Mark Mitchell’s college career may not be done after all.
The former Missouri standout, who broke down in tears on Senior Day after what he thought was his final home game at Mizzou Arena, is planning to enter the transfer portal, his agent Brandon Mitchell of BAM Sports and Entertainment told 247Sports. Mitchell was a second-team All-SEC pick as a senior and a third-team selection as a junior.
That development comes as the legal fight over NCAA eligibility keeps opening new doors for players from the Class of 2022. On Thursday, former Missouri football player Sterling Webb won a temporary restraining order against the NCAA that gives him a path to a fifth year of college football. Then on Friday evening, a judge in Colorado granted a preliminary injunction covering all Class of 2022 athletes who had played just four years the chance at an extra year.
The legal picture is still messy. A preliminary injunction is not the same thing as a temporary restraining order, and social media posts from legal experts indicated an NCAA appeal is likely. Still, these cases have rarely gone well for the NCAA, and Mitchell fits the group that stands to benefit: he came in as part of the Class of 2022, never redshirted, and has already used four years.
Mitchell’s run at Missouri was productive from start to finish. After transferring from Duke, he spent two seasons with the Tigers and started all 66 games he played there.
In 2024-25, he earned third-team All-SEC honors. In 2025-26, he moved up to second team while averaging 18.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.6 assists.
Over his two years in Columbia, he averaged 16.1 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists, shot better than 52% from the field, and scored at least 20 points 14 times last season.
His college path looked finished once Missouri fell to Arkansas in an 88-84 overtime loss on March 7, then exited the NCAA Tournament with a first-round loss to Miami in St. Louis two weeks later. But less than five months after that Senior Day moment, Mitchell is now exploring another possibility.
Earlier Friday, ESPN’s Jeff Borzello reported in a broader story on roster situations that people working with Mitchell had already reached out to multiple schools. If he does end up in the portal, he would, in theory, be eligible to play anywhere.
There’s also the NBA angle. Mitchell went undrafted in June’s NBA Draft, signed an Exhibit 10 deal with the Denver Nuggets and appeared in Summer League, where he averaged 4.8 points and 1.8 rebounds in four games.
For Missouri, the timing adds another layer. As of Mitchell’s declaration, the Tigers’ roster is full under the NCAA’s 15-man cap. Missouri has already added Bryson Tiller, Jaylen Carey, Jamier Jones, Jordan Crawford, Cord Stansberry and Kennard Davis Jr. from the portal since the end of last season, and it also has a three-player freshman class that is regarded as one of the best in the country.
Preseason expectations already have Missouri around seventh in the SEC and hanging around the edge of the national top 25. Bringing Mitchell back into the mix would change the conversation fast, especially for what many view as an all-in season for Dennis Gates and the Tigers.
There is still uncertainty about whether the 15-man roster limit will actually be enforced next season with so many potential fifth-year players in play. But for now, Missouri is full, and Mitchell’s portal plans leave the door cracked open on a college return that once looked over.
Shawn Phillips Jr., who also finished his traditional college career at Missouri last season, was already involved in a class action lawsuit seeking an additional year of eligibility and could also benefit from Friday’s ruling. So far, though, there has been no sign of mutual interest between Phillips and Missouri.
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