St. Louis trio leads charge for Mizzou into Cotton Bowl

ST. LOUIS – Three key players on this year’s Cotton Bowl-bound Missouri Tigers squad hail from the St. Louis region.

When stacked against their competition in the Southeastern Conference, Mizzou is the only team with a quarterback in the Top 5 of passing yards, a wide receiver in the Top 5 of receiving yards and a running back in the Top 5 of rushing yards in the conference.

The catalysts of that trio? None other than St. Louis-raised talents Brady Cook, Luther Burden III and Cody Schrader.

Cook, Burden and Schrader all have unique journeys that helped them pave the way to Mizzou’s first 10-win season in nearly a decade. Their last game together comes Friday in the Cotton Bowl Classic as Mizzou takes on a college football juggernaut in the Ohio State Buckeyes.

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. CT. Friday, and ESPN will carry the game broadcast.

Before tuning into the game, it’s worth diving into the St. Louis roots of Cook, Burder and Schrader.

Brady Cook

Cook’s junior year is his second as Mizzou’s lead quarterback. He set new career highs in passing yards (3,189) and touchdowns (20) through 12 regular-season games.

Cook has loved the Missouri Tigers ever since his earliest memories of football. He attended several games at Faurot Field with his family throughout the years. A report from KOMU 8 Sports’ Joshua Sherman shared several photos of Cook in Tigers gear as a child and describes how the program motivated Cook throughout his youth football journey.

Cook played college football at Chaminade College Preparatory School in Creve Coeur, a run that ended with nearly 3,200 passing yards and 33 touchdowns. He joined the Mizzou program as a three-star recruit and emerged as the go-to quarterback over Connor Bazelak near the end of his freshman season in 2021.

Fans might have noticed Cook on various Imo’s Pizza advertisements this year. It’s part of an NIL deal, but it’s also notable that his parents reportedly own seven Imo’s parlors in the St. Louis area. Sherman’s aforementioned report also noted that Cook’s uncle owns a few Sugarfire Smokehouse locations in the St. Louis area.

Luther Burden III

Burden joined Mizzou as a highly-touted recruit out of East St. Louis. ESPN even went so far as to rank Burden as the best offensive recruit and a Top 5 player out of the 2022 high school class. Burden has delivered big-time around the promise and stayed loyal to his St. Louis roots along the way.

Burden burst onto the college football scene with a two-touchdown Mizzou debut on Sept. 1, 2022. His freshman season was a big learning experience, though he still ended with a respectable eight touchdowns. He’s followed up with another eight scores in the 2023 campaign, along with nearly 1,200 receiving yards, third-best in the SEC.

Recruited out of East St. Louis High School, Burden was a two-time state champion in 2019 and 2021. He scored 18 touchdowns over 12 games in his senior season, paving the way for him to become a five-star recruit.

Burden has also scored endorsement deals with St. Louis-based Imo’s Pizza and Old Vienna’s Red Hot Riplets chips over the last two years. He remains passionate about his hometown and gave back to the St. Louis region earlier this year by treating some Ferguson shoppers to a nice surprise, ultimately buying their groceries.

Cody Schrader

In a matter of two years, Schrader went from a Mizzou walk-on to the SEC’s leading rusher and a serious Heisman Trophy candidate. He finished eighth in this year’s voting for college football’s top player, backed by nearly 1,500 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns.

Schrader dominated in his high school days with Lutheran South, rushing for nearly 6,800 rushing yards and 100 touchdowns. Despite his success, he was unable to secure any Division I scholarship offers and settled to begin his college football career at Truman State.

Schrader finished among the Division II leaders in rushing in 2021, then took a bet on himself. He entered the transfer portal and ultimately agreed to a walk-on invitation at Mizzou as an academic senior. He gained more trust as his in-game opportunities gradually increased in 2022.

That served as motivation for a big sendoff in his graduate season. Schrader enjoyed six 100-yard rushing games against conference foes, including a historic performance against the Tennessee Volunteers in November with 321 all-purpose yards. Schrader enters the Cotton Bowl Classic as an AP First-Team All-American selection.

“It’s a dream come true for me and this team,” said Schrader in Dave Skretta’s recent Associated Press report.

Schrader’s plans for after this season are still to be determined, but he recently connected with Pro Football Hall of Famer Thurman Thomas, who overcame similar obstacles before reaching the NFL.

Family members and friends say his success comes from his dedication to years of work. Several friends and Lutheran South alumni plan to attend a watch party Friday at Fenton Bar and Grill in support of Schrader.

Teammates from the St. Louis area

While Cook, Burden and Schrader are three of Mizzou’s biggest stars, the Tigers have quite a bit of talent from the St. Louis region. Other active players with big roles recruited out of the metro include:

• Mookie Cooper (WR)

• Brett Norfleet (TE)

• Marvin Burks (DB)

• Joe Moore (DL)

• Mitchell Walters (OL)

The Mizzou Football roster lists at least 20 players from the St. Louis metro on this year’s roster.

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