Tigers spend evening honoring season
Mizzou Athletics hosted its third annual ROARS event on Monday night, celebrating a year of success for the Tigers, on the playing field, in the classroom and throughout the
Dr. Judith A. Wells Academic Achievement Award
Male: Jeff Scardino - Baseball
Female: Nicola Race – Women’s Golf
Male: TJ Moe - Football
Female: RaeShara Brown - Women’s Basketball
Coaches Academic Enhancement Award
Pat Ivey – Strength and Conditioning
Male Athlete of the Year Award
Lars Rise – Track
Female Athlete of the Year Award
Mary Burke- Gymnastics
Coach of the Year Award
Jamie Sweeney – Diving
Team Performance of the Year Award
Football- Homecoming Win
Male Highlight of the Year Award
Gahn McGaffie– Football - 86-yard kickoff return vs.
Female Highlight of the Year Award
Alyssa Bonnick & Krista Kruse - Soccer – ESPN Highlight Goal against
Male Rookie of the Year Award
Kenneth Chambers – Track
Female Rookie of the Year Award
Loren Figeroa – Diving
Male “For the Love of the Game” Award
Jarrett Sutton- Men’s Basketball
Female “For the Love of the Game” Award
Annemijn Koenen – Tennis
Male Unsung Hero Award
Kirk Lakebrink – Football
Female Unsung Hero Award
Abby Vock– Softball
Male Courage Award
Marcus Denmon– Men’s Basketball
Female Courage Award
Rebekah Mills – Women’s Basketball
Male Varsity M Award
Tim Opfer - Track
Female Varsity M Award
Sierra Gant- Track
Professor of the Year Award
Dr. Joel Poor – Professor Marketing
Team Community Service Award
Women’s Basketball
Athletic Director Leadership Award
Jordan Hawley
Tiger Cup Award
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COLUMBIA — Laurence Bowers had to get warmed up. But tonight it wasn't to play basketball.
It was sound check in the dimly lit Blue Note music theater and Bowers needed some help from R&B singer and former Missouri basketball player Kareem Rush.
“I have no idea what to do on stage,” Bowers said. “Should I do this?” he said clapping his hands high above his head.
Rush asked Bowers, who is set to play his senior year for the Tigers next season, if he had really never performed his music live before.
Bowers’ eyes grew huge as he replied with a definitive “Never.”
His music group, Suite 1050, was an opening act for Rush on Tuesday night at the Blue Note. Faakir Habeebullah and Leaven Phillips rapped alongside Bowers' singing in the group's first live performance.
Phillips worried about stepping on the microphone wire. Bowers said he was going to crowd surf, all 6-feet-8-inches of him.
“Y’all got a studio?” Bowers said to Rush and his crew. “We did all our songs on the computer in our dorm room.”
Suite 1050 is named for the dorm room in MU’s South Hall where he, Habeebullah and Phillips lived.
The modest crowd included new Missouri men's basketball coach Frank Haith and teammate Kim English. English was the group’s fourth suite-mate and his poetry is featured on one of the group's tracks.
Showtime was approaching, and backstage Suite 1050 was deciding who would talk once they were on stage and what they would say.
After taking the stage, Bowers introduced each member of the group. As Habeebullah and Phillips rapped and Bowers sang sweet rifts of melody they each swayed back and forth on stage. It was all the choreography they could coordinate with 20 hours to prepare.
The decision for Suite 1050 to perform was made late Monday night after Bowers and Rush met at Mizzou ROARS, an award show recognizing MU student-athletes, where Rush performed.
"I thought I'd let him know I'm a guy on the basketball team that's in his position," Bowers said. "I wasn't expecting anything."
Rush told Bowers to send him his tracks. Later that night, they emailed back and forth and talked on the phone, and Rush asked Bowers if he would like to open for him.
"I said 'It's me and my two homeboys, and I got to run it by them,'" Bowers said. "I was second guessing because I'd never did it before."
Phillips was at home studying differential equations and circuit theory when Bowers called him. Habeebullah was asleep.
Habeebullah had to think for a minute. He had class the next morning at 8 a.m. and two exams the day after the show.
"I wasn't sure, but I can't pass up an opportunity like this so I said, 'Let's do it,'" Habeebullah said.
Rush, a Kansas City native, was a standout on the MU basketball team from 1999-2002 and is the 11th all-time leading scorer for the Tigers. His seven years in the NBA ended in 2009 when he torn his ACL, but while one career died another was born.
Rush worked with producers Mechalie Jamison and Earl Powell to create his debut album Rehabbing R&B, pun intended because for Rush music is his rehab for his knee. Rush now owns his own label, Big Rush Entertainment.
"Just because you're an athlete does not mean you know the right people or have what it takes to be successful in music," Powell said. "He (Rush) has the dedication and that element you've got to have."
