After almost one year at the helm of the program, Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz has landed his program’s biggest recruiting target since Drew Lock in 2015.
In a live-streamed event from the Elite Football Academy in Chesterfield, Mo. on Friday, 4-star 2022 safety Isaac Thompson officially committed to Missouri.
“Be ready for 2022,” Thompson said in a message to Missouri fans.
Thompson is the No. 4 safety in the national class of 2022, per Rivals.com, and the No. 7 recruiting target in the state of Missouri.
In his junior campaign at St. Louis University High School in St. Louis, Thompson posted an impressive 45 tackles with 3 interceptions in 7 games.
His explosive speed, quickness and athleticism made him one of the most sought-after recruits of his class.
When he arrives in Columbia in 2022, Thompson will join safety Martez Manuel and cornerback Ennis Rakestraw to form what is expected to be an elite backfield for Missouri.
“Their defense plays amazing week in and week out with Coach Walters as the DC,” Thompson said. “They can move me around at both spots [cornerback and safety]…. I can get a really good opportunity to play early.”
Thompson received offers from over 33 schools, including Michigan, Penn State, Arkansas, Texas and Florida.
Nearly all recruiting experts had predicted that Thompson’s destination would be Ann Arbor, Michigan after his visit to the school on Nov. 7. However, after a spur-of-the-moment visit to Columbia, Missouri on Nov. 28 to watch Missouri defeat Vanderbilt, there was a sense that his recruitment was no longer a done deal.
Predictions were clouded even further when Thompson tweeted a picture from a self-guided visit to Fayetteville, Arkansas on Dec. 2, putting the Razorbacks in the mix as well.
Beginning in the wee hours of Dec. 3 and leading up to Thompson’s commitment, multiple analysts from Rivals.com and 247 Sports shifted their projections for Thompson’s destination from Michigan to Missouri, citing insider information.
It turned out their final prediction was correct, as Thompson ultimately bought into Drinkwitz’s pitch to play for his home state’s flagship school.
Thompson’s commitment is the best evidence that Drinkwitz’s Missouri-centric recruiting strategy is alive and well. He is the latest and most prominent in a series of in-state recruits to commit to the Tigers.
Those in-state commitments include defensive tackle Mekhi Wingo, defensive back Tyler Hibbler, defensive end Travion Ford and running back Taj Butts, all in the Class of 2021.
Before his commitment, the Tigers’ 2022 recruitment class was ranked #35 in the nation, per Rivals. With Thompson’s addition, the ranking is expected to rise considerably.
It also paves the way for more of Missouri’s high-profile recruits to take a second look at the largest program in the state.
_Edited by Jack Soble | jsoble@themaneater.com_
