MARKET
- Pounders was committed to Mississippi State from April 29th to December 6th. Then committed to Ole Miss on December 9th. Now, the day before the early signing period begins, the three-star prospect finds himself back on the open market. Missouri offered back on October 25th and was making a push as the Tigers have obvious needs along the offensive line. Pounders could still be an option, but things are in limbo now and the Mississippi native may now wait until February to sign according to his latest tweet.
SIGNING DAY DECISIONS
- Walker has been relatively quiet since backing off his original planned commitment date back in October. Back then, his top four schools consisted of Texas, Colorado, UCLA, and Missouri. As recently as October, Walker said that he still talks to Missouri's staff on a weekly basis. It seems the three-star prospect is still a priority for the Tigers' class and will likely come down to either Mizzou or Colorado.
- Young is a JUCO prospect that Missouri has been recruiting hard since extending an offer back on November 4th. The three-star prospect recently told AuburnSports.com that Missouri, Auburn, Florida State, and Tennessee are the four schools recruiting him the hardest. Obviously, the dynamics have changed at Auburn with the firing of Malzahn. Regardless, Young is expected to sign this week and be a mid-year enrollee. This is a fight that Missouri is squarely in the mix for.
POTENTIAL CHRISTMAS PRESENT?
- After backing off his Oregon pledge earlier this month, Perkins announced his intentions to announce his college decision on Christmas Day, December 25th. His finalists include: Oregon, Alabama, Oklahoma, Mississippi State, Florida State, Texas A&M, and Missouri. Mizzou's staff offered Perkins back in April and have remained in contact with him even throughout his commitment to Oregon and are pressing hard to have him join their class.
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