Harold Brantley on the Hearts of Mizzou Teammates

John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

Gary Pinkel has a task ahead of him. As June was coming to a close and all of college football was dealing with the reality that there’s only about 60 preparation days left until the season starts, the Missouri Tigers have been hit with an emotional blow.

One of the things, and really the thing that makes Mizzou stand out above others with regard to raising the bar and experiencing well-deserved levels of respect, is the strong family environment that Pinkel has established. That family took a hit to the blind-side with the injury to Harold Brantly, a young player with so much promise who was really beginning to establish himself as a force on the defense.

More from Missouri Tigers

• The Missouri Tigers Kansas Jayhawks Border War Renews
• Marching Mizzou Marches into the Big Apple
• The 2023 Missouri Tigers Basketball Recruiting Class adds Danny Stephens
• The Missouri Tigers Set For 2023
• Missouri Tigers Vs. Kentucky Wildcats Preview

Now that we’ve all had some time to soak this incident in, it’s overjoying to see that Brantley is showing improvement and his life it not in any danger from the injuries. So now, it becomes the question that everyone wants to know, will he play again?

The answer is probably. Brantley has the desire to do so and has access to world-class care and therapy from some of the most cutting-edge doctors in the world at Mizzou. The Mizzou Athletic Training Center is equipped to provide just the kinds of things that Brantley will need to get his physical health and football career back to what they once were.

The other massive question here is how will this affect his teammates psychologically? Because of the extremely close nature of the team, many of the players have expressed their feelings very openly.

Mizzou’s field general Maty Mauk displayed his worry for Brantley.

Former men’s basketball player Kim English, someone who has certainly become a well-respected ambassador of Mizzou, also mentioned his desire to help with prayer.

Mizzou women’s basketball player Maddie Stock was also in the same vehicle when Brantley was injured, but her injuries were much less severe. Thoughts were with both players when news originally broke and it was uncertain as to Stock’s condition.

Running back Russell Hansbrough couldn’t even say anything. He just had to put his feelings into emoticons.

Perhaps it’s all these prayers and well-wishes that kept Brantley in good hands. The most important thing is that he’s okay. Will it impact this team psychologically? It’s likely that it will, but probably in a good way. Losing a player on the field that Brantley was becoming is a blow, no doubt. But having a closely knit team emotionally rally around a stand-up member of the team is a recipe for focus and high emotion.

Look for the energy to be noticeable in summer practices.