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. Air Max 97 Womens Clearance . 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Yankees manager Joe Girardi says hes thinking about allowing Rivera to do it this weekend, when the Yankees finish their season with a three-game series at the Houston Astros. Update: Since the time of publication, Team Vitality has announced Ha Hachani Seung-chan as its new support for 2017.French sports network LEquipe reported earlier Thursday that support player Raymond KaSing Tsang would no longer be part of European League of Legends Championship Series team Vitality, and that the organization is trying out former KT Rolster support Ha Hachani Seung-chan.KaSing has been a member of Vitalitys League of Legends squad since the organization purchased Gambit Gamings EU LCS slot in 2015 for the 2016 spring split. Before then, he contributed to H2ks metamorphosis into a European contender throughout 2015. That year, H2k qualified for the World Championship but did not make it out of the group stage.With KaSing in the lineup, Vitality reached the playoffs in the 2016 LCS spring split and suffered an early exit against Fnatic, then barely avoided relegation during the summer as it prevailed against Schalke 04 in its final game of the season.ddddddddddddAccording to LEquipe, Hachani, who was recently released by KT Rolster, is poised to sign a contract in the days to come. Vitality had previously undergone a boot camp in South Korea in preparation for the upcoming season.Throughout 2016, KaSing asserted himself as one of the most vision-focused supports in the league. His 1.71 wards-per-minute average during the spring season and 1.43 during the summer were the highest among European supports. He also contributed to team ganks and rotations, tallying a 77.4 percent kill participation ratio during the spring (third highest) and 75.2 percent during the summer (fifth).The organization has yet to announce its full roster for 2017.Keep tabs on the League of Legends offseason roster shuffle with updated, insider information on our landing page. ' ' '