Head Coach Gary Pinkel sat down with the voice of Mizzou Tigers, Mike Kelly, at Buffalo Wild Wings on Monday, September 21 in Columbia, Missouri for Tiger Talk. This week’s segment also featured Mizzou Football Sophomore Wide Receiver J’Mon Moore and Mizzou Football Senior Linebacker Clarence Green.
href=”http://mizzounetwork.com” target=”_blank”>Mizzou Network mic’s up Quarterback Coach Andy Hill during Fall Camp Practice. The Mizzou Football Team kicks off the 2015 season on Saturday, September 5, 2015 in The ZOU at 3:00pm. For all the latest on Mizzou Football, follow the team on Twitter (@MizzouFootball). Be sure to like the team on Facebook (Mizzou Football) and Instagram (@MizzouFootball) as well.
MizzouMade is more than a simple phrase celebrating the efforts of past and present Mizzou student-athletes on the field. It’s a phrase that goes beyond the sidelines and embodies a culture of producing not only talented athletes, but also outstanding and prepared men and women.
Mizzou student-athletes have developed a tradition of academic excellence, resulting in an unprecedented graduation rate and countless successful careers. Head coach Gary Pinkel has captained a football program that boasts a top-5 academic progress rate in the nation since 2007 and top-3 in the Southeastern Conference each year since Mizzou joined the league in 2012. Mizzou football student-athletes work hard on the field, and they’re expected to work just as hard in the classroom. The program has graduated 97 percent of its seniors in the past five years and won’t be satisfied until 100 percent of student-athletes walk back through the columns with a diploma in hand. With that in mind, Mizzou is one step closer to that goal of 100-percent heading into the 2015-16 academic year.
The 2015 Mizzou football team will carry the tradition of academic excellence forward as every senior on scholarship is set to graduate by spring of 2016.
Ten of the 19 seniors have already earned bachelor’s degrees, including Cortland Browning, Corbin Berkstresser, Taylor Chappell, Clayton Echard, Clarence Green, Mitch Hall, Tyler Hunt, Wesley Leftwich, Connor McGovern and Brad McNulty. Six seniors – Evan Boehm, Kentrell Brothers, Russell Hansbrough, DeAndre Mckenzie, Nick Monaghan and Ian Simon – are scheduled to graduate this coming December. The remaining seniors, a group that includes Andrew Baggett, Kenya Dennisand walk-on Trei Walton, are all on pace to graduate in either the spring or fall of 2016.
Green, a standout linebacker during Mizzou’s back-to-back SEC East championships, effectively balanced life on the gridiron with his academic pursuits. He received a bachelor’s degree in Hospitality Management last May and plans to own his own hotel in his home state of Texas in the coming years. Green says graduating was possible through the services provided by Mizzou’s Total Person Program (TPP).
“The Total Person Program helped all of us out a lot by organizing tutors,” Green said. “Their whole focus is on us. They help us figure out what degree is best for us and help us achieve our goals. Graduating means so much to me. It represents the next steps of life and makes you feel like you’ve really succeeded.”
The Total Person Program is a service provided by the athletic department to aid student-athletes academically. By offering quality assistance to ensure excellence in the classroom, TPP can develop complete student-athletes who can handle the juggling responsibilities of college athletics and leave Mizzou poised for long and enriching careers.
“When all of us (coaches, academic staff, administrators) are working together to ensure that our student-athletes have the best experience in the classroom and on the field, our student-athletes work harder to become successful in all areas of their life,” said Tami Chievous, Associate AD for Academic Services. “They know that we care about their success and it is important to the Mizzou Family that they graduate from here.”
TPP strives to make an impact with Mizzou student-athletes immediately and the abundance of services are offered until each student-athlete graduates. The importance of academic achievement and graduation are stressed to recruits from the get-go. Once they arrive on campus, each member of the football team (and all Mizzou athletic programs) are assigned an academic mentor and several tutors to help them adjust to college.
At the conclusion of freshman year, the coaching staff works in coordination with TPP to individualize a plan that is specifically tailored toward the need of each and every student-athlete. Then, a team effort that includes commitment from staff, coaches and the student-athletes paves a path toward graduation. If a student-athlete leaves to play professionally, TPP continues to provide services to help them finish their goal and earn a degree.
