After the departure of Luther Burden, Theo Wease, Mookie Cooper and Mekhi Miller, the Missouri Tigers’ receiver room is going to have a somewhat different look this season.
But there is a face Tiger fans have become accustomed to the past two years who is back to lead the way.
Marquis Johnson knows his role with the team has increased, but he’s not trying to replace those guys who were in front of him, just continue what they had going.
“They left a good place here,” Johnson said. “I’m just here to continue it.”
The junior fast enough to be nicknamed Speedy used that speed to jump into the receiver rotation almost immediately his freshman year as the Tigers’ primary deep-ball threat.
But injuries kept him from fully getting involved at times in both his freshman and sophomores years.
“Healthy, I’m healthy,” Johnson said with a laugh of what was different for him in this year’s spring camp. “And I feel like I’m more mature than what I was for my first spring ball to where I am now.”
Johnson said that maturity was the primary lesson he learned from all those talented receivers around him in the room the past couple of years. And that maturity comes in many forms.
“How to take care of my body, how to manage my day, how to manage how I do things as a wide receiver,” Johnson said. “And being able to know, like, watching film, knowing the plays, just being able to carry myself very well on the field and off the field.”
The 5-foot-11, 185-pound junior is set for an expanded role in the offense this season, going from primarily running deep and trying to beat corners over the top to a more integral pass-catching option.
Although his role is changing and what he will be asked to do has changed as well, he said getting placed in that role early on has had a lasting affect on his confidence.
“Knowing that I belong here and I’m not too little, not too skinny or anything,” Johnson said. “I was a little scared my first time here, but after making a couple of plays, after being around, around my people, after having my team back me up, I feel like I’m very confident.”
Now, Johnson will use that confidence to help lead a room with a lot of new faces.
He’ll be joined by one of the SEC’s leading receivers from last season, Kevin Coleman, as the new man primarily in the slot as Johnson stays mostly playing on the outside.
Johnson said Coleman has already brought a lot to the team in the short time he has been part of the Tiger roster.
“He’s brought leadership, he’s a great worker, he works in his time off, he works all the time. He’s probably working right now,” Johnson said. “He’s brought great leadership, he’s brought great energy and he’s going to be a very great weapon.”
And there’s some new freshmen who joined Johnson and Coleman in spring camp. Four-star Donovan Olugbode, the ninth-best wide receiver in the class of 2025, and three-star Shaun Terry II both enrolled early and gave Johnson an early look at the future of the room.
“They brought back my joke, honestly, they’re two very exciting guys,” Johnson said. “Shaun, he’s very twitchy, little fast guy, Donovan is a great, bigger receiver. They just bring, they bring a lot of me out.”
Now, Johnson and the whole receiver room will look to continue the legacy built by some strong players who headed out the door after last season.
“Everybody’s been great about it,” Johnson said. “We’re just, we’re all still working. We’ve got to see what everybody can do.”
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