Is a Big Sophomore Season in Store for Missouri's Dorial Green-Beckham?

One of the players that Missouri needs to step up the most to improve upon last year’s disappointing 5-7 season heading into spring practice, which starts March 12, is Dorial Green-Beckham.

The No. 1 overall recruit in the nation, according to Rivals, was the biggest recruit to come to Columbia in the history of the program and came to Missouri with expectations as big as his 6-6, 220-pound frame, but his production as a true freshman in 2012 was a relative disappointment.

In the 10 games, he recorded a reception,  only had two games with more than three catches and never had more than 80 yards. As disappointing as his on-the-field production was, the most disappointing stat for Green-Beckham is the No. 1, as in one marijuana-related arrest that led to a one-game suspension.

Look at his statistics of 28 receptions, 395 yards and five touchdowns and you come away with the feeling that he’s a bust. He did lead the team with the five touchdown grabs while playing behind three underclassmen and receiving passes from a shaky-at-best quarterback situation, but those excuses don’t fly when you enter college with expectations of being the next Calvin Johnson.

So what can be expected of his sophomore season?

The same quarterbacks return where James Franklin is looking to recover from his injury-plagued and inconsistent 2012 with Corbin Brekstresser serving as his backup, so unless Franklin made massive strides in the offseason and turns into Chase Daniel or Blaine Gabbert, then it could be another disappointing season for the once-prized recruit.

Head coach Gary Pinkel needs to make it a priority during spring practice to develop plays to get the ball into his big wide out’s mitts any way he can. By any means necessary should be his philosophy in regards to feeding Green-Beckham.

If Missouri is hopeful that their second year in the SEC is more successful than the inaugural season, it’s going to start with a big second year from Green-Beckham.

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Patrick is the host of “The Wake-up Call,” on Sportstownchicago.com airing Wednesday mornings from 8-10. View his show’s website here.