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COLUMBIA, Mo.— After a stretch of injuries and illnesses that sideswiped University of Missouri wrestling’s march to March, the Tigers’ lineup is healthy and complete heading into this weekend’s Big 12 Championship.
On the line for TigerStyle in Tulsa, Oklahoma, is one of the most impressive streaks in the history of Mizzou Athletics: Coach Brian Smith‘s team has won 12 consecutive conference championships, dating back to the Big 12 title in 2012, all the way through nine years in the Mid-American Conference, followed by two straight Big 12 crowns in 2022 and 2023.
Now, at stake this weekend at Tulsa’s BOK Center, lucky No. 13.
Here’s the potential bad news for the rest of the field: The No. 10 Tigers (10-4) are coming to Tulsa with a renewed edge. It’s difficult to imagine the 12-time conference champions as underdogs, but Big 12 foes Oklahoma State and Iowa State are ranked higher, at No. 4 and 5, respectively. South Dakota State is right on Mizzou’s heels at No. 11.
“We started the season ranked really high,” Smith said this week. “We’ve had some duals where we haven’t had our team, so we’ve dropped (in the rankings). But it’s still the same team that started with those high expectations that’s going to be showing up. … I feel very confident about where we are. I’m glad I’ve got them all in the practice room. That helps, too.”
Smith had a depleted lineup in February’s lopsided losses at Northern Iowa and Iowa State. But Smith’s 10-man crew in Tulsa will more closely resemble the team that earned January victories over Virginia Tech, Stanford and West Virginia. But that stretch came nearly two months ago. A new cast of Tigers — same as the old cast — is back on the hunt.
“Going in (to Big 12s), people are writing us off a little bit,” Smith said. “But there’s an opportunity. This team knows how to compete. Jut gotta go do it. More importantly would be getting 10 guys to the national tournament. You get 10 out there, it gives you 10 opportunities to score points. We need to have a good weekend. There’s no doubt about that. But they know that. That’s what they’ve trained for all season.”
Mizzou and Oklahoma State are the only two programs in the 13-team Big 12 field that have all 10 of their wrestlers seeded among the top eight in their respective weight classes. Here are the seedings for all 10 Tigers:
No. 1, Noah Surtin (125 lbs.)
No. 6, Kade Moore (133)
No. 6, Josh Edmond (141)
No. 8, Logan Gioffre (149)
No. 5, Brock Mauller (157)
No. 1, Keegan O’Toole (165)
No. 4, Peyton Mocco (174)
No. 4, Colton Hawks (184)
No. 3, Rocky Elam (197)
No. 3, Zach Elam (285)
Always one to discover a new motivational ploy, Smith went old school with one of the team’s catchphrases, tweaking a line from Bill Murray’s rah-rah speech in the summer camp classic “Meatballs.” (Here’s where we take a beat for the younger Mizzou Morning Matters subscribers so they can Google “Tripper’s motivational speech from Meatballs.”)
A quick refresher on the speech …
Phil: “The Mohawks have beaten us the last 12 years. They’re gonna beat us again.”
Tripper: “That’s just the attitude we don’t need. Sure, Mohawk has beaten us twelve years in a row. Sure, they’re terrific athletes. They’ve got the best equipment that money can buy. Hell, every team they’re sending over here has their own personal masseuse, not masseur, masseuse. But it doesn’t matter. Do you know that every Mohawk competitor has an electrocardiogram, blood and urine tests every 48 hours to see if there’s any change in his physical condition? Do you know that they use the most sophisticated training methods from the Soviet Union, East and West Germany and the newest Olympic power Trinidad-Tobago? But it doesn’t matter. It just doesn’t matter. IT JUST DOESN’T MATTER. I tell you, IT JUST DOESN’T MATTER! IT JUST DOESN’T MATTER! IT JUST DOESN’T MATTER!”
Smith embraced a twist on Tripper’s speech.
“He’s like, ‘That’s just the attitude we don’t need,'” Smith said. “We changed it to, ‘That’s just the attitude we do need!.’ So when somebody’s like, ‘Come on, I’ll help you out.’ It’s, ‘Hey, that’s just the attitude we need.’ We even have that on our shirts. … That’s TigerStyle to the utmost right now. We need that this week.”
The Big 12 Championship begins Saturday at 10 a.m. with preliminary and quarterfinal matches, followed by the semifinal and consolation quarterfinal matches at 5 p.m. CT. The Championship will resume at noon Sunday with the consolation semifinals as well as the third- and fifth-place matches before the Championship matches start at 7:30 p.m.
Big 12 Now on ESPN+ will broadcast the first three sessions, while the championship round will air on ESPN2.
MIZZOU STORYTELLERS
On the latest episode of “Mizzou Storytellers,” Nikki Barry and I visit with volleyball coach Dawn Sullivan, fresh off her debut season guiding the Tigers back to the NCAA Tournament. The 2023 SEC Coach of the Year shares the story of her journey from her family’s farm in rural Minnesota to her decorated playing career at Kansas State, a lengthy and successful coaching run at Iowa State and her decision to move her family to Las Vegas to chase her dream to become a head coach.
