Senior lineman Cayden Green was one of four Mizzou Tigers named to the preseason All-SEC team. (Photo: Terrance Williams)
COLUMBIA, Mo. — Four members of the University of Missouri football team were named to the 2026 Coaches Preseason All-SEC team, in a statement released by the league office on Wednesday. The team was voted on by all 16 league head coaches.
Running back and returning consensus All-American Ahmad Hardy was selected to the first team, along with senior left tackle Cayden Green. Long snapper Brett Le Blanc earned second-team recognition, while senior linebacker Robert Woodyard Jr., who transferred to Missouri from Auburn this past offseason, earned a spot on the third-team.
Mizzou running back Ahmad Hardy led the SEC with 1,649 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns last season. (Photo: Terrance Williams)
Hardy, who is recovering from an offseason injury, rushed for a Mizzou record 1,649 yards and 16 touchdowns while recording seven 100-yard rushing games.
He became just the sixth player in SEC history to rush for 300 yards in a single game.
Hardy, a first team All-American, was a finalist for the Doak Walker Award, which is given to the nation’s top running back. He forced 97 missed tackles as a sophomore and accounted for 71.9 percent of his rushing yards after contact (1,186).
Mizzou senior Cayden Green will enter his third season as the Tigers’ top lineman this season. (Photo: Terrance Williams)
Green, who was a first team All-SEC selection a year ago, garners preseason honors for the second straight year. A native of Lee’s Summit, Green enters his third season as a key piece of the Tigers’ offensive front. He cleared a path for the nation’s No. 8 rushing offense (2,968 yards) last season while allowing just two sacks in 362 pass attempts.
Le Blanc, a native of Elkhorn, Wisconsin, was a second-team pick at long snapper after starting all 13 games for the Tigers a year ago and executing 108 snaps cleanly in 2025. The senior is a key part of the Tigers’ special teams units in 2026.
The Missouri Tigers will open the 2026 season on Thursday, September 3, with a home game against Arkansas-Pine Bluff. (Photo: Terrance Williams)
Woodyard Jr., a productive veteran linebacker who transferred in from fellow SEC foe Auburn, earned third-team recognition from league coaches after making 11 starts and racking up 67 tackles (50 in SEC play) a season ago. The senior from Mobile, Ala., earned first-team All-SEC recognition from Pro Football Focus when the season concluded.
The Tigers open the season on Thursday, September 3, at Faurot Field. The game will kickoff at 7 p.m., and be broadcast on the SEC Network.
2026 PRESEASON COACHES ALL-SEC TEAM
FIRST TEAM
Offense
QB – Trinidad Chambliss, Ole Miss
RB – Kewan Lacy, Ole Miss
RB – Ahmad Hardy, Missouri
WR – Cam Coleman, Texas
WR – Mario Craver, Texas A&M
TE – Trey’Dez Green, LSU
OL – Trevor Goosby, Texas
OL – Cayden Green, Missouri
OL – Jordan Seaton, LSU
OL – Earnest Greene III, Georgia
C – Drew Bobo, Georgia
AP – Mario Craver, Texas A&M
Defense
DL – Colin Simmons, Texas
DL – Dylan Stewart, South Carolina
DL – Princewill Umanmielen, LSU
DL – Will Echoles, Ole Miss
LB – Xavier Atkins, Auburn
