JEREMY MACLIN
University of Missouri
Wide Receiver/Kick Returner, 2007-08
 
Gary Pinkel's favorite memory of Jeremy Maclin was when Maclin committed to Missouri. That's not because Maclin peaked in high school — far from it. But because Maclin was everything that everyone thought he would be, giving the Tigers the instant shot of credibility that Pinkel needed to build his program on and off the field.
 
"When he committed to us over Oklahoma, all of a sudden it was OK to go to Missouri," Pinkel said. "And the trickle down of that would be significant at the highest level, so it worked in many, many ways."
 
It worked out as well as humanly possible. Maclin helped lead Missouri to one of the greatest runs in program history, and he can now call himself a College Football Hall of Famer, becoming the eighth Mizzou to claim the title. He also joins Pinkel, his coach, who made the Hall one year earlier for his work on the sidelines of Toledo and Missouri.
 
"I know several of my players eventually will be in it, but it was so neat when we found out Jeremy got in," Pinkel said. "It was so well deserving. What a great player. He was a great player in the NFL, and a guy that had a huge impact on our football program."
 
Maclin was a highly touted player out of Kirkwood High, just outside St. Louis. He had knee surgery the summer before his freshman year, so he took a redshirt in 2006. By the time he was finally ready to take the field in 2007, the anticipation had grown both internally and externally. And Maclin made good on that promise by amassing 227 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns — one receiving, one punt return — in a 40-34 win over rival Illinois in St. Louis' Edward Jones Dome, setting the tone for a special season to come.
 
"It gave me faith and confidence all over again," Maclin said of the performance in Steve Richardson's 2008 book, Then Pinkel Said to Smith … "I did that in front of my home crowd, and it just made me enjoy football again. All my doubts went out the window."
 
Missouri ended up going 11-1 in the regular season, knocking off undefeated No. 2 Kansas in the border showdown in Kansas City to become No. 1 in the AP poll for the first time since 1960, clinching a berth in the Big 12 title game. The Tigers lost to Oklahoma for a second time the following week, but went on to rout Arkansas, 37-8, in the Cotton Bowl, finishing 12-2 and at No. 4 in the AP poll.
 
Missouri went 10-4 the following season, finishing 19th in the AP poll, with Maclin capping his college career by winning offensive MVP honors in an Alamo Bowl win over Northwestern.
 
Maclin is the only Missouri player to be named a two-time First Team All-American. His 2007 season is the stuff of legend, with his 198.3 all-purpose yards per game setting an NCAA record as a freshman. He had nine receiving touchdowns, four rushing touchdowns, two punt return touchdowns and one kick return touchdown, becoming the first freshman to score touchdowns in all four ways. His 202.4 all-purpose yards per game were an FBS high, and the fourth-most in a single season at the time.
Missouri won the Big 12 North title in both of Maclin's playing years.
 
"He was not hard to evaluate," Pinkel said. "It was not difficult. He went through our system like anybody else because I don't care if a guy will be a Heisman finalist or what not, but at the end of day, he had everything. He was a good person, very humble, phenomenal competitor, a guy who really is a good teammate. A captain. He's a guy who filled so many roles, but his impact that he had was huge for us getting the program back to a national level."
 
Maclin finished his college career with 182 receptions for 2,315 yards and 22 touchdowns, along with 91 carries for 668 yards and three rushing scores. He had 48 punt returns for 577 yards and three touchdowns, plus 85 kick returns for 2,049 yards and two touchdowns. His career receiving yards rank No. 5 in school history, and he has nine of the top-20 single-game all-purpose yard performances in school history — despite playing for just two seasons.
 
The Eagles drafted Maclin 19th overall in 2009, and he spent nine NFL seasons across Philadelphia, Kansas City and Baltimore, making the Pro Bowl with the Eagles in 2014. Maclin is now the head football coach at Kirkwood, his alma mater, and he founded the J-Mac Gives Back charitable foundation, which supports underprivileged children.
 
"You throw it all together, and we are so all proud," Pinkel said. "The Missouri Tigers are so proud to see him go into the College Football Hall of Fame."
 
UP CLOSE:

• Only Tiger ever named a two-time First Team All-American, claiming consensus honors in 2007 and 2008.
• Holds the NCAA record for all-purpose yards as a freshman (198.3 ypg in 2007) and led the FBS in all-purpose ypg (202.4) in 2008.
• Broke school records for all-purpose yards in a career (5,609), single season (2,833 in 2008), finishing career with 182 receptions for 2,315 yards and 22 touchdowns, adding 91 career rushes for 668 yards and three touchdowns on the ground while returning 48 punts for 577 yards and three touchdowns and 85 kickoffs for 2,049 yards and two touchdowns.
• Played for College Football Hall of Fame Coach Gary Pinkel.
• Becomes the eighth Mizzou player to enter the College Football Hall of Fame.