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COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Missouri has a rich history when it comes to the tight end position.From the days of Kellen Winslow, a consensus all-American taken 13th overall in the 1979 NFL draft, to more recent draft picks like Chase Coffman and Michael Egnew, some of Missouris greatest pass-catchers have been tight ends. The latest crop wants to restore some luster to the position.We all want to be great, sophomore Kendall Blanton said. I want to be one of the best tight ends in the nation if not the best tight end in the nation. Our tight end group as a whole ... we all are pushing each other.It would appear the pushing has paid off and the position is a bright spot in a down year for Missouri (2-5, 0-3 SEC), which hosts Kentucky (4-3, 3-2) on Saturday.In 2014, Missouri tight ends caught 21 passes for 186 yards and a touchdown. Last season, tight ends combined for 33 catches, 279 yards and a touchdown.This season has been even better: Tight ends Sean Culkin, Jason Reese, Tyler Hanneke and Blanton have combined for 28 catches totaling 321 yards and four scores, 25 percent of the Tigers receiving touchdowns.Reese, who has eight catches for 97 yards and two touchdowns in five starts, attributed his improvement to his confidence level.If I know what the defense is doing and Im fully confident in what I know I can do, then thats just going to make my game excel, he said.Blantons confidence appears to be growing, too.In the 51-45 loss to Middle Tennessee State last Saturday, Blanton turned heads at Faurot Field with a diving, one-handed touchdown catch. His 6-foot-7, 260-pound frame was fully extended and he maintained possession as he hit the turf, giving the Tigers a 14-13 lead late in the first quarter.It was an awesome play he had, Culkin said of the 15-yard score. Its awesome to see a guy just develop. Hes got a lot of raw talent thats starting to be seen on Saturdays.Missouri coach Barry Odom joked that Blanton possesses the stature of an offensive lineman, but is pleased with his production at tight end.I think hes been a huge upside, Odom said. Hes 6-7 and hes got great skills. Hes gotten a lot better over the past couple months.Blanton has eight catches for 94 yards and two touchdowns.As you can see, hes a physical specimen, Reese said of Blanton. That guy has been great since the day he stepped on campus. Hes been focused. Hes been waiting for his chance. I knew once his chance came, he wasnt going to let that go to waste.Reese sustained a rib injury against Middle Tennessee State, and his status for the game against Kentucky remains unknown. If he is unable to play, look for Blanton and Culkin to pick up the slack. Cyber Monday Nike Shoes .875,000, avoiding arbitration. 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STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Andy Cannizaro, a former Major Leaguer and one of the rising coaching stars in college baseball, has been named Mississippi States 17th head baseball coach, Director of Athletics John Cohen announced Saturday.We are thrilled to welcome Andy to the Mississippi State baseball family, Cohen said. When you look at all of the characteristics we need in a baseball coach at Mississippi State, Andy is the perfect fit. He has an outstanding resume as a recruiter and scout in evaluating and developing talent. Hes been around some of the best minds in all of baseball during his college and professional career. His personality and knowledge of the game will benefit our players.Cannizaro will be formally introduced at a 3 p.m. press conference Monday in the Bryce Griffis Boardroom at the Palmeiro Center. The public is welcome to attend. It will be streamed live on SEC Network+ via WatchESPN.com and the Watch ESPN app.Cannizaro has excelled in identifying talent at every stop of his career, including six years as a scout for the New York Yankees and two years as a Southeastern Conference assistant coach. Seven of the players he drafted for the Yankees from 2010-14 reached the Major Leagues, including Bulldog greats Jacob Lindgren and Jonathan Holder.I am extremely honored and humbled by the opportunity to become the head baseball coach at Mississippi State and would like to thank President Keenum and John Cohen for trusting me to continue the success of this historic program into the future, Cannizaro said. My family and I could not be more excited to become a part of the Starkville community. Our team and our staff understand the tradition and pride in Mississippi State baseball and will be relentless in our pursuit of our first national championship.The 37-year-old arrived in Starkville after serving as hitting coach and recruiting coordinator at LSU under head coach Paul Mainieri since July 2014. Cannizaro made a tremendous impact in two seasons with a dynamic ability to develop hitters and an aggressive base running prowess. He coached six Tiger batters to All-America recognition and 11 hitters were drafted. Five were selected in the first five rounds.One of his top protégés, Alex Bregman, became the highest drafted batter in LSU history, going No. 2 overall to the Houston Astros in the 2015 MLB Draft. It took Bregman, a two-time All-American and Golden Spikes Award finalist, just one year to reach the Big Leagues.In 2015, Cannizaro made an immediate impact as the Tigers finished among the NCAAs top seven in five different offensive categories. LSU led the nation in base hits (762), while finishing third in stolen bases (130), third in doubles (146), fourth in batting average (.314) and seventh in runs scored (451). The total stolen bases were the most by the program in 28 yeaars since the 1987 club tallied a school-record 156.dddddddddddd He helped guide LSU to an SEC championship and the 2015 College World Series. Seven of Cannizaros hitters were drafted that year, including Bregman.Cannizaros leadership during the 2016 campaign might have been his finest work. Despite losing eight starters from their prolific lineup of 2015, the Tigers still managed to boast one of the SECs top offenses. LSU finished the year ranked first in the SEC in stolen bases (95), second in runs (426), second in triples (21), third in scoring (6.5), third in on-base percentage (0.385) and third in slugging percentage (0.422). The Tigers reached an NCAA Super Regional and four players were selected in the 2016 MLB Draft.A record-breaking base stealer as a player, Cannizaros aggressiveness on the base paths has carried over into his coaching career. Since 2015, no SEC team has stolen more bases than the Tigers (225). That two-year total is 31 better than the SECs next closest, Vanderbilt (194).Before his time at LSU, Cannizaro worked as a Yankees scout from 2009 through 2014, evaluating and recruiting amateur players in preparation for the annual MLB Draft. He was the Yankees official representative at the 2013 and 2014 MLB Drafts. He also worked as the advance scout for the team as it prepared for the 2011 and 2012 playoffs.Cannizaro was the Yankees seventh-round selection in the 2001 MLB Draft, and he played in the organization for seven seasons, reaching the Major League level in September 2006. He joined the Tampa Bay Rays in 2008 and was on the clubs big-league roster for the first two months of the season. He later played for the AAA affiliates of the Cleveland Indians and Chicago White Sox before retiring from the game in September 2009.During his Major League career, Cannizaro played and learned under Hall of Famer Joe Torre and World Series champion Joe Maddon.Cannizaro, a four-year starter at shortstop for Tulane (1998-2001), led the 2001 Green Wave squad to the first College World Series appearance in school history, batting a remarkable .395 with 118 hits, 34 doubles, 70 RBI and 52 stolen bases.A two-time all-America and three-time all-Conference USA performer, Cannizaro is Tulanes all-time leader in games played (248), at-bats (1,030), hits (350), doubles (85) and stolen bases (128). He was inducted in 2007 into the Tulane Athletics Hall of Fame. Cannizaro remains the C-USA all-time leader in career hits and career stolen bases.A native of Mandeville, La., Cannizaro graduated from Tulane in December 2001 with a bachelor of arts in sociology/business minor.He and his wife, Allison, are the parents of two children, Gabrielle (6) and Pierce (3). ' ' '