NFL Pipeline
During Coach Gary Pinkel’s tenure as the head coach of the Missouri Tigers, Columbia became quite the pipeline to the pros and a factory for NFL talent. From 2009 to Pinkel’s final year at the helm, Missouri produced seven first-round draft picks, including Jeremy Maclin, Blaine Gabbert, Ziggy Hood, Sean Weatherspoon, Sheldon Richardson, Shane Ray, and Aldon Smith, plus top-rated and talented defenders still in the league like Markus Golden, Justin Britt and Mitch Morse.