To understand why Sheldon Richardson could be "The One" for Missouri's football program, consider the powerhouse that is Southern Cal.
When Pete Carroll took over as coach after the 2000 season, the Trojans were mediocre. They were 31-29 with one bowl game in the previous five years, and a 5-7 season had cost Paul Hackett his job as head coach.
As Carroll dove into recruiting, he identified two make-or-break talents: Matt Leinart, because the Trojans needed to start a quarterback assembly line; and defensive tackle Shaun Cody, because he had all the attributes of a foundation player.
Steeped in defense, Carroll believed the turnaround had to start with that group. To be successful, Southern Cal's defense needed strong linemen. Get that, Carroll said, and the other pieces fall into place.
Adding Cody and playing him as a freshman would make Southern Cal attractive to future linemen. All Carroll had to do was persuade Cody to stay home rather than go to Notre Dame, still a national force at the time.
Carroll pulled it off, changing the Trojans' fortunes.
He (Cody) started it all,
former Southern Cal defensive line coach Ed Orgeron told the Los Angeles Times. He's the foundation.
Leinart watched for two seasons. Cody was a starter by the fifth game of his freshman season. He was a two-time All-American on a defense that was key to national championships in 2003-04. Detroit took Cody with the 37th overall pick in the 2005 draft.
Since the arrival of Cody, the Trojans have been loaded with defensive linemen. In the 2006-08 NFL drafts, three USC defensive linemen went among the first 100 choices. Missouri has had three defensive linemen among the first 100 picks in the past 21 NFL drafts.
We wanted him (Cody) to be the guy who would set in motion our formula for how we would recruit guys from the local area, involve them in our program as soon as they could get directed and show that guys could play early if they applied themselves and competed from the earliest,
Carroll said.
Sounds like Missouri and Richardson, the prodigy from Gateway Tech. Richardson could become the most significant recruit for Missouri since coach Gary Pinkel took over in 2001. All Pinkel and cornerbacks coach Cornell Ford, who recruits the St. Louis area, have to do is get Richardson to keep his word and join them Wednesday, national signing day.
After Richardson's weekend trip to Miami, that may be more difficult.
DT OR TE?
Before his junior year at Gateway, Richardson said he was Missouri-bound. Richardson reaffirmed his affection for the Tigers during an official campus visit in December. In San Antonio for a high school all-star game, Richardson attended the Alamo Bowl and shouted himself hoarse cheering for Missouri in an overtime win against Northwestern.
So why was Richardson scheduled to visit Miami during this final recruiting weekend, making Pinkel and his staff anxious?
I want to take a look and see what it's all about there,
Richardson said last week before his trip. They have a great tradition there.
Right now, my head is spinning a little bit.
Citing a longstanding policy, Pinkel declined to comment on any aspect of recruiting.
Richardson has admitted to growing up a Miami fan. The Hurricanes, in turn, are making a late run at several elite players.
At Gateway, Richardson played all over the field on both sides of the ball: tight end, fullback, defensive line, punt returner. You name it, he did it. Gateway coach Melvin Walls said Richardson, listed at 6 feet 4 and 275 pounds, is a remarkably gifted athlete who can play anywhere.
Walls added that he sees Richardson as a dominating defensive tackle in college. Missouri envisions him somewhere along the defensive line, boosting what has been a second-rung group.
The sticking point is Richardson still toys with the idea of playing tight end in college.
He went to the U.S. Army All-American Bowl all-star game in San Antonio, planning on playing tight end. Game organizers said they had too many at that position and switched Richardson to defensive tackle for the game.
Richardson said that after an initial reluctance, he enjoyed playing on the defensive line for that game.
I've got to make that decision,
Richardson said. Right now, I'm leaning toward D-line. It was cool playing there (in San Antonio). But I want to see what's there at Miami.
Miami projects Richardson as a tight end, an honored position at the school. The Hurricanes have had five tight ends drafted since 2000, including four first-round choices: Chicago's Greg Olsen, Cleveland's Kellen Winslow Jr., New Orleans' Jeremy Shockey and the New York Jets' Bubba Franks.
SETTING A TONE
In eight seasons, Pinkel has established Missouri as an offensive playground.
Tight end Chase Coffman and all-purpose receiver Jeremy Maclin were All-America choices last season. From 2004 to 2008, the NFL drafted five Missouri offensive skill-position players. If you want to throw the ball, run the ball or catch the ball, Missouri is an ideal spot.
It's different with defense. Last season's club ranked 98th in total defense, worst in the Pinkel era. Under Pinkel, Missouri has ranked among the top 25 in total defense only once, in 2004. Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas, Kansas State and Nebraska all have more top-25 finishes in that span.
That's why Richardson is so important to Missouri. Pinkel and his staff believe Richardson can set a tone for a program just as Cody did at USC, or Ron Simmons did for Florida State.
Before achieving prominence in pro wrestling, Simmons was an All-America nose tackle at FSU from 1977 to 1980. He turned down Auburn and Georgia to sign with FSU. Bobby Bowden, who became FSU's coach in 1976, considers Simmons the signature recruit who changed what was a downtrodden program.
He was the first national player we signed,
Bowden said last spring after Simmons entered the College Football Hall of Fame. My first year, our defense was probably 100-something in the nation. The second year, we jumped way up there, and that was because he was in there.
Simmons' legacy is that FSU has remained among the top defensive units.
The Seminoles last season ranked among the top 25 in total defense for the fifth time in the past 10 years. In the previous nine seasons, FSU had five defensive linemen taken in the first round of the NFL draft and nine defensive linemen selected among the first 100 picks overall.
Richardson understands the role he could play for Missouri.
It would be cool,
Richardson said. ... I like Missouri. Right now, I'll be glad when this is all over. It gets a little crazier every day.
It ends Wednesday. Until then Gary Pinkel cannot exhale.
