The 2026 recruiting class has been a bit of a slow build.
But the slow progress hasn’t deterred Drink from using the Tigers hot start and news making wins in the recruiting game. Prior to last night the 2026 recruiting class was only 10 names, and while there
were 3 4-star players in the group, this class has so far tracked well behind most of Drinkwitz’s previous work.
Missouri is currently last in the SEC, but they also have the fewest commits. Class strength does tend to be tied to the number of commitments, along with the average ranking of each commit… and Missouri isn’t doing all that well in either case. But Drink is looking to switch all that up over the next few weeks.
He’s already landed one of the top JUCO prospects, and there are multiple flip possibilities. For the full list of players here’s a handy video from Rivals / On3 which features Steve Wilfong going through all the players Missouri is in on late.
This class has been wildly different from Drinks previous efforts. The Tigers are currently 82nd in the country for their recruiting class. Last year it was 20, in 2024 they were 20th again. 2023 they were 35th, and 2022 it was 15th. Point being, Drink has been excellent in recruiting. This year things have changed…
But the class is not over yet. There’s still time to put it together.
I think Drink has switched some of his focus to bringing in more experienced players via the portal, but you still need the foundation. I guess we’ll see if he can fully recover this class.
Yesterday at Rock M and Rock M+
What started slow ended up being a pretty busy day thanks to some late posting and a Commitment. So let’s start with the breaking news…
- Mizzou’s defensive line is good. So it would make sense that they keep adding to it and getting deeper and deeper. Including the commitment from the top DL in JUCO:
Johnson becomes the 11th addition to Mizzou’s 2026 recruiting class and the first among the defensive line position. Last season at the JUCO level, Johnson had 29 total tackles (8.5 TFLs), four sacks, two pass breakups, a forced fumble, and two fumble recoveries.
Dude is 6’8 and 280. That’s a big guy.
- What’s TRENDING in Week 4? True has the results:
Despite a big win at home on Saturday, the Tigers allowed over 300 yards passing to South Carolina QB LaNorris Sellers. Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz wasn’t too pleased.
“When we watch the tape tomorrow, I’m going to be on some secondary coaches’ rear ends,” Drinkwitz said. “I’m not going to get negative, but that crap’s gotta get corrected.”
The Tigers allowed a total of 293 yards, with 302 coming in the pass game. Doesn’t sound right, right? Mizzou’s run defense held the Gamecocks to -9 rushing yards.
If the Missouri pass defense gets anywhere close to how good the run defense looks to be… this could be a truly elite defense. Best for probably 10 years or more.
- We’re already talkin’ ‘bout BOWL SZN! Sammy has the updates on where Mizzou is projected:
The path for Mizzou to get into the CFP discussion is a 10-2 record. And not to get too far ahead of ourselves, but ESPN analytics currently predict the Tigers to finish with a 9-3 mark. From ESPN’s Heather Dinich, Missouri has “Work to Do” in the latest bubble watch.
Obviously the goal here is the playoff, but short of that th elist of Bowls outside the playoff could be fun… but just go get to the playoff!
- Basketball Preview season is officially in with the start, this week, of our Non-Conference Previews. Yesterday the first high major opponent dropped, what to think of Minnesota:
The Tigers erased that 20 point lead, finally taking the lead for good on a Sean East basket and a plus one at the free throw line, they would win the game 70-68. The win moved the Tigers to 3-1…
I don’t think anything else happened the rest of that year. Pretty sure the season ended shortly thereafter. We’ve set up a Story Stream for all the Hoops preseason content you can catch it here.
- ICYMI, Karen is pretty pumped to have a schedule for Gymnastics, despite having figured out most of it already.
The Tigers’ unofficial start to the season will be the annual Black & Gold meet, a pre-Christmas extravaganza where the Columbia Public Schools kiddos get to check out the team. The good news this time? Due to winter break starting so late this year (Stop Day is December 12), students will still be here and be able to catch the showcase!
- UPDATES happened with Softball recruits, and True posted the updates so you should click and read the updates about softball recruiting.
Forums Talk
Some really interesting stuff over on RM+.
- Matt Harris explored new Mizzou Basketball offer, 2027 combo forward Cameron Barnes:
For almost a year, Cameron Barnes, a 6-foot-7 prospect out of Lee’s Summit, seemed like a forgotten man on a recruiting board that prioritize ball-handlers such as Scottie Adkinson, Chase Branham, and Jimmy McKinney III.
Which was odd.
He averaged 10.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists for MoKan’s 15U outfit and debuted inside the top 50 of 2027 class rankings. Suiting up for Lee’s Summit West, he put together the kind of steady output we expect from a high-major prospect — even if the Titans finished below 0.500. And as you can see below, Barnes’ output scaled up to the 16U level on the Nike-sponsored EYBL circuit.
There’s nobody who covers Mizzou hoops like Rock M.
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