Missouri Football Recruiting: Tigers host Derek Barnett
Jun 9th, 2013
by Joe Soriano
The Missouri Tigers will host one of the top recruits in the state of Tennessee today in three-star Brentwood strong-side defensive end Derek Barnett. He is one of the top ten recruits in the state of Tennessee, and seems to be very high on the two powerful in-state, SEC programs in the Tennessee Volunteers and Vanderbilt Commodores. Barnett is also interested in a few other major SEC programs in the South Carolina Gamecocks, LSU Tigers, and Texas A&M Aggies. The Ohio State Buckeyes, though, would likely land a commitment from Barnett if they offered, as Barnett seems to be high on them already. It is telling that all five 247Sports analysts have chosen Ohio State as the team to land Barnett over Tennessee and Vanderbilt, and it will be interesting to see if the Buckeyes offer.
Missouri?s visit today is a big one, and it is a chance of the Tigers to impress Barnett and put their stock on the level of the other SEC schools involved in his recruitment. Mizzou is among several major offers for Barnett, which include offers from the likes of two SEC schools in the state of Mississippi in Ole Miss and the Mississippi State Bulldogs.
Barnett already visited Tennessee again after visiting them in the spring, and he has another big visit lined up next week to Vandy, with the Ohio State Buckeyes set to host him on the 18th of June. His visit to the Buckeyes will be huge, and it will be interesting to see if Ohio State finally pulls the trigger and offers the three-star Brentwood Academy DE.
The 6?4″, 265 pound prospect is one of the top 400 recruits in the nation and a top 20 strong-side DE, and Barnett is one of the most athletic players at the position. He has an excellent motor and is an explosive player, and his ability to make plays is best seen in the fact that he had 14 tackles for loss last season. Barnett is just the latest top prospect from Brentwood, and there are several big schools to watch for in his recruitment. Even though Missouri isn?t a favorite to land Barnett, it is telling that he is interested enough to take a visit to check out the Tigers campus today.