A lot was made early in the season when we learned that Gabbert’s redshirt was getting burned.  I declared it a great idea over at Barking Carnival, and while I’m not quite as confident now about the decision, I still believe it was a good thing for the Tigers and Blaine Gabbert.  By my count, Pinkel burned nine of the 23 scholarship freshmen’s redshirt.  Pinkel had announced before the season (or at least after the Illinois game) that these freshmen would play, so there were no surprises.  Very Pinkel-like.

In hindsight, some of the decisions are questionable.  Hindsight is nice like that.  Nine is a lot for a Mizzou team given recent history, but it is a far cry from the sixteen true freshmen Saban played this year, and I’d argue that the main reason the Tigers played nine was because the quality of recruit is higher now than before.  The following are the true freshmen who played this year and my thoughts about the decision to play them. 

NO BRAINERS:

Ebner, Will.  (Stats:  2 punt returns for 6 yards; 21 tackles; 3 TFL, 1 blocked kick.)  This one is a no-brainer.  Ebner quickly climbed to #2 on the depth chart behind Brock Christopher and didn’t disappoint while on the field.  He also was a key on special teams.

Hoch, Dan.  (Stats:  o-linemen have no stats, but he did play in 11 of the 14 games).  Dan made the two-deep during two-a-days, and in my opinion, that means your redshirt gets toasty.  Coaches have to know their two-deep is ready to play and must put the depth chart together based on player skill.  If Hoch was two-deep ready, he had to play.

Jackson, Kenji.  (Stats:  2 interceptions, 62 tackles).  He bullied his way onto the field and played very well, taking a lot of Justin Garrett’s snaps.  His 62 tackles were good for 6th on the team, so this is a slam dunk.  He also lead the d-backs in interceptions – tallest midget kind of thing or not.  I have a feeling we’re going to enjoy his antics for the next three years.

Jones, Andrew.  (Stats:  20 receptions for 146 yards).  He was Coffman’s #2 all year and started a few games when Coffman couldn’t.  His 20 catches as a freshman pale in comparison to Coffman’s 47 freshman receptions, but Coffman is a special kind of player who can nudge aside an All-American in Rucker and create two TE sets.  Jones is no Coffman.  His 7.3 yards/catch trails Coffman’s freshman number of nearly 11 yards a catch.  Jones didn’t show much this year along the lines of yards after catch, but he looked good in the Cyclone game and I trust he and Gabbert will get along famously. 

Smith, Jacquies.  (Stats:  46 tackles, 3 TFL, 1 sack).  The DE position needed some Jacquies.  With Keck’s defection, Earnhardt’s disappearance, and Chavis’ ordinariness, Smith became key.  Consider this:  Smith spent the year as backup to Chavis, but ended the year with more tackles.  He has a chance to be something special and he (and Coulter) were very important to the Tigers’ in 2008.

BRAIN TEASERS:

Egnew, Michael.  (Stats: 4 receptions for 22 yards).  Egnew’s redshirt was probably only pulled because Denario Alexander started the season injured.  Egnew began the year at #2 on the depth chart at one of the WR positions. even though the coaches believe his future is at TE.   As soon as Alexander returned, Egnew moved back to TE, where he sat at third on the depth chart all season.

In my eyes, burning this redshirt was probably a bad idea, but if he legitimately made the #2 spot on the depth chart before Illinois, then I understand.  It’s probably a bad idea because first, Egnew is rail thin (6-6, 215) and could benefit from a year with Pat Ivey.  Second, the coaches had to move him from TE to get him to #2 on the depth chart, and when he returned to TE, he was seldom used.  Certainly Forrest Shock or Brandan Gerau could have filled this role as WR and Gissinger at TE. 

Gabbert, Blaine.  (Stats:  5-13-43-0 INT-0 TDs; 6 for 22 rushing).  Gabbert saw action in 5 games.  In the article I linked above, I argued that Gabbert needed to play his true freshmen year if only to subdue the nerves that will surely hit next year against Illinois.  A better reason for torching his redshirt, though, was set forth by Dave Matter in his prolific blog.  In part, Matter contends:

His redshirt was lifted, I believe, for the purposes of Sunday-Friday. He’s learning how to prepare, how to study film, how to read defenses, how to practice, how to experience all the routines and rituals that MU quarterbacks go through. Had Missouri redshirted Gabbert this year, all of that prep work becomes superficial exercises. Tell a freshman quarterback he has zero chance of playing on Saturdays, and I’m guessing he’ll tune out the rest of the season. For a quarterback in this system, you can’t afford your presumptive starter in 2009 to spend this season running the scout team. Your best option is to make him believe he’s got a chance to play every week.

I buy that.  Even so, had Pinkel decided to redshirt him, I wouldn’t be any less apprehensive about the QB position next season.  Gabbert didn’t show anything, or wasn’t allowed to show anything, during his brief time on the field that made me think we were set in ‘09.  Hopefully the preparation angle is indeed the key.

Jackson, Jerrell.  (Stats:  9 catches for 98 yards; 2 carries for 10 yards).  This Jackson was all the rage during August, but Chase Daniel rarely looked his way during the season.  After catching 6 balls from the backups against SEMO, he only caught three more passes.  He played frequently, but was never more than some guy who lined out wide and became a spectator.  He was on the two-deep all year behind Maclin, but was on the field a lot with #9.  Perhaps this should be a slam dunk by my two-deep criteria, but I’m not convinced that pulling his redshirt was a great idea.  Or, maybe I’m just disappointed that after all the talk in August, it turns out he couldn’t force himself into the gameplan and become a part of the offense.  I was hoping for a Jared Perry or Denario Alexander type freshman year.  Didn’t happen. 

BRAIN DEADER:

Kemp, Wes.  (Stats:  1 catch for 15 yards; 1 tackle).  Do you burn redshirts for stats like that?  I don’t think so.  He played in seven games, mostly on special teams, and in only three of the last nine games.  Kemp sure looks like a big-time college WR, hell, an NFL WR, but I fear that his inability to even get in games this year is a sign that he will take a couple years to hit his stride, and by that time, we’ll only get one year from him.  Like Egnew above, couldn’t Shock or Gerau have given Mizzou that production?

One of the arguments for burning redshirts is that the coach can then go out and tell recruits that true freshman play for him.  That’s all well and good, but if you’re a recruit looking at the possibility of redshirting your freshman year, do you really want to waste a season for one catch?  Wouldn’t you look at the Kemp decision negatively? 

It should be noted that Beau Brinkley’s redshirt was also pulled.  He’s a freshman long snapper who started all season in that role.  I can’t recall any bad snaps, so this decision would be a no-brainer for sure. 

Thoughts?