Blowin' Smoke Presented by Weston Tobacco

What's more fun than us giving you a chance to mock us every single week? In our new feature, Blowin' Smoke presented by Weston Tobacco, we will do that each and every Thursday. Gabe DeArmond and Mitchell Forde will make five predictions almost sure to go wrong every week in this space. These will range from big games to big picture predictions with a bit of the comedic and absurd mixed in most weeks as well. On to this week's predictions.

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Gabe: I'd be stunned if there are ten players across the country who choose not to come back. I think some will have concerns. I think a fair number of their parents will have concerns. But regardless of whether it's because they're not concerned or they don't want to make waves or whatever, I think almost everybody is coming back. They want to play.

Mitchell: There may be a handful nationally who choose not to do so, but I expect that vast majority to at least return to campuses. For one, there's obviously a lot of pressure from teammates and coaches to do so. Also, I would expect after spending months quarantined elsewhere, coming back to a college campus and hanging out with teammates sounds pretty appealing for most 18 to 22 year olds. If for some reason the season gets shortened or there aren't going to be other students back on campus or any fans in the stands, maybe we'll start to see a few more players decide they'd rather redshirt this season, but I think as long as the people in charge are telling them there will be football played, 99 percent of players will be on campus and working out.

Gabe: I didn't realize I asked a similar question last week (cut me some slack, there aren't many things to actually predict right now). I said they'd end up with four last week so I guess I'm taking the under.

Mitchell: I'll take the under. I would have taken the over at 3.5, though. I feel pretty confident that they get East St. Louis receiver Dominic Lovett, so that makes three. I also think it's possible they land Indianapolis DE Kyran Montgomery and that one of the current three-star commits gets a ratings bump, but I'm not sure I'd bet on both happening.

Mitchell: I think it'll be right around there, but I'll go with higher. We know Mizzou is going to get to the 20 commit threshold, which is what Rivals considers a full class, and as I look at the rankings right now, I see more teams ahead of Mizzou that are likely to slip down (Rutgers, Cincinnati, Toledo, Wake Forest) than I see teams behind Mizzou who I'm confident will leap up the rankings. But I think that 30-35 range is probably where the class will finish up.

Gabe: I'll say a little bit higher. If the four four-stars and no five-stars is accurate, that would have put them right around 30 in last year's rankings. But it's going to be within five spots one way or the other in my opinion.

Mitchell: Obviously, this couldn't be more of a blind guess since I've never seen any of them play a single snap. I'll say JJ Hester (receiver is generally a position where newcomers can see some time), Ben Key (he's the oldest member of the class and Mizzou needs defensive line depth) and Harrison Mevis (someone has to kick and/or punt).

Gabe: I'm going more by position and need here than they individual players. For that reason, I agree definitely that Benjamin Key is going to be one. I think a wide receiver is definitely going to be among them too, but just so I'm different than you I'll go with Kris Abrams-Draine. And I think defensive back is a spot where the Tigers are definitely going to play some young guys so give me the easy answer of Ennis Rakestraw there.

Gabe: I don't think they do, really. Because most of them don't matter. I mean, the statements are really for PR and window dressing. So, to say they said something, sure I guess go ahead and make one. But I don't condemn any organization that didn't say something. Do something. Make changes. Hire more black people to positions of importance. Have talks with your players. But I don't really care if you tweet anything out or not. I think it's important the coaches and people in sports are heard and take action, but I don't think putting a statement out within 48 hours necessarily means anything. It can make you look bad though, like when the Washington Redskins participated in the social media black out. Little bit tone deaf there.

Mitchell: Yeah, I do. Now, that's not me saying those statements are actually going to change anything. Quite a few of them came out more than a week after George Floyd died and rang fairly hollow. But you can't have a sports team, virtually all of which include black athletes, and just ignore this. There are a lot of people who follow sports way, way more closely than the actual news (guilty), and these statements do help make these issues more difficult to ignore. Now, I'm not naive. I know the motivation for a lot of these statements, especially in college sports where the players get to choose where they go play, is to make sure you don't take a recruiting or PR hit. I don't know what percentage that is, but it's certainly been one reason these statements have been so widespread. But that's fine. What we need now is for the coaches and administrators who really have been hurt and angered by police brutality and racial inequity to make action the new statements. Keep this issue at the forefront by not only continuing to advocate for black people with words, but finding ways to be part of the solution. Examples could be registering players to vote or joining protests. It could (and should) also be more broad, like hiring more people of color in leadership positions. What's important is that not only do the words turn into actions, but those actions are promoted and celebrated so that, like these statements, something like volunteering in underserved communities or having a diverse administration becomes the norm rather than the exception. And that doesn't just apply to people in sports, of course. We as journalists have a role to play, to cover those things when they happen and to continue to ask questions about what schools are doing to give people of color a voice, and so does everyone else in society.