The Griffon News

The Feb. 7 signing day is just around the corner, and the coaches are recruiting hard to build off last seasons’ success.

The Missouri Western football team had the most successful season in the history of the program. The team went 9-3 and lost in the first round of the playoffs by two points. This is the first time the Griffons have ever gone to the playoffs, and the team looks to build on last year and land another solid class.

Last year’s recruiting class was the biggest in head coach Jerry Partridge’s tenure. The team landed thirty recruits; such players headlined the class as Drew Newhart, Eric Anderson, Nick Blackburn, Brad Beckwith and several others.

When it comes to recruiting, a team can either go after high school athletes or junior college/transfer athletes. The right mixes of both types of athletes are important to good recruiting, Partridge said.

A position that the team will look to address through the junior college/transfer level is the defensive line position. All of the starting defensive line from last year were seniors and won’t be back next year, so this will be a priority.

They are looking to add depth to an already strong core. In the past, Missouri Western has signed players from California, Texas, Kansas, Iowa and Florida, but the bulk of their recruiting class has always been centered in Missouri. All thirty of last years recruits came from the state of Missouri.

The hardest part of recruiting is convincing a recruit that your school is the best fit for him. The question is why should a recruit pick Missouri Western over other schools?

By choosing Missouri Western they can receive a first-class education, attend a campus that is relatively new and enjoy a team that has winning tradition.

“They can get a quality education and win football games,” Partridge said.

Current player Eric Anderson, who is a freshman wide receiver on the football team, said the reason he chose Missouri Western was that the coaching staff was easy to talk to.

“The coaches were very open, and they made me feel at home,” Anderson said.

The Griffons lost 15 players to graduation. The key losses are Jarrett Brooks, Michael Cobbins, John Fisher, Jeremiah White, Greg Carbin, Jamison Burns, Ahmad Spry, Jon Miller, Brad Kester and Gijon Robinson. All of these players made first of second team, all MIAA or honorable mention.

This year’s recruiting class will play a big role in the team’s future success.

Next year’s team is looking to build on the success of what last year’s team accomplished. They have a solid core of returning players to fill gaps left by graduation.

“A great senior class just left, but we have kids that can step in and play for us,” Partridge said.

The recruiting class they are ready to sign with are the players they already have in the program; the future is looking bright for the Missouri Western football team’s future.