2025 Mizzou Position Preview: Special Teams

Though it doesn't get much attention, Missouri's special teamers saw quite a bit of overhaul from last season.

Oct 5, 2024; College Station, Texas, USA; Missouri Tigers place kicker Blake Craig (19) kicks the ball in the third quarter against the Texas A&M Aggies at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images. | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

Special teams will never be the most thrilling area of football for the common viewer, but they are beyond important for a team's success. The Missouri Tigers have a somewhat new group of specialists, an area that was of some concern last season.

Last season, head coach Eli Drinkwitz was not thrilled by his team's special-teams performance. He felt it was one of the weaker areas on last year's roster and there are plenty of moments to look back on to prove his point.

This year, it's a very new group. The starting punter, long snapper and part of the return team will be new. It's an area that takes plenty of adaptation, learning and timing to perfect, all of which are things that come along during fall camp and beyond.

Here's more about Missouri's special teams unit and more ahead of the 2025-26 season.

Projected Depth Chart:

Starters: Blake Craig (Kicker), Conor Weselman (Punter), Marquis Johnson (Kick returner), Kevin Coleman Jr. (Punt returner), Brett Le Blanc (Long snapper)

Back ups: Robert Meyer (Kicker), John Butcher (Punter), Henry Crosby (Long snapper), Daniel Blood (Punt returner)

Players Lost: Luke Bauer (Transfer), Orion Phillips (Transfer), Will Safris (Transfer), Jack Kautz (Transfer), Trey Flint (Graduate), Brody Boehm (Transfer), Nick Quadrini (Transfer)

The Coach:

Erik Link has been a member of the Missouri coaching staff since the 2020 season. He started with the Tigers as the special teams coordinator that year and then added the tight end coach to his title. That title has since been passed on to Derham Cato.

Despite special teams struggles throughout the years for the Tigers, Link has been a consistent presence on Missouri's coaching staff. He'll have a unique challenge this coming season with plenty of new players.

There's no doubt that Link's biggest win as a positional coach is with Harrison Mevis, who's currently kicking in the NFL preseason for the New York Jets. He wasn't always the most consistent, but he won the Tigers plenty of games in his final season with the team.

Starters:

Oct 13, 2023; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Stanford Cardinal punter Connor Weselman (15) celebrates defeating the Colorado Buffaloes in double overtime at Folsom Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

The most seasoned starter of this team is a transfer wide receiver from Mississippi State. Kevin Coleman Jr. will be the starter at the punt returner position, with the chance to be one of the best in the Southeastern Conference. He's fast, elusive and smart, all of which are important traits for an elite return man.

"I think we've done a really good job emphasizing our punt-return team, and those guys have done really well," Drinkwitz said following a fall camp practice on Saturday. "And with Kevin (Coleman Jr.) back there (at returner), I think that's going to be something I think we could be really good at."

Marquis Johnson and Joshua Manning, the other two top receivers on this roster, should be the primary kick return guys. They did it for most of last season and there's no reason that won't continue for this one.

Those three aren't really question marks. If sophomore kicker Blake Craig can find some consistency within the 40-49 yard line, he also won't be a question mark. He went 1-of-7 from that range last season and hurt the Tigers with those misses. Outside of that area of the field, he went 23-of-27.

Punter Connor Weselman and long snapper Brett Le Blanc don't have the same exact experience. Weselman hasn't punted since 2023 for the Stanford Cardinals and he was just fine. He's shown he can do it, but still has to put it on the field.

"I thought today he (punter Connor Weselman) had two really, really good reps," Drinkwitz said. "I thought John (Butcher) had a good kick too. That's honestly the biggest area of improvement, especially right now, is our punt coverage."

With Le Blanc, it's all about timing. As long as he can create a connection and get the timing right with the appropriate players on the roster, he'll be ok.

Rotation:

There aren't a ton of rotational guys hanging around in terms of special teams for the Tigers. Wide receiver Daniel Blood is a contending candidate to help Coleman out with the punt team, an area he's helped with since he was a freshman.

John Butcher, who Drinkwitz said had some good reps in a recent fall camp practice, is coming from Grossmont Community College in El Cajon, California. He was a first-team All-Southern California Football Association National Division Southern League selection with a career average of 37.33 yards per punt.

Robert Meyer, kicker from Colfax, California, and long snapper Henry Crosby from Memphis, were two true freshmen added in the offseason. Meyer was ranked as a five-star kicker, going 15-for-19 in his final two seasons on field goal attempts.

Crosby was ranked as the No. 5 long snapper in the country, according to Kohl's Professional Camps. Crosby also played wide receiver and cornerback in high school for Evangelical Christian School.

Who's Next Up?

There aren't a ton of youngsters among all of the special teamers outside of three or four players. All of them are incoming freshmen, but only a few have made any sort of impact in fall camp so far.

Those two are wide receivers DaMarion Fowlkes and Shaun Terry II. Both are on the smaller end for receivers, but have blazing speed and elusiveness. There's a chance Terry contributes to the punt coverage team this season, but not necessarily in a major way.

The Tigers also added Meyer and Crosby to the roster in the offseason. There isn't a ton of information about them and neither is expected to play this season, but both could easily be important pieces for the future.

Biggest question in fall camp: Can Weselman find consistency?

I think we've done a really good job emphasizing our punt-return team, and those guys have done really well. And with Kevin (Coleman Jr.) back there (at returner), I think that's going to be something I think we could be really good at."

John Butcher is around in the punting group, but he's a giant question mark. It's truly Weselman's role to lose this season, but if he does, the Tigers could be in for some major special teams trouble.