KellyBabyxxFEARxx's blog: "MIZZOU TIGERS!"

Justin Britt has known for some time where he was going to play college football. Tuesday night, he made sure he dotted his ‘I’s” and cross his “T’s,” and on Wednesday, it became official, as he faxed a signed national letter-of-intent to play at the University of Missouri to the Tiger coaching staff. “I was like freaking out last night, I was like, ‘I have to make this right,’” he said. “I was going real slow when I signed it. I signed it last night, then I came to school and (LHS head coach Will) Christian faxed it over. Then I called them and talked to like, 12 (MU) coaches. “It is a thrill.” Unlike a few of his fellow members of the 2009 Tiger recruiting class, the 6-foot-6, 270-pound offensive lineman said he never wavered after announcing his verbal commitment on June 16. The Tigers signed 25 players on Wednesday, and were anxiously awaiting word whether a few of them, including five star recruit Sheldon Richardson, would honor their verbal commitment. “Solid all the way through,” Britt said. “I didn’t talk to any other coaches. (Schools) would call, but I don’t want to talk to you. “I am going to Mizzou — that’s all I wanted.” In fact, Britt helped the Tigers recruit one of the two other local players who were among the 25 players MU signees on Wednesday. “I helped talk Mark Hill, of Branson, into signing,” Britt said. Hill, a fellow offensive lineman (6-foot-6 260 pounds) spurned the Arkansas Razorbacks — where his brother Steven Hill played basketball — to join Britt and nine other in-state recruits. “We have been talking about rooming together,” Britt said. Britt said an early commitment helped him focus on the season, but committing to a Tiger program that finished No. 19 in the final Associated Press poll had consequences. “It put a target on me when I was on the field ... but it was nice getting that out of the way so I could focus on the season,” he said. Britt said he needs to gain 30 pounds and get stronger before he heads to Columbia to compete as a freshman. To that end, Britt said he is taking the spring off (he has previously competed in track) to concentrate on adding weight. “I’ve been trying (to add weight) but wrestling season you work real hard and sweat a lot and work it off,” Britt said. “I am at about 260 (pounds) right now, and getting to 290 would be real nice.” Lebanon memories Britt was a part of a football resurgence at LHS this season that included an appearance in the Class 5 playoffs where they recorded a regional win over Glendale and took on the then-No. 1 ranked team, Raymore-Peculiar, in sectionals. “Beating Camdenton is probably the No. 1 (memory) and going to the playoffs,” Britt said. “Driving around in the bus (before LHS left for its playoff game) seeing all the kids outside cheering — it is really emotional ... you are going to miss it (high school football) but then you realize you are going to a bigger level and start over again as a freshman.” Britt will be starting over without his Lebanon teammates, including Ryan Howerton and Phillip Archer, who both signed Wednesday to play at Lindenwood. “I wish Ryan would have went to Mizzou and Phillip too, but they’ll do good,” he said. “They both can start next year, it’ll be good to hear about them. “Maybe they can transfer to Mizzou.”

Justin Britt, 6-foot-6 270 pound OL University of Missouri bio. ... www.mutigers.cstv.com Feb 5, 2009 A self-described lifelong Mizzou fan who is an athletic lineman with a frame that projects very well at the college level ... Played on both sides of the line of scrimmage for Lebanon High School, and starred on offense at left tackle ... Is ranked as the No. 19 overall prospect (any position) in Missouri, according to Rivals.com, and is ranked by ESPN.com as the No. 86 offensive tackle prospect in the nation ... ESPN.com touts him as having good mobility and foot agility and a large wing span which helps in pass protection ... Was a 1st-Team All-State pick in 2008 as an offensive lineman, as well as taking home 1st-Team All-District and All-Conference honors ... Starred at left tackle for a high-powered offense that racked up nearly 5,200 yards of total offense and threw for nearly 3,300 yards ... Allowed only one sack in 2008 in 434 pass attempts ... His team was regional champs in 2008, and won a state playoff game for only the second time in school history ... A good overall athlete who was a three-year letterwinner in the sports of football, wrestling and track ... Placed 6th at the state wrestling championships in the heavyweight division in 2008, and has attended Mizzou’s wrestling camp in the past ... Was district heavyweight champion in 2008, adding to a pair of conference titles he won in 2007 and 2008, and he stands 25-0 during the current 2009 season ... High school coach - Will Christian ... Parents - Chris & Kelly Britt ... Interested in studying in the School of Education at Mizzou ... Lists hobbies as weightlifting, sports in general, and beating everyone at football on X-Box 360 ... Chose Mizzou over Kansas State, among others ... MU primary recruiting coach - Barry Odom ... Has been a big boy from day one, as he was weighed in at 11 pounds, 8 ounces at birth.

