Dorial Green-Beckham: Breaking Down What Missouri Tigers Have to Offer

We're less than a week away from National Signing Day, and that means we're very close to finding out where Dorial Green-Beckham is going to be playing his college ball.

Look up Green-Beckham's profile on Rivals.com, and you'll see that he's currently weighing five schools: Alabama, Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas. Various reports and other recruiting websites will give you that same list.

The only thing the recruiting world doesn't know is where Green-Beckham will end up. However, the word from Rivals is that he will be visiting Missouri this weekend, which is a positive sign for the Tigers. Green-Beckham's last visit could be the one that convinces him where to go.

But what exactly can the Tigers offer Green-Beckham?

Glad you asked. Let's take a look. 

Close to Home

This is about as simple as it gets. Green-Beckham is a Missouri guy, so Missouri is his home-state school.

Now, it's worth noting that Fayetteville, Arkansas is actually closer to Green-Beckham's hometown of Springfield than Columbia is, meaning that Green-Beckham would actually be closer to home if he went to play for the out-of-state Razorbacks. That reality is not lost on him.

But it's not like Columbia is much of a drive. It's roughly 170 miles from Springfield, a mere three-hour trip by car.

Go and read FoxSportsMidwest.com's Andrew Astleford's piece on Green-Beckham, and it will become clear how close he is to his family. Going to Missouri would allow him to stay close to them.

SEC Competition

SEC fans love to brag about how their conference is where all the best players play, and it's true. There's a reason the SEC has taken home six straight BCS National Championships, and it's because it truly does contain the best players.

By joining an SEC school in Missouri, Green-Beckham will get to compete against the best of the best. If he succeeds, NFL scouts won't have a hard time figuring out just how good he is.

In addition, the fact that Missouri will be playing in the SEC East should be appealing to Green-Beckham. We know that the SEC West is the strongest division in college football, but the East is a toss-up every year. With Green-Beckham's help, Missouri could grab hold of the division in its first year in the conference and could keep competing for it as long as he stays there.

Receivers Coach Andy Hill

Andy Hill has been on Missouri's staff since the mid-1990s, and he's coached under Gary Pinkel for a decade now. During his tenure, he's coached a handful of notable wide receivers, many of which have earned Big 12 honors.

The most notable of the bunch is Jeremy Maclin, who was a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award in 2008 and a first-team freshman All-American in 2007. Ultimately, he was drafted in the first round in the 2009 NFL draft and has since become a very productive NFL wide receiver.

Per Rivals, Maclin was the 24th-best wide receiver in the nation coming out of high school. Hill helped turn him into one of the best receivers in the nation.

Just imagine what he could do with the nation's No. 1 wide receiver.

James Franklin

Green-Beckham's not going to be much use without a good quarterback to throw the ball to him, and he'll have a good one throwing to him if he chooses to go to Missouri.

James Franklin took over for Blaine Gabbert as a sophomore in 2011, and he proceeded to have a very solid year. Though he is perceived primarily as a running quarterback, Franklin completed better than 60 percent of his passes for over 2,800 yards and 21 touchdowns.

That was in year one as a starter. Franklin can only get better. And if he has a stud wide receiver like Green-Beckham to throw to, he will get better.

Could Start Right Away

The Tigers have some decent wide receivers on their roster, but none of them can match Green-Beckham's raw talent and high ceiling. He still has a lot to learn, but Green-Beckham would be the best wide receiver on the roster if he were to choose Missouri.

So, why not start him right away?

There would be no reason not to. Green-Beckham has everything he needs to succeed, so Missouri would be smart to let him go succeed.

Education

As much as college football fans prefer to overlook it, education matters. They're student-athletes, not athletes.

Missouri's student-athletes tend to do pretty well. The school announced in October that it had a graduation success rate of 81 percent, tops in the Big 12.

Overall, USNews.com has Missouri ranked as the 90th-best university in the country. It's not a high ranking, but it's better than a handful of other SEC schools, including Arkansas.