“At Mizzou we are very proud of our academic accomplishments and we speak to both our current and former student-athletes about it daily,” Chievous said. “We are committed to our student-athletes graduating, which is why we continue to assist and reach out to former student-athletes who did not graduate. In the most recent period, we improved our exhausted eligibility graduation rate to 100 percent, meaning every athlete at Mizzou who did not leave early to pursue professional opportunities or other reasons, earned their degrees.”
The dedicated system of support that TPP has created is paying off for the Mizzou Football program and Mizzou Athletics as a whole. That is evident in Pinkel’s outstanding 2015 senior class, which has set a model standard of success for the underclassmen to uphold. Pinkel’s staff, with the help of the Total Person Program, will continue to produce #MizzouMade college graduates year in and year out as Mizzou builds on its reputation of excellence on an off the field.
Brothers, Mauk earn spot on second team while Boehm and Hansbrough named third team
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Mizzou Football had four standouts named All-SEC by the league’s 14 coaches, as announced by the Southeastern Conference office on Tuesday. Earning a spot on the All-SEC Second Team was LB Kentrell Brothers (Guthrie, Texas) and QB Maty Mauk (Kenton, Ohio) while C Evan Boehm (Lee’s Summit, Mo.) and RB Russell Hansbrough (Arlington, Texas) were named All-SEC Third Team.
The All-SEC honorees were voted on by the league’s 14 coaches with coaches not being able to vote for their own players. For Boehm and Brothers, this marks the second time that they have been named All-SEC this summer after each earned third team honors from the media back in July.
Brothers, the SEC’s top returning tackler from a season ago, accounted for 122 total tackles in 2015 (62 solo) while totaling 5.0 tackles for loss, four pass breakups and a team-leading three forced fumbles. He started all 14 games a season ago and was an All-SEC Second Team pick by the Associated Press. He has been named to the Bednarik, Nagurski and Butkus Award Watch Lists this summer.
A veteran QB, Mauk is 14-4 in 18 career games as a starter and helped guide Mizzou to a second consecutive SEC East Division Championship in 2014. Mauk threw for 25 touchdowns last season and rushed for two more, accounting for 2,648 total passing yards and 3,021 yards of total offense. Mauk’s 2,648 passing yards a season ago are the third-most of any returning SEC quarterback. He was named to the Maxwell and Manning Award Watch Lists earlier this summer as well.
Boehm started all 14 games a season ago, anchoring an offensive line that was a key cog in an 11-3 season and a second consecutive SEC East Championship. He has started 40 consecutive games across the Mizzou offensive line, dating back to the 2012 season before shifting to the center spot full time in 2013. Boehm was a First Team Freshman All-American by College Football News at left guard in 2012. Boehm has been named to the Rimington and Outland Award Watch Lists this summer.
A veteran tailback who has rushed for nearly 2,000 yards in his Mizzou career, Hansbrough is on the Maxwell Award Watch List for the first time in his career. He led Mizzou with his first 1,000-yard season in 2014, totaling 1,084 yards, a mark that ranked sixth in the SEC despite starting just three games – he was also seventh in the SEC in rush yards per game. He was SEC Offensive Player of the Week and National Tailback of the Week following a 199-yard outburst at Texas A&M, the 10th-best single-game rush total in program history. Hansbrough has landed on three major award watch lists this summer as well: the Doak Walker Award, the Maxwell Award and the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award.
Mizzou returns to the practice field on Tuesday, August 25 with classes beginning. For all the latest on Mizzou Football, follow the team on Twitter (@MizzouFootball). Be sure to like the team on Facebook (Mizzou Football) and Instagram (@MizzouFootball) as well.
Being MizzouMade starts with the family atmosphere that Coach Gary Pinkel instills every second of every day. Student-athletes share what the word family means in the Mizzou Football program.
2015 Mizzou Made Signing Day Show will take place on Wednesday, February 4 at 8 a.m. CT on Mizzou Network, giving fans a chance to see and learn about the newest members of the Mizzou Football Family. The show is the first fans can hear about the signees from the coaching staff. Highlights, updates on the team, and interviews with current players will also be a part of the show.
