Missouri football will start the 2024 season with two new linebackers topping its preseason depth chart — but that doesn’t mean they’re unfamiliar faces.

At this junction last year, Ty’Ron Hopper and Chad Bailey were the first names at weak and middle linebacker, respectively. Hopper has since become a third-round NFL Draft pick by the Green Bay Packers, while Bailey exhausted his eligibility at the end of last season.

Their absences are notable, but not unprecedented. Both spent significant portions of last season, clearing the way for the two players who are likely to serve as starters in the 2024 season — one that teases a potential MU run at the expanded College Football Playoff.

Here is how Missouri’s linebacker room looks heading into fall camp. Every scholarship player and any notable walk-on is mentioned:

The options for Missouri football at linebacker

Starters: Chuck Hicks, sr.; Triston Newson, sr.

Reserves: Corey Flagg, sr.; Khalil Jacobs, jr.; Jeremiah Beasley, fr.; Brayshawn Littlejohn, r-fr.; Nicholas Rodriguez, fr.; Brian Huff, fr.

Chuck Hicks is about to enter his seventh season of college football, and will likely serve as one of the primary leaders on this Mizzou team. He played all 13 of Missouri’s games last season, registering 53 total tackles, 11 of which for loss.

Newsom entered the starting lineup toward the end of last season when Hopper began to struggle with injuries and ended up being an extremely solid reserve.

But with a large exodus of role players via the portal in the winter, Mizzou had to turn to the portal to bolster the room.

Corey Flagg arrives in Columbia after four seasons and 43 games at Miami. Khalil Jacobs spent two seasons with new Mizzou defensive coordinator Corey Batoon at South Alabama, where he played 24 games.

Jeremiah Beasley joins Mizzou as both a transfer and a true freshman after spending the winter and some of the spring with Michigan. Nicholas Rodriguez and Brian Huff are both four-star prospects in the Class of 2024.

The upside

Hicks and Newson are not getting into too-deep waters if they start the season at the top of the depth chart. That was the duo that started and performed well in the Tigers’ Cotton Bowl win over Ohio State.

Newson was Missouri’s second-leading tackler in the mammoth defensive effort as the Tigers held the Buckeyes to three points, registering 10 total tackles with 2.5 of those for loss. Hicks came up with another backfield stop, part of a four-hit outing.

Other than defensive end Darius Robinson, the No. 27 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, no Missouri player had more tackles for loss than Hicks, who had 11. Both Hicks and Newson appeared in all 13 games for the Tigers.

Mizzou has lost some talent but last year’s injuries, and the time that allowed this year’s presumptive starters to earn, appear to have helped the team heading into 2024.

One question or concern

Missouri really needs to find a third and a fourth option at linebacker. The wear-and-tear at the position absolutely necessitates that. There’s no clear and obvious answer as to whom that will be come Aug. 29, when Mizzou opens its season at home against Murray State.

Flagg, with a ton of experience from four years at Miami, is the favorite for that role, and maybe even starting honors. He has 179 tackles over the course of his career — production Mizzou is sorely missing deep into the room.

Jacobs, with experience under Batoon’s scheme at South Alabama, is probably next. Last season, he had three forced fumbles and three sacks as part of a 56-tackle campaign.

Mizzou doesn’t have much room for misses, though. If those are indeed the two players who will make up MU’s two-deep, they’ll have big roles right from the jump. Any injuries could end up creating a major cause for concern.

Breakout candidate

Jeremiah Beasley, a Michigan transfer who is essentially a high school recruit given that this is his true freshman year, has college-ready size, listed at 6-1, 230 pounds.

There is going to be an express opportunity for reps, and Beasley’s record touts him as a three-down linebacker. He has good, sustained speed and appears to be a good tackler in the open field.

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This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Here’s what to know about Missouri football’s linebackers before fall camp