Listen now on your preferred home for podcasts on Amazon, Apple or Spotify.
As for future episodes, next Saturday (March 16), we’ll be recording a live pregame podcast on the Memorial Stadium North Concourse before the Black and Gold spring game. Tentatively set to begin recording at noon, we’ll take questions from fans in the crowd, interview a couple special guests and maybe have a few free giveaways. Be sure to visit us on the North Concourse — and wish for good weather!
‘EVERYDAY DUDES’
Seconds after the final home game in what’s been a challenging second season at Mizzou, men’s basketball coach Dennis Gates grabbed the microphone from the scorer’s table — no foul was called, miraculously — and saluted the fans still gathered inside Mizzou Arena for the postgame senior night ceremony.
A few minutes later, he followed the season’s home finale with an impassioned message about his team, his program, his university and the fans. This is worth sharing here today as the Tigers head to LSU for Saturday’s regular-season finale and then next week’s SEC Tournament in Nashville.
“I am absolutely proud of our guys. I am proud of each and every last one of them,” Gates said. “If you quote me, please quote that I am absolutely proud of how they hold their head up, how they are standing two feet down, 10 toes in. I am proud of how they react to adversity and how they have been reacting to it. They’ve not shied away from walking on campus. They have not shied away from being a part of this student body, being a part of this city. They have done tremendous work in the community. … They go to class. I am absolutely proud of these dudes, because at the end of the day, you have to be an everyday person to be successful. And these guys, regardless of the conditions, are everyday dudes. They’ve proven that is easy to rally behind a sold-out crowd every game and people asking for your autograph every step of the way. But our fans have not wavered in how they feel about our guys. They’ve given us inspiration. They’ve given us a connection, a bond that can last a lifetime.
“Our coaches and this department have done the same thing. Our leadership on campus has done the same thing, starting from the Board of Curators, all the way to our president all the way to our interim AD. They have supported us an unbelievable amount. And this is just not supporting me. They’re asking our guys, ‘How are you doing? Great job. We’re with you every step of the way.’ And that is what college athletics is about. In 20 years, no matter what the record is, these guys are going to come back because there’s been open arms around them and hugging them. They’re going to remember those things in 20 years. They’re going to proudly bring their families back here and show off what this institution has done for them, how it has raised them, how it has supported them and how it has molded them into men. And I’m happy to be the steward here and pushing that under the men’s basketball program.”
Here’s one of the better stats of the season: Mizzou averaged 10,856 fans for 17 home games this season. Despite a string of critical injuries and a winless conference record, MU’s home attendance ranked 33rd nationally coming out of Tuesday’s game against Auburn. Among other high-major programs with arena capacities of 12,000 or more — at 15,061, Mizzou Arena ranks No. 20 in high-major arena capacity — the Tigers have averaged more fans per game than the likes of LSU, Texas A&M, Iowa, West Virginia, Wake Forest, Utah, Pitt, Minnesota, Arizona State, Oregon, UCLA and Oklahoma State. Mizzou also filled the arena at a higher capacity than such programs as Oklahoma, Florida State, Louisville, North Carolina State, Notre Dame and Ohio State.
MIZZOU MUSINGS
* Mizzou will have two competitors at this weekend’s NCAA Track and Field Indoor Championships in Boston: Alicia Burnett runs in the women’s 60 meters preliminaries Friday at 6:18 p.m. CT with the finals set for 6:15 p.m. Saturday. Sterling Scott competes in the men’s triple jump at 2:30 p.m. Saturday. The entire event will be streamed on ESPN+.
* Three of the five perfect 10.0 scores in Mizzou gymnastics history have come in the last 13 months. Graduate student Sienna Schreiber became the latest Sunday against Arkansas with a perfect score on the balance beam. Heading into Sunday’s quad meet, her final home competition, Schreiber owns the best National Qualifying Score in the SEC on the balance beam and ranks No. 4 nationally at 9.950.
Sienna Schreiber gave her mom the best birthday present ever on Sunday – the first perfect 10 of her career ??#MIZ?? pic.twitter.com/nqpkiq00GB
— Mizzou Gymnastics (@MizzouGym) March 7, 2024
* At 18-2, Mizzou softball is off to its best start since 2013 when the Tigers opened 22-2. SEC play starts Friday at Mizzou Softball Stadium when the No. 12 Tigers host No. 25 Auburn for a 4 p.m. start. Check out below for the highlights of Mizzou’s unbeaten weekend at Nebraska. (Just one storyteller’s take, but the new gray pinstripes might be the best uniforms of any Mizzou team in 2023-24.)