Following the Signing Day Show, the National Signing Day Recruiting Reception will be held on Wednesday, February 4 at the Columns Club at The ZOU. Doors open at 5:15 p.m. and the reception will begin at 5:30 p.m.
Be sure to follow Mizzou Football on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook to ask questions about the latest signing class during the show.
The Mizzou Football Family works tirelessly to land the top recruits in the nation from all over the United States. The state of Texas has been very good to the Tigers and has produced some standout players for Mizzou in recent years.
They say everything is bigger in Texas, and the number of current or former Tigers who hail from the Lone Star state is no exception. There are 22 players on the Mizzou roster from Texas, including SEC Special Teams Player of the Year Marcus Murphy, safety Braylon Webb, who led the team with four interceptions this season, and wide receiver Bud Sasser, who led the team with 12 touchdowns this season.
“I have a lot of pride in representing my city and my state and the people that enjoyed watching me from Texas,” Sasser said. “It was important to prove to a new crowd in Missouri that you can be one of the best.”
Former Tigers from Texas include first-round pick and current Jacksonville Jaguars defensive lineman Ziggy Hood, first-round pick and current Atlanta Falcons linebacker Sean Weatherspoon, and Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Chase Daniel.
To continue successful recruiting from Texas, former Mizzou center and current offensive line coach A.J. Ricker focuses heavily on recruiting from his home state. Ricker was born in Windsor, Missouri, and graduated from high school in Klein, Texas. He started 47 consecutive games for Mizzou from 2000-2003. This established a record at the time for any position, and he now stands No. 5 all-time for any position and No. 2 for centers. He also was a two-time team captain and was first-team All-Big 12 center in 2003.
After graduating from Mizzou in 2004 with a degree in agriculture, Ricker signed a free agent contract with the Chicago Bears. He also played for the Arena Football League’s Tampa Bay Storm. After retiring from playing, Ricker coached at various college football programs for eight years, including Illinois, where he was an offensive line coach, before coming to Mizzou. Coach Ricker’s knowledge of the area helps Mizzou lock down talented prospective student-athletes.
These current and former Mizzou Tigers may have been Texas born, but most importantly, they are Mizzou Made. The defending Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl Champions will continue their recruiting success this year with athletes not only from Texas, but all over the U.S. Be sure to follow Mizzou Football on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook for more news about Mizzou Football in the offseason.
Mizzou Football family is busy preparing for its 10th bowl game under Head Coach Gary Pinkel — but that doesn’t mean they can’t have some fun.
Every year, Mizzou Football celebrates one of the final practices as “NFL Day,” when the rules are a little more lax. Players are allowed to wear different jersey numbers, alternate helmets, armbands, special socks, earrings, and other pieces that are usually off-limits.
Coach Pinkel led the way for this year’s NFL Day, showing up in style with an all-gold-everything look. His gold sweatsuit, sunglasses, and exclusive gold LeBrons —honoring the basketball player who hails from Pinkel’s hometown of Akron, Ohio — turned heads all afternoon.
The Mizzou Football family took full advantage of the chance to wear something unique. Defensive lineman Eddie Serrano sported a full Santa outfit (complete with a taped-on Santa hat), tailback Marcus Murphy sported a blackout visor on his traditional Mizzou helmet, and wide receiver Bud Sasser broke out his pink gloves.
Several players chose to resurrect old helmet styles or create a new style altogether. The headgear the players chose included a carbon fiber-style helmet, the old-school M logo helmet, a taped-up white helmet with a gold tiger decal, a classic black helmet with the old-school M, and a camo helmet for quarterback Maty Mauk.
Check GaryPinkel.com throughout the week for new installments of 12 Days of Citrus, where you can get an inside look at what the Mizzou Football family is up to in Orlando. On Tuesday, December 22 and Wednesday, December 23, the 12 Days of Citrus will focus on what the Mizzou Made student-athletes are up to during their free days in sunny Florida.
The Tigers will take on the Minnesota Golden Gophers in the Citrus Bowl Stadium on Thursday, January 1, 2015. Kickoff is set for 12 p.m. CT and the game will air on ABC by ESPN. Fans can follow Mizzou Football on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook and listen in via Tiger Network radio affiliates for updates throughout the game.