Mizzou Misses on 4-Star LB Adam Balogoun-Ali

The Tigers fall short once more on adding a premium talent to their 2026 recruiting class.

Cardinal Newman linebacker Adam Balogoun-Ali on his official visit to the University of Missouri on Sunday, June 22. | Courtesy of @adam.ab10 on Instagram, Mizzou Athletics

The recruiting woes continued for Eli Drinkwitz and the Missouri staff on Tuesday as, once again, the Tigers missed out on landing an extremely talented player for their 2026 class.

Four-star linebacker Adam Balogoun-Ali is staying in the Southeastern Conference, but not heading to Missouri. He instead pledged his commitment to Hugh Freeze and the Auburn Tigers, announcing so on a YouTube livestream, hosted by ESPN West Palm.

Balogoun-Ali is a native of West Palm Beach, Florida and attends Cardinal Newman High School. He's ranked as the No. 298 player in the country, No. 20 of all linebackers and No. 46 in Florida, according to 247Sports' composite ranking.

He took visits to Missouri, Kentucky, Auburn, North Carolina and Kentucky, but ended up deciding only on the trio of SEC schools. Auburn trended for his recruitment for most of his official visits.

With Balogoun-Ali off the board, the list of names for Missouri continues to grow slimmer. Three-star safety Jowell Combay will decide on Wednesday, July 9, but it doesn't look like the Tigers will land him. After him, three-star JUCO defensive end Demarcus Johnson is the last man available. It's starting to look like Eli Drinkwitz will have to pull out some impressive moves to add to his 2026 class.

2026 Football Commitments

1. QB Gavin Sidwar, 6-foot-3, 190 lbs. - Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania (Committed 04/18/2025)
2. LB Keenan Harris, 6-foot-1, 210 lbs. - St. Louis (Committed 05/23/25)
3. WR Jabari Brady, 6-foot-1, 205 lbs - Pompano Beach, Florida (Committed 06/07/2025)
4. TE Isaac Jensen, 6-foot-6, 230 lbs - Omaha, Nebraska (Committed 06/09/2025)
5. RB Maxwell Warner, 5-foot-10, 185 lbs - Chicago (Committed 06/23/2025)
6. OL Khalief Canty, 6-foot-5, 305 lbs - Detroit (Committed 6/24/2025)
7. WR Devyon Hill-Lomax, 6-foot-4, 180 lbs. - Edwardsville, Illinois (Committed 06/25/2025)
8. OL Brandon Anderson, 6-foot-3, 326 lbs, - Kennesaw, Georgia (Committed 06/29/2025)
9. IOL Braylon Ellison, 6-foot-4, 285 lbs. - Boonville, Missouri (Committed 07/01/25)
10. S Tony Forney Jr., 5-foot-11, 180 lbs. - Marietta, Georgia (Committed 07/04/25)