Thompson is a Tiger again
Nearly five years after he initially signed a National Letter of Intent, Antar Thompson is set to be a Missouri Tiger. The Highland (KS) CC defensive tackle has officially flipped his commitment from Louisville to Mizzou.
"I never thought I would end up back with a D1 scholarship," Thompson said on Tuesday afternoon. "It feels good. I’m just glad to finally be down to the last semester and being able to play D1 football for my home state."
Thompson originally signed with Missouri in 2013. A long journey with many twists eventually landed him at Highland where he has turned back into a highly-recruited prospect...this time as a 23-year-old. Thompson committed to Louisville in early June, but he never took his eye off the Tigers...nor did they off of him.
"Louisville, it was my first offer and I went on a visit there and the staff was really cool they were nice to my family and it felt all right at the time," he said. "But I always had in the back of my mind to play for my home state and fight for Mizzou."
Ultimately it was his relationship with the Missouri coaches and their persistence in keeping in touch with him that won out.
"Barry’s (Odom) been good to me, him and (Cornell) Ford they talk to me all the time. Barry would hit me all the time and tell me he wants me to come down there," Thompson said. "Ford was actually the first college coach I ever talked to when I was in high school. I was in gym class and we were playing capture the flag and there was a coach there with a Mizzou hat on. My coach, Brandon Gregory, called me over to meet him. He always had that smile and he was kind of goofy."
Ford has kept in touch with Thompson over the course of the last five years, even when he wasn't playing football or in school. It hasn't always been easy for Thompson. He has stopped and started school a few times and has spent most of his time helping to raise his son Isaiah, who turned five last summer. Earlier this fall, Thompson put his recruiting process--and everything else--on hold again as Isaiah fought for his life in the hospital.
"It made me grow up a lot and showed me that you can’t take anything for granted," he said. "Anything can happen to anyone at any time."
Thompson was supposed to take an official visit to Columbia last weekend to see the Tigers play Tennessee. But family obligations and transportation issues forced him to reschedule. He will make the visit soon. And shortly thereafter he'll be back in Columbia for good. And he plans to compete for playing time right away.
"Right now I know that they got Jordan Elliott in and they got Terry (Beckner)," he said. "I’m not knowing what Terry will do right now, if he is going to the NFL, but I have three years and on top of that I’m a grown man."
The best things, they say, come to those who wait. If that's the case, Antar Thompson and Missouri could be in for a lot of good things. He will hit campus in January with three years of eligibility remaining.