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Tom VanHaaren, ESPN Staff Writer
With roughly a month before the early signing period, Missouri flipped offensive lineman Talan Chandler from Colorado.
Chandler is a three-star prospect who had been committed to coach Deion Sanders and the Buffaloes since February, but he decided Sunday that he will now play for the Tigers.
“I have a tremendous amount of love and respect for Colorado and what they’re doing and I’m thankful for the opportunity they gave me, because they were the first people to take a chance on me,” Chandler said. “The coaching staff, the team, the fans, they were all unbelievable to me, and I have nothing but respect for them. I just have to do what’s best for me, my family and my future.”
Chandler is from Nevada, Missouri, just a few hours from Missouri’s campus, and he didn’t have a scholarship offer from the Tigers’ staff when he first committed to Colorado. Missouri had been in the back of his mind, and the coaching staff showed renewed interest and offered him a scholarship before his visit Nov. 11 for the Tigers’ game against Tennessee.
“The old offensive line coach, coach Marcus Johnson, who is at Purdue now, wanted to offer me, but it just didn’t work out,” Chandler said. “The coaches stayed in contact, but recently within the last month or so, they started reaching back out. The new offensive line coach built that relationship and they said they loved my film, they finally gave me that offer, and it was an opportunity that I couldn’t pass up.”
Chandler’s decision leaves the Buffaloes with just nine commitments four weeks before the early signing period. He was the only offensive line commit in the class for a team that is in need of help along the line.
Despite the struggles that Colorado has had this season on the field, Chandler said his decision to flip to Missouri was about the future and what he will be able to do playing for the Tigers.
“My flip is definitely more about Mizzou. I mean, Mizzou is my dream school,” Chandler said. “Just being able to stay close to home, it’s three hours from where I live, and all my family can go to games. I have two siblings who live in Columbia. I have family members who are graduates from Mizzou. So just giving my family that opportunity to be able to come watch me play and stay close to home was just an unbelievable opportunity.”
