Burge Likes Mizzou --- A Lot

InsideMizzou.com first uncovered Stratford (Tex.) defensive tackle Jimmy Burge two months ago, when Burge, then a little-known prospect, received an offer from Mizzou based on his highlight film. We caught up again with Burge this week to get an update on his recruitment, and it’s safe to say MU is very much in the mix for the relentless run-stuffer.

“I’m still very excited about Missouri,” said Burge, a 6-foot-2, 275-pound, three-star prospect who received an MU offer in mid-March. “Missouri, TCU and Northwestern, those are my top three right now.”

Burge, who also has offers from Stanford, Boise State and Fresno State, among others, is a classic ‘grinder’ – a defensive lineman who plays hard from whistle to whistle and is willing to do some of the inglorious things needed to help a team win.

“He’s one of the best defensive linemen I’ve ever coached, in that he has very good pad level and plays very hard all of the time,” Stratford coach Eliot Allen said. “he understands blocking schemes as they develop. A lot of guys, when they get to a down-block, it’s too late.”

Two years after he was born in Joplin, Mo., his family moved to Texas. He has grandparents living in Columbia, though, and his parents have passed down their Show Me State pride to him.

So, if anything, MU’s location is a positive in this instance rather than a negative.

“My dad can get me plane tickets to come home easily. The distance from home is not really a factor,” said Burge, rated among the top 90 players in talent-loaded Texas.

Burge, who is a teammate of 2008 bluechip quarterback Andrew Luck at the Houston high school, took a visit to Mizzou early in the spring and thoroughly enjoyed it.

“It was wonderful. The facilities were great and I really liked all the coaches I met. It was really nice,” said Burge. “I think it all sounds really good. [Missouri] could compete for a Big 12 championship. I could work hard for the first two years and then have a chance to play a lot. I’d probably redshirt the first year.”

Burge plans to spend the summer working on his speed – he runs a 5.2-second 40-yard dash – and will make visits to one-day camps at Mizzou and Northwestern.

“I’ll probably make a decision in the next couple of weeks,” he said.