COLUMBIA, Mo. – University of Missouri Head Football Coach Barry Odom has added Joe Jon Finley to his new coaching staff, as announced Friday.  Finley will serve as Mizzou’s tight ends coach, a position in which he was an all-conference performer in his playing days for the Oklahoma Sooners and has helped coach for several seasons at the Power Five level.  He spent the 2015 season on the coaching staff at Baylor, where he worked extensively with the tight ends as an offensive quality control specialist.

This past season, the Baylor offense was among the most potent in the nation, as the Bears led the country in both total offense (616 ypg) and scoring (48.1 ppg), while ranking in the top-25 nationally in numerous other categories, just a few of which included rushing (2nd – 327 ypg), passing efficiency (3rd – 171 rating),  fewest sacks allowed (15th – 1.1 per game), 3rd down percentage (16th – 46.7%) and passing yardage (24th – 290 ypg).

Finley’s appointment rounds out the hiring of Odom’s full-time coaching staff.  Details of Finley’s contract will be released once fully executed, along with the completion of human resources procedures.

“Joe Jon brings great energy and enthusiasm to our program, he is a winner who has proven himself in a short time to be a valuable asset offensively in run game organization, concepts and teaching,” said Odom.  “He has great experience working with the tight end position at a couple of very successful programs, and he’s gone from playing that position at a very high level to carrying that over into coaching.  I’m excited about his experience with tempo, as well as his deep ties with recruiting in Texas, where both his father and brother have been high school coaches.  His knowledge of that area, as well as his prior relationships with our staff make him a great fit for what we’re looking for,” he said.

Finley has ties to three members of Odom’s new staff at Mizzou, as his time at Oklahoma as a player (2003-07) and staff member (2012-13) overlapped with current MU offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Josh Heupel (coached at OU from 2003-04, 2006-14), current MU defensive line coach Chris Wilson (coached at OU from 2005-09) and current MU safeties coach Ryan Walters (coached at OU in 2012).

“I’m thrilled to have this opportunity at such a great university and with a program that I believe is going to do big things,” Finley said.  “I’m very excited to get to work with Coach Odom and the staff he’s put together.  I’ve known of Coach Odom for a long time, I’d heard about him and his family growing up and I’m very excited to be part of his team.  I can tell he’s going to bring great energy and work ethic to the table for this staff and program.  I’m also looking forward to working again with Josh Heupel.  I know what kind of worker he is and the mind he has, he’s done nothing but win everywhere he’s been.  It’s a great step for me at a great place and I can’t wait to get to work,” he said.

Following his playing career at Oklahoma, Finley spent parts of five seasons with the San Francisco 49ers (2008-10 practice squad), Detroit Lions (2010-11) and Carolina Panthers (2012 training camp).  He was activated to the 53-man roster for the Lions during the 2011 season.  After being released from the Lions in 2011, he started his coaching career at Los Fresnos (Texas) High School, where he assisted with the offensive line under head coach and older brother Clint.  After spending time in training camp in 2012 with the Carolina Panthers, Finley got back into the coaching side, as he became an offensive graduate assistant (quality control) for his alma mater Oklahoma.

At OU, he assisted the tight ends/tackles coach in every facet of the job, and assisted in game planning for Heupel as the Sooners posted a 10-3 record, shared the Big 12 title and earned a berth in the Cotton Bowl as part of the 2012 season.  Oklahoma followed with an 11-2 season in 2013, which included a 45-31 win over #3 Alabama to cap the season in the 2014 Sugar Bowl.  He spent the 2014 season back at Los Fresnos High School, before joining Baylor for the 2015 campaign.  Los Fresnos reached the third round of the state playoffs in 2014, marking the deepest post-season run in school history.

Finley was a standout tight end at Oklahoma, where he was a four-year letterman for the Sooners, and part of three Big 12 championship squads (2004, 2006 and 2007).  He totaled 775 yards and 10 touchdowns on 62 career receptions in 50 games.  He captained OU’s 2007 Big 12 championship team which finished ranked 8th nationally, and was on the 2004 Big 12 title squad that played in the BCS Championship Game.  He earned All-Big 12 honorable mention acclaim as both a junior and senior, and went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree from OU in 2008.

