To Stay or Not to Stay: The Jeremy Maclin Conundrum

Mizzou still has a handful of games left before a bowl game, possibly the Fiesta if everything plays out. But the question has been batted around like a piñata in Mexico City: Does Jeremy Maclin stay or leave after '08?

Simple. He stays.

I'd say 99.9 percent of us believed before the season that J-Mac, his 4.2 speed, and his effectiveness of a Chuck Norris-like roundhouse to the face in kick returns would be suiting up for an NFL team in 2009.

However, with the year that the Tigers have had, along with a few minor injuries that killed his prime time opportunities (Illannoy and Okie State), and the fact that he's been overshadowed by Chase Daniel, Derrick Washington, and Chase Coffman, I'd go on to believe that he'll be back in CoMo next year to be the stud and "The Man" that right now he's not when we are talking Mizzou football.

When everyone thinks of current Tiger players, Maclin is a distant second or third behind Chase Daniel and Coffman or 'Spoon.

Points to consider: Maclin seems like a cool guy, and from what I've seen and heard, he thoroughly enjoys Columbia. If he is back in '09, Maclin would be BMOC. Along with 'Spoon, who said he'd be back for his senior year in '09 before the season began (automatically making him one of my favorite Tigers), Maclin would be Tiger football.

It doesn't seem like J-Mac needs the money for the family or anything like that. The guy grew up with a friend's family in Kirkwood. The guy knows money, so he can wait an extra year.

The receiving corps of '09 would shape up nicely for a new QB: Maclin, Wes Kemp, DaNario Alexander, Jerrell Jackson, INSERT STUD KICKASS RECRUIT HERE, along with Andrew Jones at tight end, and the offense would rotate around Maclin.

Maclin's stats from last year were phenomenal. The guy is a great player and deserves the accolades that he receives, so don't take the "He'll be back in '09" as a slap in the face. Hell, his stats this year are comparable to last year, even being banged up.

The fact is, Maclin needs another year to work on the receiving skills. He is the most exciting player in the B12, and one of the top three in the country, but he's probably the third best pure receiver in the Big 12 after Michael Crabtree and Dez Bryant.

NFL teams usually don't spend a high draft pick just to have a player return punts or kicks (minus Devin Hester and my Chicago Bears. Hester is working on being the Bears' No. 1 receiver for '09, by the way).

Maclin has shown the potential to be better than Crabtree and Bryant. With another year, I believe it won't be a contest: Jeremy Maclin will be the best wide receiver in the country.

It's scary to think he could get any better, but he's only shown improvement. If you're a first round talent, but are stuck around the second or third with the option to come back and improve the stock, you stay.

I get what you're thinking right now: "But he's on pace to have a better season than his '07 year!" I get that. But remember the reason we are talking about him leaving after his sophomore year. He blew out his knee in '06, needing to have it surgically repaired, which held him back from any football in '06.

The team that drafts Maclin will probably be a little more comfortable picking him with a high pick with another year away from that surgery in '06.

One thing to think about though: Where will the Rams pick in the draft? Maclin is a Kirkwood kid and would probably love to throw a blue and gold jersey on.

Another great J-Mac year in '09 (80 rec, 1,000+ yd, 10 TDs...aka '07 season and similarly projected for '08), and he and the blur he creates down the sideline will be in the NFL for '10.

Am I dreaming, or does he come back?