Jan. 8, 2008
COLUMBIA, Mo. -
University of Missouri Head Football Coach Gary Pinkel has been informed by all five of his juniors who submitted their names for consideration to the NFL College Advisory Committee that they will not enter the 2008 NFL Draft, but will remain at Mizzou to play their senior seasons.
Those who had sought feedback on their potential draft status included QB Chase Daniel (Southlake, Texas), TE Chase Coffman (Peculiar, Mo.), FS William Moore (Hayti, Mo.), DT Ziggy Hood (Amarillo, Texas) and DE Stryker Sulak (Rockdale, Texas). All five received feedback from the committee, and have chosen to stay at Mizzou in 2008.
"It was a great process to go through for me, personally," said Daniel, who was fourth in Heisman Trophy voting in 2007, and will likely begin 2008 on the short list of Heisman favorites. "I think everyone is glad they got the feedback, and I know we're all excited about what's out there for us as a team next year. We know we can do some special things, and every one of us is committed to the team to work for those goals," he said.
The decision of all five to return means that the Tigers will return 16-of-22 offensive (6) and defensive (10) starters from the 2008 AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic (a 38-7 MU win over 25th-ranked Arkansas). An early look at a pre-season top-10 by CNNSI.com writer Stewart Mandel already has Mizzou ranked fifth for 2008.
Pinkel was understandably pleased that he would have the services of this talented quintet of Tigers in 2008. "These are all high-caliber football players, but they're also great people and outstanding leaders," he said. "Having them here is obviously a huge positive for us going forward. We encouraged them to get the feedback - as we do with anyone in their standing - and while each one has his own reasons for staying here, I know that getting a degree is one common goal for all of them, as is continuing to build on what was accomplished this season," he said.
Coffman earned 2nd-Team All-Big 12 mention (Associated Press), and was a Mackey Award semifinalist in 2007, as he caught 52 passes for 531 yards and seven touchdowns. Daniel was a finalist for the Heisman, O'Brien and Maxwell awards, and was named the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year and a 2nd-Team All-American (AP) for a record-setting season that included 4,306 passing yards and 33 touchdowns.
Moore established himself as one of the nation's top safeties in the last half of the season, taking over for injured teammate Pig Brown, who was lost for the year in game #8 against Iowa State. Moore tied for the national lead in interceptions, with an MU-record eight, including one that he returned for a touchdown in the Cotton Bowl victory, in which he was named the game's defensive MVP. He also had 117 tackles and earned 1st-Team All-Big 12 and 2nd-Team All-American honors in 2007 (Associated Press).
Hood was an honorable-mention All-Big 12 selection by league coaches for his year that included 49 tackles, 5 sacks, 8 TFLs, 3 forced fumbles and 5 passes broken up. Sulak was a 1st-Team All-Big 12 pick by several news outlets around the league, as he had 60 tackles, including 6 sacks and a team-best 11 TFLs. Sulak also forced a team-best 4 fumbles on the season.