LB – Whit Weeks, LSU
LB – Rasheem Biles, Texas
DB – KJ Bolden, Georgia
DB – Bray Hubbard, Alabama
DB – Zabien Brown, Alabama
DB – Ellis Robinson IV, Georgia
Special Teams
PK – Tate Sandell, Oklahoma
P – Grant Chadwick, LSU
RS – Ryan Niblett, Texas
KOS – Tate Sandell, Oklahoma
LS – Ben Anderson, Oklahoma
SECOND TEAM
Offense
QB – Arch Manning, Texas
RB – Jadan Baugh, Florida
RB – Nate Frazier, Georgia
WR – Ryan Coleman-Williams, Alabama
WR – Isaiah Sategna III, Oklahoma
TE – Lawson Luckie, Georgia
OL – Lance Heard, Kentucky
OL – Dontrell Glover, Georgia
OL – Michael Carroll, Alabama
OL – Michael Fasusi, Oklahoma
C – Mark Nabou Jr., Texas A&M
AP – Isaiah Sategna III, Oklahoma
Defense
DL – David Stone, Oklahoma
DL – Taylor Wein, Oklahoma
DL – Quincy Rhodes Jr., Arkansas
DL – Elijah Griffin, Georgia
LB – Raylen Wilson, Georgia
LB – Kip Lewis, Oklahoma
LB – Suntarine Perkins, Ole Miss
DB – Kelley Jones, Mississippi State
DB – Peyton Bowen, Oklahoma
DB – DJ Pickett, LSU
DB – Eli Bowen, Oklahoma
Special Teams
PK – Lucas Carneiro, Ole Miss
P – Grayson Miller, Oklahoma
RS – Isaiah Sategna III, Oklahoma
KOS – Lucas Carneiro, Ole Miss
LS – Brett Le Blanc, Missouri
THIRD TEAM
Offense
QB – Gunner Stockton, Georgia
RB – DeSean Bishop, Tennessee
RB – Hollywood Smothers, Texas
WR – Ryan Wingo, Texas
WR – Nyck Harbor, South Carolina
TE – Willie Rodriguez, Kentucky
OL – David Sanders Jr., Tennessee
OL – Patrick Kutas, Ole Miss
OL – Wendell Moe Jr., Tennessee
OL – Brandon Baker, Texas
C – Braelin Moore, LSU
AP – Ryan Niblett, Texas
Defense
DL – DJ Hicks, Texas A&M
DL – Kam Franklin, Ole Miss
DL – Gabe Harris, Georgia
DL – Jayden Woods, Florida
LB – Arion Carter, Tennessee
LB – Yhonzae Pierre, Alabama
LB – Robert Woodyard Jr., Missouri
DB – Ty Benefield, LSU
DB – Jelani McDonald, Texas
DB – Ty Redmond, Tennessee
DB – Keon Sabb, Alabama
Special Teams
PK – Alex McPherson, Auburn
P – Ethan Pulliam, Mississippi State
RS – Vernell Brown III, Florida
KOS – Terry Bussey, Texas A&M
LS – Trey Dubuc, Texas
2026 MIZZOU TIGERS FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
| Date | Time | At | Opponent | Location | TV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 3, 2026 (Thursday) | 7 pm | Home | Arkansas- Pine Bluff | Faurot Field |   |
| September 11, 2026 (Friday) | 7 pm | Away | Kansas | Lawrence, Kan. / David Booth Memorial Stadium |  |
| September 19, 2026 (Saturday) | 11:45 am | Home | Troy | Faurot Field |  |
| September 26, 2026 (Saturday) | TBD | Away | Mississippi State | Starkville, Miss. / Davis Wade Stadium | |
| October 3, 2026 (Saturday) | TBD | Home | Florida | Faurot Field | |
| October 10, 2026 (Saturday) | TBD | Home | Texas A&M | Faurot Field | |
| October 17, 2026 (Saturday) | TBD | Away | Ole Miss | Oxford, Miss. / Vaught Hemingway Stadium | |
| October 31, 2026 (Saturday) | TBD | Away | Arkansas | Fayetteville, Ark. / Razorback Stadium | |
| November 7, 2026 (Saturday) | TBD | Home | Texas | Faurot Field | |
| November 14, 2026 (Saturday) | TBD | Away | Georgia | Athens, Ga. / Sanford Stadium | |
| November 21, 2026 (Saturday) | TBD | Home | Kentucky | Faurot Field | |
| November 28, 2026 (Saturday) | TBD | Home | Oklahoma | Faurot Field |