Feb 4, 2009 Three Lebanon High School football players will be making their college decisions official at 11 a.m. today. Justin Britt is set to become Lebanon’s first NCAA Division I football signee since Mike Wehner signed to play at the University of Miami in 1993 when he signs a letter-of-intent to play at the University of Missouri. Britt accepted a scholarship offer from the Tiger coaching staff on June 16. Lebanon seniors Phillip Archer and Ryan Howerton will sign to play football at Lindenwood University at 11 a.m. today. Also scheduled to sign letters-of-intent today are senior golfer Josh Helton with Central Methodist University and senior cross country runner Michael Weis with Missouri Southern. Mikey Jennings signed to play baseball at College of the Ozarks on Dec. 11. Several other Lebanon athletes are expected to sign to continue their athletic careers in the upcoming weeks.

Area recruits fit Pinkel's 'kind' Three local footballers committed to Big 12 programs, three to MU. Allen Vaughan • News-Leader • June 28, 2008 Read Comments(4)Recommend Print this page E-mail this article Share this article: Del.icio.us Facebook Digg Reddit Newsvine What’s this? In town earlier this month for an individual football camp at JFK Stadium, University of Missouri football coach Gary Pinkel laughed when asked about recruiting. Underwhelmed by various analysts who consistently ranked Mizzou's classes in the 20s or lower, Pinkel took a second to remind them which team shot up to the top spot in the AP and coaches' polls last season. "Obviously, they've been wrong," Pinkel said. "We were ranked No. 1 in the country at one point. We know what kind of kid we want, and it works for us." That "kind of kid" has Mark Hill and many others from the Ozarks excited. The Branson High School senior has seen three other area football players announce their NCAA Division I commitments over the last few weeks -- a number way above the norm. It's a sign that college football recruiting has taken a full turn toward the measurables, valuing speed, strength and body type maybe as much as talent, which is more subjective. Despite living in an area that has a reputation as a barren football recruiting landscape, this group of local high school seniors has the Ozarks hitting Division I paydirt. "Every program needs its big stars, but every program also has its building blocks," said Jeremy Crabtree, Rivals.com's National Recruiting Editor. "Sometimes you'll find a blue chipper from where you don't normally find them. "If you have the measurables and the speed, it doesn't matter where you're from or how you do it." That's where Hill comes in. After attending camps at Division I schools in the region like Missouri, Arkansas, Kansas and Kansas State, Hill said they told him they loved his 6-foot-6, 260-pound body with a 5.0-second 40-yard dash. It's a foundation that has coaches salivating over the opportunity to improve his size and strength and dreaming about how it could lead to better statistics than the 33 tackles, including five for a loss and two sacks, that he had last season -- that is, if he even plays defense in the future. "He definitely has the profile," Branson coach Steve Hancock said. "(College coaches) tell me they can get him to 300 pounds and still be athletic." So far, Hill has no scholarship offers, but he has a chance to be the fourth local player to commit before his senior season begins. Pinkel and Missouri already have locked up two, receiving oral commitments from Glendale wide receiver Alex Sanders and Lebanon offensive lineman Justin Britt. Strafford lineman Tyler Evans committed to Big 12 power Oklahoma. Buffalo's Cody Rosier is another local product who's getting Rivals.com attention. Buffalo coach Ed Hula said Kansas, K-State, Michigan and Iowa State have inquired and Rosier said once he takes his ACT, the colleges said they'd check back in on him. Three, let alone four, is a big number of commitments for the Ozarks. We're just one season removed from a season in which Ozark's Nathan Herrold's in-season commitment to Arkansas State left him as the lone player to end up Division I. The previous season, Hillcrest's Chris Earnhardt signed with Missouri. Neither he nor Herrold were considered blue-chippers or signed in the early period, as neither received more than three stars (out of five) on Rivals.com. But that's Pinkel's point. Sanders is expected fit in at tight end if he adds 30 pounds to his 6-5, 225-pound frame, where he would be the same size as Martin Rucker, who was drafted in the fourth round by the Cleveland Browns last season. Pinkel said Earnhardt, who's listed at 6-5, 240, could be a second-stringer as a redshirt freshman this coming season. Britt came out of nowhere, flashing good footwork and speed to go along with his 6-7, 267-pound body, which, too, is expected to add 30 pounds. Hill has a similar frame. While he said he would prefer to play defensive end, coaches tell him that offensive line might be his calling because of his size and footwork. Crabtree, the Rivals.com recruiting editor, said the proliferation of the spread offense has changed the type of player programs are targeting. Sanders plays wide receiver in Glendale's spread offense. Britt is expected to pass-protect more as a senior, just like Hill, who plays right tackle for Branson. Evans is expected to play on the offensive line for the Sooners, though he played guard for Strafford last season. Crabtree said teams are looking for big bodies, but with the current offensive schemes, speed is a necessity and not a luxury anymore. "It's no longer about the 300-pounders in high school," he said. "There's room for them in college football, but not with the spread teams. Maybe in five years, schemes will go back to bigger guys again, but right now, schools want guys with big frames who can get bigger." It's not as if any of the four players mentioned played on teams that set the high school football world on fire. Glendale was the only district winner among the four, Lebanon was 5-5, and Strafford and Branson finished below .500. Evans and Sanders were all-state players, but Britt was second-team All-Ozark Conference and Hill wasn't listed as an All-Central Ozark Conference performer. All of these Ozarks players have drawn attention not through their high school programs but through summer camps, either with the schools or at big, elite camps where all of the top talent is assembled at one place for inspection and evaluation. Hill said he saw some familiar faces at multiple camps, a sign that local talent exists and knows where to go. "This area's not known for a ton of D-I athletes," Hill said. "I saw probably eight kids at the KU camp and the MU camp that were from the surrounding schools." Republic football coach Kurt Thompson has helped produce his share of D-I players, whether it was Grant and Tracey Wistrom at Webb City or Jared Helming at Kickapoo. All three went to Nebraska. Thompson said he has seen changes in the way kids are recruited, primarily with the way scholarships are offered and accepted early. It's all about projecting how a player will fill out his body and develop his skills. "I'm not so sure it's the best way to do it. We all want to shoot for that big-time scholarship, but some of these kids get labeled early, for better or for worse," Thompson said. "I'd rather them fill out as football players. The bottom line (is) you've got to be a good football player, as well as being fast, strong and tall." In your voice Read reactions to this story Newest first Oldest first McLintock wrote: There are more people around here interested in MU football than SMS. Just remember all the activity on call in shows last fall, the watch parties for the Big 12 Championship and Cotton Bowl, etc. And, have you ever been to a Springfield Cardinals or local high school sporting event and seen how MU gear is worn by about a 5-1 margin over SMS or anybody else. The News Leader should write more MU stories. 6/28/2008 2:35:09 PM There are more people around here interested in MU football than SMS. Just remember all the activity on call in shows last fall, the watch parties for the Big 12 Championship and Cotton Bowl, etc. And, have you ever been to a Springfield Cardinals or local high school sporting event and seen how MU gear is worn by about a 5-1 margin over SMS or anybody else.

