QUESTION: Dorial Green-Beckham, perhaps the most prized high school football recruit in the nation, signed a letter of intent this morning to play for Mizzou. What does this signing mean for Missouri and what does it say about Gary Pinkel’s program?
VAHE GREGORIAN
Signing DGB is plenty meaningful in itself, but it also sets a tone as Mizzou moves to the SEC: MU is a serious new presence on the scene. Of course, it’s only a recruiting building block if Mizzou can, in fact, build off it. But it’s a great place to start.
BERNIE MIKLASZ
Obviously, this was a meaningful and high-profile “get” for Mizzou. DGB was the No. 1 WR of this recruiting class; some services ranked him No. 1 among all recruits. ESPNU had him at No. 3. Doesn’t matter. DGB was coveted by major programs including the biggest of the bigs. And it was important for MU to keep him home. I believe kids should go anywhere they want to go; they have no obligation to stay home. And Green-Beckham clearly had a lot of very attractive options available to him, but he chose the Tigers. This reflects well on Pinkel. It also reflects well on Green-Beckham; he played this straight up, with no mind games, no nonsense.
You can read more of Bernie's thoughts on the signing by clicking here.
CAMERON HOLLWAY
Despite having only three four-star recruits to go along with five-star DGB, Mizzou vaulted six spots to No. 21 in the ESPN recruiting rankings immediately after Green-Beckham announced. That’s an indication of how big it is. Pinkel hasn’t been great at sealing the Missouri borders, but he’s been masterful at getting the most out of his recruits, regardless of their prospect ratings. If he can maximize Green-Beckham’s talent, then Mizzou might have the best NFL receiver prospect since … forever. That’s not an overstatement.
Gary Pinkel went whole hog in courting Green-Beckham, beating out all the big boys, and Arkansas, so it would have been a blow not to get him. And DGB already has become a recruiter for Mizzou. He was lobbying De Smet receiver Durron Neal, who signed with Oklahoma, to join him in Columbia even before DGB signed. Jeremy Maclin tweeted a congrats to DGB early Wednesday. That’s how recruiting builds, from the football family, through alums who go on to NFL stardom. If DGB is as good as we believe he is, then he’ll have an instant impact on the field at Missouri, even if only for a couple years. His lasting impact could be greater.
NATE LATSCH
This is a coup for Gary Pinkel and Co., who were unsuccessful in their attempts to land any of the top wide receivers out of St. Louis this year – De Smet’s Durron Neal (Oklahoma), Parkway Central’s Brandon Sheperd (Oklahoma State), Ladue’s Jehu Chesson (Michigan) and Kirkwood’s Mike McHugh (Northwestern).
The signing of Dorial Green-Beckham continues a trend of top in-state prospects deciding to stay home. Gateway Tech defensive lineman Sheldon Richardson was rated as the No. 4 overall recruit by Rivals.com in 2009. Parkway West quarterback Blaine Gabbert was rated as the No. 14 overall prospect by Rivals in 2008. These are key recruits for the Tigers.
Now we’ll see if DGB can live up to his super-sized expectations and if Mizzou can use DGB’s commitment to attract other top-level talent to Columbia as the Tigers make the move to the SEC.
STU DURANDO
Green-Beckham is one of 85 scholarship players but his arrival in Columbia could have a big impact on the field and in future recruiting. Players want to play with the best and if he impacts the offense as hoped, 2013 recruits are sure to take note. Recruiting analyst Tom Lemming said Green-Beckham would be Mizzou's best signing in a couple of decades, so people are going to take notice. It was also another step toward trying to lock up the borders in Missouri as much as Pinkel possibly can. Heading into the SEC, this is the type of player Missouri needs.
TOM TIMMERMANN
Well, it’s always good to be able to keep the best guy in your own state, especially if he’s also the best guy in the nation. It says that Gary Pinkel did a good job of convincing DGB that his team can be competitive in the SEC. Now, they just have to do that. I don’t know that getting one player makes that big of a difference; Mizzou needs to have some high-powered recruiting classes coming in if it’s not going to get run over in the SEC. More important than DGB will be DGB’s coattails. Getting a great recruit is usually a good way to get others to come along, though it would have helped if he had committed early when more guys were in play.
JOE LYONS
This was a must-have recruit for the Tigers as they make the transition from the Big 12 to the SEC. With the move to the SEC, Missouri has to find a way to improve the talent level across the board and getting Dorial Green-Beckham, one of the nation’s premier prospects, to stay home is a very encouraging start.
KEVIN WHEELER (Host of “Sports Open Line” on KMOX)
What it means is perhaps a little swagger heading into next year’s recruiting process. Now that they’re in the SEC the Tigers will need more DGB-type players and landing one now could certainly open the door for others if they continue to have success.
Getting one of the country’s top players is a big deal and “closing the borders” on top recruits is a goal of Pinkel’s staff, no doubt. The key moving forward will be to land players like this from other states too. Do that with regularity and you’ve fully arrived as a program.
They’ve turned some 3-star recruits into top-tier players over the years, as has a program like Wisconsin, so getting the big names is important but not as important as getting players who fit your program. DGB happens to be the best of both worlds in that regard.
(EDITOR'S NOTE: You can check out much more of our signing day coverage and find out who signed where by visiting our site dedicated to preps sports at STLhighschoolsports.com)
