When Teri Steer-Cantwell gave her Hall of Fame speech at Southern Methodist, she looked to her 10-year-old son in the crowd and gave him advice on his future.
"I know you've been brainwashed to go to Mizzou," she recounted, "but I hope you have an open mind to everywhere."
At the time, Teri had no idea what her son, Jackson Cantwell, would accomplish. Growing up in small-town Crete, Nebraska, Teri received support to leave home, pursuing a professional career in shot put, and now over two decades later, her son ponders the same idea with football.
"Yes, it would be great if he goes to Mizzou," Teri added. "It'd be good for us from a standpoint that it's close, but we want it to be the right fit. It's really only temporary. You're there three to four years, five, depending on what happens. And maybe you decide to stay, maybe you don't."
Jackson, the No. 1 ranked recruit in the 2026 class from Nixa (Mo.) R 2, narrowed his recruitment down to Georgia, Miami (FL), Michigan, Missouri, Ohio State and Oregon. But with his father, Christian Cantwell, being a Missouri track and field alumnus, Jackson has always held a close connection to the Tigers.
"Because (Christian) grew up like that," said Teri of her husband, a product of Eldon, Missouri. "If you're from someplace, you go there and you help it better. It doesn't matter what school they are."
Jackson wore Missouri apparel every day until middle school. He spent the first eight years of his life running around the Tigers' campus, playing kickball with Ben Askren and the wrestling team and following runners on the track with his toy push cart.
"I didn't really realize how unique it was at that point," Jackson said. "Like how most kids did not have this type of stuff around them."
But as Jackson rose to the top of the sport, more opportunities emerged to write his own story, feeling the support of his parents to choose the best school for him, similar to what Teri received in her own decision. Jackson also recognized his father pulling back the reins on a push to attend his alma mater.
"He was die hard like, 'If you don't go to Mizzou, I'll disown you,'" Teri laughed. "Now, he's just, 'You can't go ...