— Mizzou Athletics —

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Missouri got a jump on Mississippi State for its first victory over a ranked opponent this season.

Sophie Cunningham scored 18 of her 22 points in the final 15 minutes and No. 24 Missouri rode a big early lead to a 66-54 victory over No. 7 Mississippi State on Thursday night.

Missouri (15-2, 2-2 Southeastern Conference) scored on 11 of 14 first-quarter possessions to take a 23-11 lead. The Tigers made 10 of 15 field-goal attempts in the first quarter, and three of those misses were collected for offensive rebounds and turned into second-chance points.

“Our mentality at the very beginning of the game was supreme confidence, and that’s how we took the court,” said Jordan Frericks, who added 10 points and 10 rebounds for Missouri.

Victoria Vivians led Mississippi State (16-2, 3-1) with 19 points. The Bulldogs had won 11 straight.

“That was pretty much a good old-fashion getting taken to the woods for a woodshed whipping,” Mississippi State coach Vic Schaefer said.

Mississippi State is the highest-ranked opponent Missouri has beaten since it upset then-No. 4 Baylor on Jan. 4, 2006.

The Bulldogs grabbed 23 offensive rebounds, but that wasn’t enough to offset their 27.6-percent shooting from the field.

“That’s sometimes life on the road,” Schaefer said. “We obviously didn’t shoot it well, didn’t play very well, and you got to give them all the credit for causing that.”

Missouri’s hot start was a stark contrast compared to its two other games this season against ranked opponents. The Tigers trailed Tennessee 24-11 less than 10 minutes into a 71-55 loss on Jan. 4 and trailed South Carolina 25-10 just more than 13 minutes into Sunday’s 83-58 loss.

Thursday’s result could prove to be a key one for a Missouri team seeking its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2006.

“We all agree one win against a Top 10 team isn’t going to define our season,” Missouri coach Robin Pingeton said, “but certainly when you look at the big picture of selection show Monday and what people are looking for and how they match you up against other teams, you got to have that win. You got to have that win against a ranked opponent.”

Cunningham, a freshman guard, entered the game as Missouri’s leading scorer at 14.3 points per game, but she had been held to single digits in each of her first three SEC games.

Foul trouble limited her to seven minutes in the first half against Mississippi State, but she took control after halftime. During one stretch in the second half, 16 of Missouri’s 20 points came from Cunningham, as the Tigers edged away after the Bulldogs started the second half strong.

“It was just me actually executing, me staying focused,” Cunningham said. “Those first (three) games in the SEC, those were some tough, tough games, but I’m also a freshman, so I have to learn from my mistakes.”

The Tigers had their largest lead at 33-13 after Frericks’ put-back with 4:59 remaining in the second quarter, causing Schaefer to call a timeout. The Bulldogs closed the half on a 12-3 run. They trimmed their deficit to 38-31 on Teaira McCowan’s basket with 7:11 left in the third quarter. The Bulldogs never got any closer.

TIP-INS

Mississippi State: Vivians reached double figures scoring for the 17th straight game, but she was 6 for 18 from the field. She entered Thursday leading the SEC in scoring at 17.9 points per game. The Bulldogs entered Thursday ranked 13th nationally in scoring defense, allowing 52.2 points per game. Missouri became Mississippi State’s seventh opponent this season to score at least 60 points.

Missouri: Three of the Tigers’ first four SEC games have come against ranked opponents. Missouri beat Mississippi State for the first time in five tries.

UP NEXT

No. 7 Mississippi State hosts Mississippi on Monday.

No. 24 Missouri visits Arkansas on Sunday.

— Associated Press —

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) – The University of Missouri admitted NCAA violations in its men’s basketball program dating to 2011 and banned itself Wednesday from the postseason this year and vacated all 23 wins from the 2013-14 season.

