Luther Burden was a must-get recruit for the Missouri Tigers

Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz knew when he took the job in Columbia mending recruiting fences in St. Louis was a big priority if he wanted to have success.

Yes, Kansas City always has good talent and the Tigers traditionally had success on the west side of the state. But St. Louis annually produces more top prospects – think Ezekiel Elliott, Adrian Clayborn, Terron Armstead, A.J. Epenesa, Ronnie Perkins and countless others – and many have landed at schools other than Mizzou over the years.

Drinkwitz knows to win consistently in the SEC he must protect his backyard and keep St. Louis talent at home. That’s why Mizzou landing a commitment Tuesday from On300 four-star receiver Luther Burden of East St. Louis was paramount.

Missouri couldn’t miss on Burden

Luther Burden, the No. 90 recruit in the country, is the most heralded recruit to come out of St. Louis since Elliott. While he technically plays across the Mississippi River in East St. Louis, he’s really a recruit from Missouri.

Burden is a recruit from Missouri that every top player in the area wants to have on his team.

His highlights are a staple on social media and on local television in St. Louis. Every week, it seems like there’s something new he puts on display – whether it’s a long touchdown catch, a game-breaking punt or kickoff return, or when he takes flight over a defender while on his way into the end zone.

There’s been a buzz about Burden for years now that rivals when Dorial Green-Beckham was coming out of high school in the Springfield area as a five-star receiver.

Burden has been the focus of Mizzou’s recruiting efforts – from coaches to current players to current commitments – for months. And to put it bluntly, Burden was a must-get for Mizzou. Heck, Mizzou was first to offer him back in 2018.

Missouri built bond with East St. Louis coaches

Drinkwitz knew the impact Burden’s addition would make on the field for Missouri. He also knew how much of a message it would send to other elite players in the area.

Landing Burden signals to other St. Louis recruits that it’s cool to stay home to play for Coach Drink. Burden’s decision also tells others that it’s Ok to be a native son and hometown hero.

Drinkwitz knew what this decision would mean.

That’s why he made it a priority to build a strong relationship with East St. Louis coach Darren Sunkett. Intel says Sunkett “loves Drink.” The relationship is strong and definitely played a factor in Burden’s decision to pick Mizzou over Georgia and Alabama.

It also doesn’t hurt that ESL is one of the talent hotbeds in the region. The Tigers have two 2020 recruits from ESL on the roster, and are recruiting multiple players in the 2022, 2023 and 2024 classes from there.

What this means moving forward

Beating out Georgia and Alabama – heck, even Oklahoma since Burden was committed there at one point – is a huge recruiting victory for Missouri.

Any time you can keep a top team like Georgia from coming into your backyard and plucking away a top player is important.

It’s also especially rewarding since Burden just returned from an official visit this past weekend to Georgia where he got the full-court press from the Dawgs.

Georgia threw its best recruiting punch, and the Tigers were able to avoid it and keep Burden at home.

The decision also lays the path for Ryan Wingo – the top 2024 out of St. Louis – to stay at home. Remember top players want to play with other top players.

Regardless of what happens with Wingo, all indications are Drinkwitz has done what he initially set out to do when he arrived in Columbia.

Consider the fences mended in The Lou.