Truman's Tales
Fansided

Kelly Bryant wants to leave his own legacy for Mizzou football

By Thomas Huitt-Johnson

NEW ORLEANS, LA - JANUARY 01: Kelly Bryant #2 of the Clemson Tigers thows the ball in the first half of the AllState Sugar Bowl against the Alabama Crimson Tide at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on January 1, 2018 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LA - JANUARY 01: Kelly Bryant #2 of the Clemson Tigers thows the ball in the first half of the AllState Sugar Bowl against the Alabama Crimson Tide at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on January 1, 2018 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

The new quarterback has one year to leave his own legacy for Mizzou football.

New Missouri Tigers quarterback Kelly Bryant said he wants to leave his own legacy.

He has a chance to do that in his lone season at Mizzou.

For nearly three decades, the Tigers only have had a handful of quarterbacks they’ve put behind center. Bryant follows quarterback Drew Lock, who started nearly all four years he was at Mizzou. But that’s not all he is following.

Before Lock was Maty Mauk, Jams Franklin, Blaine Gabbert, Chase Daniel and Brad Smith. Even before Smith, Mizzou had trusted starters in Kirk Farmer, Corby Jones and Jeff Handy. Now that’s back to almost the 1980s.

So having a one-year starter is rare for the Tigers. Mauk was the closest the Tigers had to that, but he still played three years for the Tigers, starting games in 2013 and 2015.

Bryant spoke about joining a quarterback-heavy history the Tigers have at last week’s SEC Media Days.

“It’s definitely great just coming to a program where a lot of quarterbacks have left their mark,” Bryant said. “The biggest thing I said for me is to leave your own legacy, don’t try to chase anything that’s not within you. So just be who you are at the end of the day, and then everything else is gonna take care of itself. And you’ll be where you want to be at the end of the day.”

Bryant is able to attend Mizzou and play his final year out after a new transfer rule, one he’s heard as being called the “Kelly Bryant Rule.”

The new rule allows a player to keep his eligibility for the year he played in four or fewer games.

“I didn’t even know I was one of the first players (to take advantage of the rule),” Bryant said. “Everybody labeling it the Kelly Bryant rule now, I was like, ‘Oh wow, I didn’t even know that was a thing.'”

His own legacy could stem from a new rule that he’s thankful happened at the right time — his senior year.

“It was good to take advantage of it. Like I said, I’m thankful for it, at the time that it came, and place.”

Home/Missouri Tigers