I figured an easy way to preview this team was to do introductions, or in some cases re-introductions, to our different position groups. By this point most of you know I don’t consider myself a football expert, so I’ll be approaching this in a little bit of a different way.
What better way to kick this off than with what could be considered the deepest position group on the roster, the Linebackers.
There are 11 listed Linebackers on the MUTigers.com online roster. Let’s start with just names, height, weight, class and hometown:
- Jeremiah Beasley, 6-0, 237, Sophomore, Detroit, MI
- Jackson Daily, 6-1, 234, Sophomore, Alma, AR
- Brian Huff, 6-2, 218, R-Freshman, Jonesboro, AR
- Brady Hultman, 5-11, 200, Junior, St. Charles, MO
- Khalil Jacobs, 6-1, 228, Senior, Jackson, MS
- Jason King, 6-1, 227, Freshman, St. Louis, MO
- Dante McClellan, 6-1, 216, Freshman, Canton, OH
- Triston Newson, 6-2, 230, G-Senior, Independence, MS
- Tommy Reese, 6-0, 217, Junior, Newport Beach, CA
- Nicholas Rodriguez, 6-0, 211, Sophomore, Miami, FL
- Josiah Trotter, 6-2, 237, R-Sophomore, Philadelphia, PA
Daily, Hultman, and Reese are all walkons. So I doubt we’ll be spending much time discussing them.
But the rest of the 8? Woof, good luck.
Nine of the 11 played college football last season, and 8 played at Missouri. Per ProFootballFocus.com’s snap counts, 6 of the returners saw at least some action with the squad last year. Some more than others, obviously, and Hultman was one of them. Brian Huff, Nicholas Rodriguez, and Jeremiah Beasley all saw the field as freshmen but were used sparingly. Those three are credited with 122 total defensive snaps, which is just ahead of Khalil Jacobs 116 snaps, and he missed 5 games.
So lets start with that…
Triston Newson — Thank you, Diego Pavia. Missouri was looking for Linebacker help in the transfer portal, and Pavia sued the NCAA to gain back a year of eligibility due to his spending a year in Junior College, a non-NCAA affilitated institution. He won his case and the NCAA granted eligibility to any JUCO player who was a Senior last year, that included Newson. In his second year with the Tigers, Newson cemented himself as the Linebacker of choice for Corey Batoon’s flexible defensive midfield. He saw action on 61.4% of all defensive snaps, with workman like performances against big boy teams like Arkansas, Mississippi State, Oklahoma, Auburn, and Vanderbilt. He produced as well, he was credited with a team leading 39 solo tackles, and was second on the team with total tackles at 71. He also had a sack, 4 hurries, a forced fumble and a single breakup. Newson was such a certainty that it forced transfer portal Nebraska commit Mikai Gbayor back into the portal following the spring workouts. I don’t know who in the LB room will see the most snaps, but smart money is on Newson.
Khalil Jacobs — Corey Batoon brought the Mississippi native with him in a sense, Jacobs was a rising star for the South Alabama defense under Batoon, and they reunited at Missouri. Jacobs missed the second half of the season with a torn pectoral muscle, but had gone from reserve to starter prior to his injury. He and Newson played together a lot with Jacobs earning more snaps at the expense of Chuck Hicks. Jacobs is a little bit more of a specialist with elite level pass rushing skills, and comfortable running down ball carriers in open space.
MORGANTOWN, WV – AUGUST 31: West Virginia Mountaineers linebacker Josiah Trotter #40 celebrates making a tackle during a game between Penn State and West Virginia at Milan Puskar Stadium on August 31, 2024 in Morgantown, West Virginia. (Photo by Roger Wimmer/ISI Photos/Getty Images) Getty Images
There’s only one newcomer to really worry about this year and it’s Josiah Trotter. As a redshirt freshman at West Virginia Trotter was a standout. He was on the field for 628 snaps, showed incredible durability, and caught the eye of many an NFL scout. Trotter has the lineage — his father was Jeremiah Trotter, a 4x time Pro-Bowler — and the accumen to stack up with anyone. He was a 4-star recruit coming out of High School and missed his freshman season after an injury. But in Morgantown he quickly made his presence felt with 37 solo tackles, a half sack and an interception. Trotter signed with Missouri and I would expect him to play, and play a lot.
At this stage it’s easy to project Jacobs, Newson, and Trotter will get the bulk of the snaps at LB, but I wouldn’t sleep on a talented crop of youngsters.
Starting with Nicholas Rodriguez, the Miami native saw his time on the field increase as the season wore on. He was known as a recruit for having a nose for the ball, and after seeing a season high 34 snaps against UMass, the Missouri coaches kept finding ways to Rodriguez on the field. He isn’t likely to start, or even be a star, but I would certainly think they find him more snaps than a season ago when he finished with 11.85% of the available snaps.
Jeremiah Beasley saw 28 snaps as a true freshman last year as well, and the Michigan transfer (he enrolled early before transferring in the spring window) is looking to move up the depth charts this year. He’s a speedy sideline-to-sideline style backer who’s impressed on kick off coverage so far and finished with 5 solo, and 8 total tackles.
Brian Huff was a highly rated high school recruit who did see action against Murray State, but wasn’t on the field with the defense after. However, I wouldn’t count him out. He’s got ideal size for an inside-backer at 6-2 but could stand to add some additional weight to stand up to SEC offensive lineman. If Huff is seeing meaningful snaps this year it’s a good sign for the youth movement at Missouri.
Jason King and Dante McClellan are both freshman, which it’s hard to break into the playing rotation defensively as a frosh, but the staff really likes both. King is a bit more of a workhorse linebacker, cleaning up mistakes and working between the tackles, and McClellan has shown flashes of speed to run the outside. I wouldn’t expect to see much from either this year, and any snaps from either or both would be considered a major upset.
The defense also rarely plays with three LBs on the field, preferring to use a safety (hello Daylan Carnell) in the STAR position. Doing this means there are fewer snaps for a true Linebacker to go around. If you know Drink, you know he’s likely going to stick with the safer and more consistent experienced players over the youth. I think we’ll see a lot of Newson and Trotter, with Jacobs mixed in. The question remains if Rodriguez or Beasley can crack the rotation with any level of consistency.