The one sure thing in the business of previewing college athletics is as soon as you hit “publish,” it’s virtually guaranteed that something will change. Whether it was a jinx or just bad luck, less than 24 hours after the release of my Mizzou defensive line preview last week, news broke of Darris Smith’s season-ending knee injury. So whether you want to consider this an addendum to the defensive line preview, or just a piece discussing this sudden change to the EDGE position room, it feels like an update worth posting.
The Loss
Losing Darris Smith for the entirety of the 2024 season stings, not for what he has done as a pass rusher, but what his potential promised to be.