Nearly every great college football team has received unexpected contributions from a freshman phenom. Florida State had Jameis Winston in 2013, Texas A&M had Johnny Football in 2012, and LSU kept its “DBU” pipeline alive with Derek Stingley Jr. in 2019. For a team to truly be elite, guys that were not expected to play much have to step up and own larger roles.
The Missouri Tigers have a roster with plenty of young potential this upcoming season, but the freshman that may end up being that surprise player for Mizzou is Gavin McKay (no he will not win a Heisman like some of the guys above did, I know).