Rush's second career is music, but it is one he says he has just as great a passion for as basketball. He sees working with Bowers as an opportunity to encourage him to embrace his love for music as well.
"Hopefully I'm starting a trend, showing basketball guys they can embrace their other talents," Rush said. "I know what it's like coming off the basketball court. People are going to be skeptical."
Knowing that, Rush looked optimistically at Suite 1050.
During Suite 1050's sound check for "Smile for Me" another singer from Rush's group took out his iPhone and began singing harmonies into the speaker, as if looking ahead to future work.
He handed the recording to Rush who nodded in approval.
"This might be a door opener for me. It's something I might like to pursue," Bowers said. The forward who has played in nearly 100 games as a Tiger, was nervous to perform.
"It's music. It's not shooting the ball through the hoop or dunking. It's not something I'm familiar with."
Bowers has sang for an audience before. In elementary school he starred in school plays. His favorite performance was when he sang "Sugar Pie Honey Bunch" by the Temptations in a Black History play.
He can't read music, but "developed an ear for it" as he sat on his grandmother's lap or beside her on the piano bench as she played. He now plays piano by ear and says he is one of many singers in his family.
"I have two aunties that are real good gospel singers," Bowers said. "Pretty much everybody in my family can hold a tune."
For Bowers, music provides an escape.
"I look at this as fun and basketball as a job, even though I probably shouldn't," Bowers said. "This is just something I do."
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Listen to the newest single from Kareem Rush! It’s called “Missouri”! And just a reminder Roars on Monday, May 2nd! Red Carpet opens at 6:00pm!
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Part ESPY's, Part Oscars, but all MIZZOU!
Awards to be Presented:
- Male/Female “We Are Mizzou” Award
- Male/Female Athlete of the Year (VOTE NOW)
- Voting closes April 1st
- Coach of the Year
- Team Performance of the Year
- Male/Female Highlight of the Year
- Male/Female Rookie of the Year
- Male/Female “For the Love of the Game”
- Male/Female Unsung Hero
- Male/Female Courage Award
- Coach’s Academic Enhancement Award
- Community Service Award
- Male/Female Dr. Judith A. Wells Academic Achievement Award
- Professor of the Year
- Director of Athletics Leadership Award
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COLUMBIA, Mo. - One day after a nine inning battle, the No. 9 Tigers and No. 14 Sooners were back at it as Missouri pulled out another dramatic victory, this one coming in the 11th inning. Nicole Hudson delivered a base hit back up the middle, scoring Saturday's hero Abby Vock, as the Tigers completed their first sweep over the Sooners since 2006.
With the win, Missouri extended the nation's best home winning streak to 32 straight games while improving to 35-5 on the season. The Tigers kept pace with Texas (37-4, 9-0 Big 12) in the Big 12 standings, moving to 9-1 in league play to stay a half game out of first.
In front of a regular season record crowd of 1,712, redshirt sophomore Chelsea Thomas was once again magnificent. The Pleasantville, Iowa, native threw her second complete game of the weekend, tossing all 11 innings, while striking out 17 batters for the second straight day. She allowed six hits and walked only one, throwing 163 pitches in the affair. Thomas struck out every Sooner batter at least one time on the day.
Missouri hits the road for four games this week, starting with a doubleheader on Wednesday at Saint Louis at 3 p.m. CT.
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Mary Burke and Sandra Ostad at National Student-Athlete Day. Members of the Gymnastics team have participated in such community events as the Polar Bear Plunge and National Student-Athlete Day. They will also be apart of the MS Walk this weekend.
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Missouri QB Blaine Gabbert looks to solidify himself as the No. 1 pick as he works out for scouts and coaches at his pro day
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Jamie Sweeney named Big 12 Women's Diving Coach of the Year, while Loren Figueroa is the conference Women's Diver of the Year.
The Big 12 Conference announced today the 2010-11 Big 12 Swimming and Diving postseason awards, and two Tigers were selected to receive postseason honors. Jamie Sweeney received the honor of Big 12 Women's Diving Coach of the Year for the first time, while freshman Loren Figueroa also nabbed her first Women's Diver of the Year honor for the conference.
Figueroa made an incredible impact on the Tiger diving team this year, putting together the best freshman season of any diver in school history. Her season culminated with a second place, All- American finish at the NCAA Division I Championships in the 1 meter dive, setting a new University record with her score of 335.15. Her finish was the best ever for a Missouri diver. Figueroa also brought Missouri its first ever Big 12 Championship in the 1 meter dive, finishing with a meet-record score of 335.15.
In his fourth season as Head Diving Coach at Missouri, Sweeney raised the program to its highest level of success thus far, cementing its status in the national spotlight. Sweeney's divers, led by Figueroa's NCAA medal and Big 12 Championship, posted some of the highest finishes of any divers in Missouri history. Sweeney was also named Big 12 Women's Diving Coach of the Meet at Big 12 Championships.
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