Mizzou Football: Maty Mauk A Wasted Opportunity
By Scott Dillon
When Maty Mauk committed to Mizzou Football, they weren’t just getting a quarterback, they were getting someone with the potential to be an all time great.
Maty Mauk is the national high school record holder in passing attempts, passing completions, passing yards, total yards, and passing touchdowns for a career. When you think of all the four year starters in high school over the years, to hold records in that many categories is pretty impressive.
Mauk didn’t see any game action until his second year at Mizzou. He was still considered a freshman due to the fact that he was red-shirted the year before. In 2013 when Mauk stepped in no one really knew what to expect.
He exceeded everyone’s expectations when James Franklin went down. He started four games for the Tigers that year throwing for 11 touchdowns and only two interceptions. He also added a score on the ground and averaged more than five yards per carry. His play helped lead Mizzou Football to their first SEC championship game in only their second year in the conference.
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In 2014, Mauk was the full time starter for the Tigers. His stats weren’t nearly as good as they were in his first campaign but he still threw 25 touchdowns, though his interceptions jumped to 13. He also added two touchdowns on the ground giving him 27 on the season. In spite of his slight decline in 2014, the Tigers made it back to the SEC championship game for a second straight year.
At the time, it seemed as though the Tigers had a star on their hands. He was a player that had shown his ability to be excellent in his first two years at the helm and had two more seasons to go. In an article written in July of 2014, Edgar Thompson of the Orlando talked about Mauk’s ability to become great: (full story here)
"Off the field, Maty Football is the anti-Manziel. Mauk, who wore longish hair, a beard and a bow tie Wednesday, is a low-key kid with an aversion to the spotlight.“I don’t like attention,” he said. “I want to be able to focus on football and get as good as I can and help this team succeed.”"
Now it appears as if that assessment couldn’t have been more wrong. Mauk has now earned his third suspension in the last four months and is on his way to never seeing another snap as Mizzou’s signal caller.
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While Mauk is being backed up by his teammates with claims that the recently surfaced video of Mauk doing some unsavory things is two years old, it’s going to be hard for Mauk to earn back the trust he was given at one point.
Maty Mauk exceeded the scouting reports on the field in his limited time as a starter, but his inability to control himself off the field may be what leads to his demise. A young kid with talent to spare throwing away his opportunities for the ‘college experience’. The story is becoming all too common.
What do you think Mizzou fans? Will Mauk be reinstated with the team again? Has he seen his last reps as Mizzou’s signal caller? Let me know in the comment’s section below.