Mizzou football hits midway point of spring camp

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Mizzou football team's opportunity to get some work in before the madness of fall ensues is just about halfway through. The Tigers put practice No. 7 out of 13 in the books, on Tuesday morning.

It marked the first time this spring that the media has had a chance to observe an outdoor practice.

You can watch extended highlights from practice in the video player below.

A slew of new MU players earned their numbers since the last time practice was opened up. Penn State transfer quarterback Beau Pribula was seen sporting the No. 9, while Mississippi State transfer wide receiver Kevin Coleman was wearing No. 3.

Punter Connor Weselman was wearing his newly-earned No. 45, as well, on Tuesday. The Stanford transfer just came to Columbia in Dec., following four years playing for the Cardinals. Special teams coordinator Erik Link said, during Tuesday's press conference, that Weselman has been a welcome addition to the specialists room.

"I think you can tell that he's clearly got game experience, " Link said. "Just his approach, he's a very mature guy, high IQ guy, who works on his craft, studies the game. You know, I think he's really got a pro mindset and mentality when it comes to his approach and just how he's works on a day-to-day basis. He's been awesome to work with. I think he brings a level of maturity to that room, which is really, really good...He's also a great holder, so that brings a lot of value from that standpoint."

You can watch the full press conference with Coach Link in the video player below.

Mizzou is working with a slimmed down special teams unit, ahead of the 2025 campaign, as pending roster limit uncertainty looms. Following the end of the 2024 season, a few of head coach Eli Drinkwitz's specialists decided to hit the transfer portal, including punter Orion Phillips and long snapper Jack Kautz. The Tigers also lost veteran punter Luke Bauer to graduation.

Redshirt sophomore kicker Blake Craig said it feels a bit weird in the room having a lot less guys, but it's also even more focused.

"We have like four specialist right now, 4 or 5 and it's definitely a change. But I think that, having less guys in the room just means that we got to be more focused, you know, like in our meetings and everything. It feels like there's no one in there when we're on our meeting," Craig joked. "But, I think everyone's just so locked in on what they want to do."

You can watch the full press conference with Craig in the video player below.

Link said that his unit will carry about three less specialists than they have in years past. He added it will be two-deep situation at each position, while he will look to have a spare guy, who can do a multitude of things for the room.

There's quite a few changes in the 2025 edition of spring camp, including a impending new face at quarterback. Drinkwitz's team is in the midst of a quarterback competition, as Beau Pribula, Sam Horn, Drew Pyne and Matt Zollers all fight for the starting role.

Wide receiver Marquis Johnson said all of those guys have had great reps in practice, but now he's just focused on keeping their positivity up.

"I just make sure to keep the head up, make sure everything's positive," he said. "Anything happens, I make sure that I say it's my fault...Just make sure they keep their confidence high. That's the main thing when it comes to quarterbacks to make sure they're very confident in what they do."

You can watch the full press conference with Johnson in the video player below.

Mizzou will continue on with spring camp in the coming days.