The past two years have not been the brightest for Missouri football, but the future looks good for the Tigers. If they can at least become bowl eligibile this year, then the Tigers can look forward to a possible rebirth in football.
This will be a pivotal year for the Tigers and Barry Odom. This isn’t much of a rebuilding year as almost all the starting offense is returning with more experience under their belt and are hungry to win.
If the Tigers don’t win at least six games this year and make a bowl game, then this season will be considered a failure, and Odom’s coaching seat will certainly start getting hot.
The biggest reason for the Tigers to do well is from a recruiting standpoint; the stacked class of 2018 that Mizzou is trying to sway into committing.
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Obviously, the best way to get players to commit is to win. If the Tigers can show that they can win under Barry Odom and Josh Heupel’s up tempo offense, then the likes of 4 star recruits Trevor Trout, Michael Thompson, and Dylan Wonnum will likely want to play there.
If the Tigers land those recruits, then it will be a huge win in the long-term as they gain momentum to possibly attract more out-of-state talent and assemble the team they need to win in the SEC.
There is no excuse why they can’t win, now. They have a more experienced quarterback in Drew Lock, an electrifying running back in Damarea Crockett, and a very healthy receiving corps.
In all honesty, expecting them to only win six games is being generous, as they have enough talent to win seven and possibly eight.
Next: Two games Mizzou must win
The rebuilding era for Barry Odom is over, and if the Tigers don’t start reversing their recent trend of play, then Odom’s time as head coach could be running short.