Missouri's Walter Brady and Harold Brantley no longer on team

Missouri will be without two key defensive line contributors in 2016.

The team dismissed sophomore defensive end Walter Brady for a violation of team rules and a spokesperson said defensive tackle Harold Brantley was no longer with the team because of academics. The news was first reported by PowerMizzou.com.

Brady made nine starts and had seven sacks and 12.5 tackles for loss in 2015 as a redshirt freshman. He was a two-star recruit in the class of 2014 out of Florence, Alabama.

Brantley missed the season because of injuries sustained in a car accident over the summer of 2015, but was a force in 2014. He had five sacks and seven tackles for loss as the Tigers went to a second-straight SEC Championship Game. Brantley was set to be a redshirt junior in 2016.

Missouri’s defensive line has been a strong point over the past two seasons and the two players were a big reason why the Tigers’ line was considered one of the best in the SEC, if not the country. Brantley was a possible starter at one of the defensive tackle spots and Brady was projected to start at defensive end.

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Missouri still has defensive end Charles Harris and sophomore defensive tackle Terry Beckner Jr. (who is returning from a season-ending knee injury), but the team will now have to count on players like Josh Augusta and Rickey Hatley for more contributions at DT and Marcell Frazier will likely now be the starter opposite Harris.

Missouri begins fall practice Thursday.

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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
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