Mizzou’s football spring practice continues this week, and with it, we’ll continue our spring position battles series with another high-turnover position: the wide receivers. Gone are Luther Burden III and Theo Wease, Jr. to the NFL, and with them their combined 121 catches, 1,560 yards and 10 touchdowns. So who is competing to fill their shoes this spring? We’ll take a look, but first, if you haven’t yet read my previous position battles pieces, you can find the offensive line piece here and the safeties piece here.
The Departures
Theo Wease, Jr., Starting X Receiver (Graduation)
Luther Burden, III, Starting Y Receiver (NFL Draft)
Mookie Cooper, Starting Z Receiver (Graduation)
Mekhi Miller, Back up receiver (Transferred out)
Courtney Crutchfield, Redshirted, (Transferred out)
Entering 2024, the Mizzou wide receiver room was not only one of the most experienced units returning to the Tigers, but widely considered one of the best in the entire country. Unfortunately that high praise didn’t pan out to the level of production Mizzou fans were hoping to see from this unit. A variety of factors including injuries and a bland set of play calls resulted in underwhelming numbers by just about everyone in the position group. This included a disappointing 676 yards from Heisman hopeful Luther Burden, and injury-riddled seasons by senior Mookie Cooper and sophomore Marquis Johnson. Theo Wease, Jr. was the lone receiver who had a more-than-solid 2024 campaign, racking up nearly 900 yards in his senior season.
Looking forward to 2025, three of the Tigers’ top four receivers in Wease, Burden and Cooper are exiting the scene. Joining them are twin transfers in rising senior Mekhi Miller and redshirt freshman Courtney Crutchfield. Miller could never really catch on as a solid contributor for Mizzou despite flashes early in his career. Crutchfield flashed serious talent in high school but decided to return to his home state of Arkansas after not seeing field in Columbia during his freshman season. With five receivers gone, who will step up this spring to earn more playing time? Let’s first look at the incumbents:
COLLEGE FOOTBALL: DEC 30 TransPerfect Music City Bowl - Iowa vs Missouri Photo by Jeffrey Vest/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The Returners
Marquis Johnson (Junior)
Joshua Manning (Junior)
Daniel Blood (Junior)
James Madison II (RS-Freshman)
Logan Muckey (RS-Senior)
Even though Mizzou loses all three starters at the wide receiver position, a good amount of experience returns in a trio of juniors. Marquis Johnson sprinted on the scene as a freshman in 2023, showing off his elite speed as a deep-ball threat. Johnson battled injuries his entire sophomore season before blowing up big time in the Music City Bowl (seven catches, 122 yards a touchdown) once he finally regained his health. What Johnson flashed in the bowl game and will need to continue to prove to coach Jacob Peeler this spring is that he is more than just a deep-ball merchant. He ran every route in the book against Iowa and if he can show that that wasn’t a fluke then he will go a long way in securing an outside starting receiver role this spring.
Joshua Manning had a breakout year in 2024 as a sophomore, earning a lot of playing time once Mookie Cooper suffered his season-ending injury against Auburn. While he only finished with 192 yards on the season, Manning showed he could be electric with the ball in his hands. One of the bigger receivers on the roster at 6-2, 209 lbs, Manning should compete this spring for a starting spot on the outside, perhaps in Cooper’s vacated Z position.
While not as experienced as his fellow juniors, Daniel Blood has found his way on the field in his first two seasons as a smaller slot receiver. He did have a few catches (and drops) in the bowl game and will put up competition in the slot with a yet-to-be-discussed transfer receiver. While Blood may not win a starting role this spring, he can earn a lot of playing time in the fall if he can prove his hands up are for catching passes thrown his way. Freshman James Madison II is talented and will also make a run this spring at getting on the field after redshirting last season. Logan Muckey finally found the field in the bowl game, making his first career catch. He’ll be on the three-deep but won’t necessarily compete for a starting spot.
Massachusetts v Mississippi State Photo by Justin Ford/Getty Images
The Newcomers
Kevin Coleman (Senior transfer from Mississippi State)
Donovan Olugbode (Freshman)
Shaun Terry II (Freshman)
This spring, the wide receiver group welcomes in one of the most exciting receiver names in the transfer portal in Kevin Coleman. A native Missourian, Coleman returns to the Show-Me State after three productive years at Mississippi State. His Bulldog career culminated last season where he put up 932 yards and six touchdowns. The shifty receiver isn’t much of a deep threat, but is excellent at catching short passes and making the first tackler miss in space. While he makes men miss in a different way than Luther Burden, he should compete well to fill Burden’s empty shoes this spring.
The Tigers welcome in not one, but two freshman receivers to the fold this spring as well in Floridian Donovan Olugbode and Ohioan Shaun Terry II. Olugbode is a smooth athlete and is the larger of the two. I expect him to compete well for an outside receiver spot alongside Josh Manning and Marquis Johnson. The shifty Shaun Terry will most likely find himself competing for a slot receiver spot with Coleman and Daniel Blood.
Spring Speculation
Despite losing so much talent, experience and production from the wide receiver room, the 2025 iteration of the position looks to have refilled their coffers with returning developing players and a few talented newcomers. Marquis Johnson proved in the Music City Bowl that he is a complete receiver and I expect him to entrench himself this spring as the top option at the X position.
Josh Manning made strides in 2024 and if he continues his development this spring, I speculate he’ll lock down the Z position ahead of other contenders like Madison and Logan Muckey. Transfer Kevin Coleman brings pedigree and production with him to Columbia and I believe he’ll take control of the starting slot receiver position early on this spring.
Daniel Blood will earn more time on the field, but will again be relegated to a back spot with freshman Shaun Terry II nipping at his heels. Olugbode is the freshman that I believe is most likely to see the field in 2025 and I think he’ll earn a spot right behind Johnson at the X before the spring is out.