In the middle of June, Jamal Roberts was back at St. Mary's HS in St.
Louis, standing on the same ground where his football story started. This time, he was there for a youth camp with Kevin Coleman Jr. and Chase Hendricks, a gathering they called "The Dragon's Big 3 Camp," with shirts made up for all three St.
Mary's grads.
One kid looked at Roberts, looked at the shirt, and tried to sort out exactly who he was talking to.
"I know which one is you," he said.
"Which one is me?" Roberts replied.
"This one," the boy said, pointing to Roberts in his Missouri jersey, No. 20.
"Oh yeah," Roberts said with a smile. "I'm a running back."
Then came the next question, the kind that can only come from a kid who hasn’t quite figured out college football’s layers yet.
"Wait, are you in the NFL?"
Roberts laughed.
"No, I'm in college," Roberts said. "Kevin is in the NFL. Where's Kevin at?"
That little exchange fit Roberts perfectly: talented enough to command attention, grounded enough to laugh when a kid gets him mixed up with the next level. It also says plenty about how far he’s come. Roberts is now one of Missouri’s biggest names, and the Tigers needed every bit of that production in 2025.
He ran for 753 yards last season, which ranked 10th in the SEC, even though he was working as RB2 behind All-American Ahmad Hardy in Missouri’s offense. That total would have led the rushing attack on eight other SEC teams in 2025, including three playoff teams.
It’s no wonder Eli Drinkwitz made such a public push last December for donors to help keep Roberts in Columbia. The Missouri coach didn’t hide how highly he viewed him, saying Roberts is "as good a 'back as there is in the country" and "we'd love nothing more than to have him be a Tiger for his career."
Roberts gave him that answer after the season, staying with Mizzou. He later said he started a legacy in Columbia and plans to finish it there. Missouri announced his return on Jan. 1, one day before the transfer portal opened.
"Anytime you can get a young man from St. Louis like Jamal Roberts to represent Missouri, it's a special thing," Drinkwitz said last month.
"St. Louis is one of the heartbeats of our state, and Jamal is one of the heartbeats of our program.
"He's a guy that had every opportunity to leave and transfer and make more money, but he chose to stay. He didn't chose to stay for free, but he did choose to stay and finish a legacy."
That decision looks even bigger now. With Hardy going through a frightening offseason and still working back, Roberts enters 2026 as Missouri’s lead running back until Hardy is fully healthy. He’s not just part of the picture anymore - he’s one of the faces of the program.
That rise wasn’t handed to him. Roberts came out of St.
Louis as an under-recruited prospect, and Missouri didn’t even offer him until he showed up at a summer camp before his senior year. In two of his first three college seasons, he was stuck behind the SEC’s top rusher, both times behind transfers who arrived ahead of him.
That’s the short version. The full path to this point has been even more impressive.
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