For it being the Big Red Invitational, there was a ton of Black & Gold Highlights ??????#OwnIt #MIZ ???? pic.twitter.com/YQfIzzlrDe
— Mizzou Softball (@MizzouSoftball) March 5, 2024
* One takeaway through the baseball season’s first few weeks under first-year coach Kerrick Jackson: This team is young. Four of the eight team leaders in at-bats are freshmen. Nobody’s off to a better start than sophomore Jackson Lovich, who has four of the team’s 15 home runs and driven in a team-best 15 runs with 30 total bases through 12 games.
* Expert radio broadcaster Brad Tregnago was quick to compile Mama Dembele’s season and career stat totals following Wednesday’s SEC Tournament loss to Florida: The senior point guard finished the year with 189 assists, good for second-most in team history … 97 steals, also good for second-most all-time at Mizzou. Her 448 career assists rank fourth all-time and her 204 career steals rank fifth.
* Another year, another well deserved honor for former Tigers coaching legend Norm Stewart, who was named one of the 2023-24 Guardians of the Game by the National Association for Basketball Coaches. Stewart will be recognized for the Advocacy category.
* One new twist to Mizzou football’s defense under new coordinator Corey Batoon and defensive edge coach Brian Early: The defensive end on the short side of the field (boundary) will be called the Joker. For now, returning starter Johnny Walker Jr., the Defensive MVP of the Cotton Bowl, is playing that position, along with returner Joe Moore III and newcomer Darris Smith, a transfer from Georgia.
“He is a hybrid outside linebacker type,” Early said of the Joker prototype. “He’s someone that, number one, is recruited because he can rush the passer. But he’s probably a little bit lighter in terms of his body weight. What he looks like is a little bit different body type than what we play with to the field. For us, that’s the premier pass rusher in this defense. You’re looking for longer, leaner. It would look like a basketball player (as) the prototype that you’re looking for at that position over there into the boundary.”
TIGER TRIVIA
Q: Seventeen Mizzou wrestlers have won Big 12 championships, but only three have won multiple Big 12 championships. Name those three.
LOOKING AHEAD
Friday, March 8
Track and Field at NCAA Indoor Championships (Boston, Massachusetts)
Baseball vs. Purdue Fort Wayne, 3 p.m. SEC Network+
Tennis at No. 11 Auburn, 3 p.m. (Auburn, Alabama)
Softball vs. No. 24 Auburn, 4 p.m.
Saturday, March 9
Track and Field at NCAA Indoor Championships (Boston, Massachusetts)
Wrestling at Big 12 Championship (Tulsa, Oklahoma)
Swimming & Diving at NCAA Zone Diving Championships (Houston, Texas)
Baseball vs. Purdue Fort Wayne, noon, SEC Network+ (doubleheader)
Softball vs. No. 24 Auburn, 2 p.m., SEC Network+
Men’s Basketball at LSU, 7:30 p.m., SEC Network (Baton Rouge, Louisiana)
Sunday, March 10
Wrestling at Big 12 Championship (Tulsa, Oklahoma)
Swimming & Diving at NCAA Zone Diving Championships (Houston, Texas)
Women’s Golf at Tulane Classic (New Orleans, Louisiana)
Tennis at Alabama, 11 a.m. (Tuscaloosa, Alabama)
Softball vs. No. 24 Auburn, noon, SEC Network+
Baseball vs. Purdue Fort Wayne, 1:30 p.m., SEC Network+
Gymnastics vs. No. 11 Denver/New Hampshire/SEMO, 1 p.m., SEC Network+
Monday, March 11
Swimming & Diving at NCAA Zone Diving Championships (Houston, Texas)
Women’s Golf at Tulane Classic (New Orleans, Louisiana)
Tuesday, March 12
Swimming & Diving at NCAA Zone Diving Championships (Houston, Texas)
Women’s Golf at Tulane Classic (New Orleans, Louisiana)
Baseball at Kansas, 6 p.m., ESPN+ (Lawrence, Kansas)
Wednesday, March 13
Swimming & Diving at NCAA Zone Diving Championships (Houston, Texas)
Softball at Illinois, 1 p.m., 3:30 p.m. (Urbana-Champaign, Illinois)
Men’s Basketball vs. TBA at SEC Tournament, 8:30 p.m. (Nashville, Tennessee)
Thursday, March 14
Men’s Basketball vs. TBA at SEC Tournament, 8:30 p.m. (Nashville, Tennessee)
Friday, March 15
Women’s Golf at MountainView Collegiate (Tucson, Arizona)
Track and Field at Yellow Jacket Invitational (Atlanta, Georgia)
Softball at No. 5 Tennessee, 5 p.m. (Knoxville, Tennessee)
Baseball at Arkansas, 6:30 p.m. (Fayetteville, Arkansas)
Men’s Basketball vs. TBA at SEC Tournament, 8:30 p.m. (Nashville, Tennessee)
TIGER TRIVIA
Q: Seventeen Mizzou wrestlers have won Big 12 championships, but only three have won multiple Big 12 championships. Name those three.
A: Ben Askren (2004, 2006, 2007), Max Askren (2007, 2008), Nick Marable (2008, 2009, 2010)
LINKS TO CLICK
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