The NCAA is still investigating and Missouri said it was working with the organization in hopes of limiting the punishment to its self-imposed sanctions, which includes the SEC tournament.

“We have faced this issue head-on,” athletic director Mack Rhoades said. “These are not decisions we took lightly. We really felt like it was the right thing to do, and it will help put us in position to move this program forward.”

Missouri was 23-12 in 2013-14, Frank Haith’s final season. Haith left for Tulsa not long after the school received a verbal notice of inquiry from the NCAA in April 2014.

The Tigers won just nine games last season under new coach Kim Anderson and are 8-8 this season, coming off the worst loss in Mizzou Arena history — a 94-61 setback to Arkansas on Tuesday that Anderson said made him “embarrassed.”

“A lot of things run through your head,” Anderson said. “I’m disappointed that the actions of a few individuals have put our program in this type of situation.”

Anderson said he wasn’t aware of the investigation when he was hired and felt bad for forward Ryan Rosburg, the lone senior on the team. Rhoades said he was aware last March when he replaced AD Mike Alden and said he has “worked extensively from Day 1 to resolve this.”

The school hopes the issue will be resolved this spring.

“Every kid’s goal is to go the NCAA Tournament, so obviously when that’s taken away there’s disappointment,” Anderson said. “I think we did the right thing. We felt like it was best to do it now and then move forward and put it behind us.”

Haith was suspended for five games by the NCAA at the start of the 2013-14 season for inadequately monitoring former assistants interactions with a disgraced Miami booster and then trying to cover up a five-figure hush money payment to keep potential violations hidden.

The investigation found that Haith and Miami assistant coach Jake Morton paid Nevin Shapiro $10,000 after he threatened to expose previous improper contact with high school recruits and amateur coaches.

Haith’s attorney, Scott Tompsett, said his client did not learn about the NCAA investigation last February when the NCAA contacted Tulsa to inform the school of it. Tompsett said Haith cooperated fully with the NCAA and has been informed that he will not be charged with any violations or wrongdoing.

“It has been Coach Haith’s position throughout this investigation that he acted appropriately at all times and that he monitored his program and promoted an atmosphere of compliance,” Tompsett said. “The fact that the enforcement staff has not charged Coach Haith with any violations validates our position.”

The Tigers didn’t practice Wednesday and Anderson said he told players to “reset your goals.” He also said there was no need to “sugarcoat” the message.

“Who knows whether we would qualify for the postseason?” Anderson said. “Today, I would say I don’t know.”

Besides the postseason ban, the school has stripped itself of one scholarship this season and a second scholarship no later than the 2017-18 season, plus has restricted recruiting through 2016-17. It also said it would pay a $5,000 fine.

The school permanently banned one unidentified donor who the NCAA said provided impermissible benefits to three players and one recruit in 2013-14. The benefits included compensation for work not done at a business through a summer intern program, along with housing, $520 cash, local transportation, iPads, meals and use of a local gym.

“It is clear from our collaborative investigation with the NCAA that a former member of our athletics staff and members of our donor community violated NCAA bylaws, and we take those actions seriously,” Chancellor Hank Foley said.

A second donor has been banned for two years after providing 11 players and three members of one player’s family reduced rates at a hotel along with meals and a ride on a recreational boat. A student manager also provided transportation for multiple players to the hotel from the campus.

The school was hit with a third major infraction for failing to adequately monitor the internship program.

Two minor infractions were cited. A former associate head coach helped a recruit relocate by providing the phone number of the recruit’s mother to the second donor to arrange for rental housing, and the first donor had multiple impermissible contacts with a recruit.

The school said there is no evidence that any current staff members were aware of the violations.

Anderson said he didn’t think the self-imposed penalties would impact recruiting, then added, “Yeah, it makes it more difficult.”

“This is a great school,” Anderson said. “Obviously, we’re a program that’s rebuilding. The interest level in our program has been very good.”

— Associated Press —