The Morning Commute for Friday, April 25th, 2025.
Welcome to the Morning Commute
The NFL Draft began last night and because the NFL is a media whore, the prolonged draft experience lasts multiple days. It’s now a three day event. There are still two days and 6 rounds of picks to go, but the first round is complete. There are many Tigers who are expecting to be picked, but one certainly on the list is Luther Burden.
I don’t need to spend any time introducing you to Burden, he’s been the face of the program since he tossed aside a Georgia hat and an Alabama hat in favor of one simply with an oval Tiger.
I fully admit to not being an NFL draftnik, or even a fan of the NFL. That league is the dream of a player like Burden, so I want him to do very well because it’s important to him, and because it’s helpful to Eli Drinkwitz and the Missouri football program.
I can be anti-NFL because of how the league treated my home city. But it’s easy to hate on the league for its never ending quest for mediocrity and resounding effort to resist anything which might be considered daring. I get people love the league, but every time a draft rolls around I’m reminded how incredibly poor the leagues teams are at picking players. They’re really bad at it, so much so they’re constantly firing guys and hiring new ones.
Luther Burden is a great football player. He doesn’t things which don’t fully add up when you see them. He’s not the fastest guy, but he runs away from everyone. He’s not the quickest guy but he’s always getting open.
Burden’s stock took a hit, I can guess, because his quarterback got hurt this year and his offensive coordinator didn’t get him the ball enough. But he was still incredible. A one handed catch to go up on South Carolina on the road. The out and up to score in Overtime against Vanderbilt. The catch in traffic for a touchdown against Mississippi State.
Maybe I’m biased, and proximity is blurring the truth. But I see Burden and I see a guy I’d want on my football team. Nobody in the NFL picked him in round one. I think that was a huge mistake. And whoever takes him will have a dude on their roster wanting to make the rest of the league pay.
Go be great Luther. You’ll know your new home soon enough.
Yesterday at Rock M and Rock M+
- Speaking of the NFL Draft, Dan previewed what the draft might look like for the Missouri Tigers:
This weekend marks a favorite event for American sports fans: televised football HR. The Barry Odom and early Eli Drinkwitz years saw Mizzou fall out of producing draft picks, but after five selections last year, the program is back in a big way. At least one Tiger will go in the first round on Thursday, and maybe two. What else does the NFL’s premiere offseason event have in store for the program?
I think we agree on the Burden front. Josh published the Reacts results on what league might be most popular on Draft night, and it was no surprise.
- The first Tiger was drafted, and the highest draft pick since 2011, when Armand Membou was taken by the New York Jets. Sammy had the write up.
- Sammy previewed the Alabama baseball series:
Mizzou had a chance last weekend at home to get their first conference win of the season against a good, but not great Oklahoma team. However, they got swept and weren’t competitive in all three games. Alabama is a similar team rankings-wise with Oklahoma, and this series gets even more difficult with it being on the road. Expect a similar result, as Mizzou should get swept once again still searching for their first SEC win.
Mizzou put up a good fight but fell late, 7-5…. ** sigh
- A former blue chip recruit pledged to the Tigers after spending time in Iowa City, Josh has the Recruiting Reset on Gavin Hoffman:
Mizzou is looking at a tight end shortage in a year or two when Brett Norfleet goes pro or exhausts his eligibility and Vince Brown II graduates. Alongside Dakotah Terrell, Hoffman fits nicely as Mizzou’s next wave of dual threat tight ends. Knowing the staff, these won’t be the last two additions to the roster in this position, but Hoffman represents the future of the position in Drinkwitz and Kirby Moore’s offense.
Talented players coming home is a thing that works out well for Mizzou a good amount of the time.
I also updated the Transfer Tracker as Mizzou had some options dwindle a bit.
Over at Rock M+, we’re talking about The portal and the draft! We’ve also got the most recent Dive Cuts available to watch on the front page, un-paywalled. If you’re into that sort of thing.
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