The News Leader should write more MU stories. McLintock Recommend (1) New post Reply to this Post Report Abuse BearNation wrote: Oh I totally get that, it's a big honor for those kids. I just meant we haven't really had any stories on how MSU's recruiting is going... 6/28/2008 8:07:40 AM Oh I totally get that, it's a big honor for those kids. I just meant we haven't really had any stories on how MSU's recruiting is going... BearNation Recommend (1) New post Reply to this Post Report Abuse secollum wrote: Like it or not, BearNation, MSU isn't a blip on the radar of athletics (especially for football). Anywhere outside of this town, anyway. It is great news for this region's athletes that there are two nearby D-I coaches (Pinkel and Mangino) who don't do their recruiting off a Rivals.com list of 4 and 5 star prospects, but instead know how to produce winners from the recruits other coaches overlook. Good luck to all the area players who are moving on to play at the highest level. And hopefully for the sake of our area kids, this is a trend that will continue. 6/28/2008 7:44:31 AM Like it or not, BearNation, MSU isn't a blip on the radar of athletics (especially for football). Anywhere outside of this town, anyway. It is great news for this region's athletes that there are two nearby D-I coaches (Pinkel and Mangino) who don't do their recruiting off a Rivals.com list of 4 and 5 star prospects, but instead know how to produce winners from the recruits other coaches overlook. Good luck to all the area players who are moving on to play at the highest level. And hopefully for the sake of our area kids, this is a trend that will continue. secollum Recommend (2) New post Reply to this Post Report Abuse BearNation wrote: Thank you for writing another Mizzou football story... not. 6/28/2008 5:21:28 AM Thank you for writing another Mizzou football story... not. BearNation Recommend (1) New post Reply to this Post Report Abuse You must be logged in to leave a comment. Login | Register 1000characters left {staffMark} {authorIcon} {authorHandle} wrote: {commentBody} {commentTimestamp}{commentBody} {authorNameHandle} {recommendLink} {newpostLink} {replylink} {reportAbuseLink} Report item as: (required) X Obscenity/vulgarity Hate speech Personal attack Advertising/Spam Copyright/Plagiarism Other Comment: (optional) Missing input fields. You must fill out the comment body in order to submit a comment. Comment too long. The comment you have entered is too long. Please limit your post to {maxchars} characters or less. Pinkel Hill Purchase this Photo Alex Sanders, a wide receiver from Glendale, will be joining Mizzou's spread attack. (News-Leader File Photo) Purchase this Photo Lebanon's Justin Britt, committed to Missouri, has great size and footwork. (News-Leader File Photo) Evans Related news from the Web Sports NCAA Sports Standardized Testing Education Kansas State Wildcats NCAA Football NCAA Football Iowa State University NCAA Kansas State University NCAA Iowa State Cyclones NCAA Football Powered by Topix.net More High School Football headlines First glimpse of prep football Post a Comment New site enhances coverage for preps Post a Comment -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Administrative Assistant Information Technology for John Q -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Urban Program Specialist Vacancy #080176 MU Extension is seeking -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Experienced Cooks for 2nd shift -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Distributor seeking Route Delivery Drivers w/ class A -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Be Dynamic Medical/dental insurance after 30 days 401 k Paid tim -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- All Top Jobs About Top Jobs

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I have got to be one of the proudest moms ever!!!! My son, Justin the gentle giant, was offered a 4 year full ride scholarship to play football for MIZZOU!! Here is the website about his verbal commitment- Please read and share this happy happy time with me! showmesportsonline.com LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH!!!