University of Missouri junior wide receiver Luther Burden III is leaving school one year early, declaring for the NFL Draft after the Tigers’ Saturday victory over Arkansas to complete a 9-3 regular season. Burden announced will not play in Missouri’s bowl game and will begin preparations for April’s draft.
Burden, a native of St. Louis, was expected to declare for the draft, after three productive seasons at MU, helping the Tigers to a 20-5 record, including a Cotton Bowl victory over Ohio State a year ago. ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. has ranked Burden #19 overall for the draft, where he is expected to be among the top receiver prospects available, joining the likes of Colorado’s Travis Hunter and Arizona’s Tetairoa McMillian.
At Mizzou, Burden ranked up 2,263 receiving yards (6th all-time), 21 touchdowns (tied 5th all-time), and 192 catches (4th all-time), establishing himself as a transformative player at Missouri and for head coach Eli Drinkwitz. As a five-star recruit coming out of high school, Burden chose Mizzou over challengers that included Alabama and Georgia, a move that pushed Missouri’s program up a recruiting level in the Southeastern Conference almost immediately.
