Weather forces Mizzou football to open camp in new Stephens Indoor Facility

COLUMBIA, Mo. — It didn’t take long for the Missouri football team to break in the sparkling new Stephens Indoor Facility. Scattered showers in Columbia sent the Tigers indoors for their first preseason practice on Monday, marking the official debut of the $33 million, 86,400-square foot practice facility located a few steps southwest of Memorial Stadium.
Unlike the Devine Pavilion, the program’s indoor facility since the 1990s, Stephens features a full 100-yard field, giving the Tigers more than enough space to hold a full-team practice Monday.
Wearing a wireless microphone, Tigers coach Eli Drinkwitz could be heard shouting instructions through each drill as music pumped through the in-house sound system — too loud for the coach’s taste to begin the helmets-only practice. Media were allowed to observe the first seven periods of the practice, mostly consisting of individual and position group drills, including a turnover exercise Drinkwitz called the “Nick Bolton Drill,” named after the former Mizzou linebacker and Super Bowl standout for the Kansas City Chiefs.
On Tuesday, as part of its meeting on the Columbia campus, the UM System Board of Curators will take a tour of the new indoor facility before returning to Memorial Union, where the Curators will administer the oath to newly appointed board member Bob Blitz, the St. Louis attorney who served as one of the lawyers who sued the NFL in the Rams' relocation lawsuit.
More from Monday's practice ...
• Redshirt freshman safety Isaac Thompson watched drills from the sideline with his right leg in a brace. The former St. Louis University High standout will miss preseason camp, Drinkwitz said Monday. His status will be re-evaluated at the end of camp. In 2021, Thompson missed most of his senior year at SLUH after tearing the ACL, MCL and meniscus in his right knee.
• On the far side of the field from where media can watch practice, Mizzou’s seven quarterbacks took turns throwing to receivers in individual passing drills. There were no defenders involved in the drill. Mookie Cooper delivered the best catch of the drill, snagging a Brady Cook pass over his head on his way to the end zone. Dannis Jackson, a first-year transfer from Ole Miss, showed off his speed turning a short pass into a score down the seam. Again, the QBs were throwing against air in these drills.
• Speaking of QBs, freshman Gabarri Johnson took part in his first official college practice. Fair to say he’s easily the shortest QB on the roster — he’s listed at 5-foot-10 — but he’s got some wiggle in the pocket. He’s among the newcomers who hasn’t received his jersey number yet, but the rookie from Tacoma, Washington, will wear No. 13 once the staff decides he’s earned it.
• Freshmen who took part in spring practices have earned their jersey number. Others who arrived this summer will have to earn theirs over the coming weeks, including defensive backs Nicholas Deloach Jr. (No. 24), Shamar McNeil (26) and Phillip Roche (29), defensive ends Serigne Tounkara (32) and Sam Williams (94), offensive linemen Logan Reichert (66) and Brandon Solis (78), St. Mary's running back Jamal Roberts (20), tight ends Jordon Harris (86) and Francis Howell's Brett Norfleet (87) and receivers Daniel Blood (16), Marquis Johnson (17) and Joshua Manning (0).
• As promised, All-SEC third-teamer Darius Robinson worked out at defensive end during the open practice periods. He’ll play both tackle and end this season, depending on down and distance and Mizzou’s opponent. How exactly will that work? “We'll use his strengths differently each week in different matchups,” defensive ends coach Kevin Peoples said. “It's great to have a guy that's selfless that wants to help the team. His size will hopefully be a bonus that we can use in the right situations. He might move inside on a long-yardage situation or if we’ve we've got a positive matchup for us against an offensive tackle that might lack some size then we can put him at defensive end. I think it's gonna be evolving and we're gonna figure out what's best for him and what's best for us.”
• The Tigers are loaded with veteran depth along the D-line interior, but redshirt freshman Marquis Gracial, listed at 6-4 and 331 pounds, absolutely passes the eye test as an SEC defensive tackle. To see the field this year, the St. Louis native will have to earn snaps behind upperclassmen Robinson, Kristian Williams, Jayden Jernigan, Realus George Jr. and Josh Landry.
• Defensive newcomers who look primed for roles this fall: Star safety Tre’Vez Johnson, deep safety Marvin Burks Jr., defensive end Joe Moore and linebacker Triston Newson. Burks opens camp playing Mizzou’s rover position, or boundary safety, as the primary backup to senior Jaylon Carlies.
• Lightest player on the roster: 169-pound freshman cornerback Shamar McNeil, who’s listed at 6-foot-3.
• Heaviest player on the roster: 369-pound freshman offensive lineman Logan Reichert, who’s listed at 6-6.
• Tallest players on the roster: Junior offensive guard Mitchell Walters at 6-8, freshman tight end Brett Norfleet and freshman offensive lineman Brandon Solis, both at 6-7.
• Players from the St. Louis metro area on the roster: 23.
Metro area high schools with multiple players on the roster: Francis Howell (three), Cardinal Ritter (two), Washington (two) and the since shuttered Trinity Catholic (two).
• The only player noticeably absent from the open portion of Monday’s practice was starting linebacker Chad Bailey. A team spokesman confirmed Bailey was in the football facility but being held out of the early periods for undisclosed reasons. He’s not expected to miss preseason camp. Bailey was indefinitely suspended earlier this year after his DWI arrest in March. Bailey pleaded not guilty in April and has a court date Aug. 22.