In the midst of an otherwise forgettable and regressive season for Missouri, a glimmer of hope for the future emerged Tuesday.
In a St. Louis gym, five-star East St. Louis receiver Luther Burden picked up a pair of hats with logos of traditional college football powers Georgia and Alabama on the front.
He tossed them on the ground in front of him and picked up the lone hat remaining on the table: Missouri.
He’s the first five-star prospect to commit to the Tigers since Terry Beckner Jr. — also from East St. Louis — in 2015.
“Big recruits in St. Louis, they all go places like the Georgias, the Alabamas,” Burden said during a news conference. “I just want to start a chain here in St. Louis for the younger people with talent under me.”
Burden — the No. 6 overall recruit in the country and No. 1 receiver, according to Rivals — originally committed to Oklahoma on Oct. 9, 2020, but backed out in August. He was on campus for Missouri’s homecoming win over North Texas. He visited Georgia this past Saturday, when the Bulldogs took on Kentucky.
Burden cited his relationship with Missouri coach Eliah Drinkwitz and proximity to home as reasons for his commitment. That homecoming visit to Columbia, though, was where Burden said he ultimately decided to come to Missouri.
While he didn’t elaborate, Burden also indicated that his decision to come to Missouri was final, unlike his initial commitment to Oklahoma. His recruitment is now closed.
“It just felt like I needed to be there, and I needed to make a change in my home state,” he said.
With his commitment, Missouri’s 2022 recruiting class now ranks 14th in the country and fourth in the SEC on 247 Sports’ ratings, behind Alabama, Georgia and LSU. Fellow St. Louis-area commits Marquis Gracial, Isaac Thompson and Ja’Marion Wayne were all in attendance at the announcement.
Burden also joins four-star Georgia quarterback Sam Horn, No. 7 at his position according to 247.
“This is gonna be fun,” Horn tweeted shortly after the announcement.
Missouri has had recent success in recruiting St. Louis receivers. Freshmen Mookie Cooper, Dominic Lovett and Ja’Mori Maclin are all from the area.
But Burden’s commitment is more comparable to that of Springfield receiver Dorial Green-Beckham in 2012. Green-Beckham was the No. 1 receiver in the country according to 247 and pledged to the Tigers in February of his senior year.
Burden, who plans to enroll at Missouri in January, is the third 2022 commit at a position group that has lacked a standout this season. Missouri’s leader in receptions is running back Tyler Badie. Among wideouts, Keke Chism has the most with 25 through seven games. Backup JJ Hester is the only receiver with more than one touchdown. Burden has 46 receptions for 742 yards through eight games this season for East St. Louis.
“We’re gonna rebuild this thing,” he said.
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October 20, 2021 at 06:33AM
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Five-star receiver Burden commits to Missouri - Columbia Missourian
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