The #DLineZou tradition didn’t spawn last year at random.

Missouri has produced an all-conference defensive lineman seemingly every year for a decade.

However, Shane Ray and Markus Golden acting as catalysts on a second consecutive SEC East championship team, just as Michael Sam became the first publicly-gay NFL player ever drafted, gave it a big publicity boost.

Change is afoot, though. Ray and Golden now are preparing for the NFL draft themselves, and defensive coordinator Dave Steckel now coaches Missouri State.

We trust #DLZou will be alive and well in Columbia, Mo., this fall. But what might that look like in 2015?

SEC fans just now getting acquainted with the Missouri Tigers may think that the team’s prowess is limited to defensive end. By May 2 at the latest, Mizzou will have produced four defensive ends selected in the NFL draft in less than 13 months.

Redshirt sophomore Charles Harris is the new beta at defensive end (more on the alpha later), ready to blossom into a good pass rusher in his own right.

Marcus Loud, also groomed last year as a future starter, has one inch and five pounds on Harris at 6-foot-4 and 260. A bit of a loose cannon emotionally who has shown signs of rebellion against the coaching staff, Loud appears to be channeling his energy into getting after opposing offensive tackles.

But it’s a mistake to exclude defensive tackle from the caricature, particularly if it’s going to be accurate.

You may not have noticed, because he played on a 5-7 team, but Sheldon Richardson was a fine defensive tackle in 2012, earning first-team All-SEC status before becoming the 13th overall pick of the New York Jets. Dominique Hamilton, Terrell Resonno and Jaron Baston were very good players on recent pre-SEC Missouri teams.

The balance of power on Missouri’s defensive line should switch back to the interior again in 2015.

“What happened last year is last year,” esteemed defensive line coach Craig Kuligowski said, according to the Kansas City Star. “We’ll take whatever ingredients we’ve got and make the best recipe we can.”

The 6-foot-3, 280-pound Harold Brantley is one of the most agile, quick players of his size in the country. In case you missed it, check out one of his three successful fake punts or field goals. The former high school running back managed five sacks last season, which is impressive considering he had to beat Ray and Golden to the quarterback — from the interior, no less — to get them.

Brantley most assuredly is the alpha of the 2015 defensive line, and quite the farmer’s market score for Kuligowski’s stew.

Next to him, Josh Augusta — listed at 335 pounds — is more difficult to budge than a grand piano.

The versatile Rickey Hatley reportedly has added weight in an attempt to claim the spot wedged between Brantley and Harris, and is making a strong push.

Five-star Terry Beckner Jr., one of the highest-rated recruits ever to sign with Mizzou, arrives this summer and will at least merit playing time immediately.

Any combination of Brantley, Beckner Jr. and Hatley could be filthy if new coordinator Barry Odom needs defensive ends for an occasional 3-4 look. But it sure sounds as if Odom instead plans to implement a “Dawg” position.

Linebacker Kentrell Brothers spilled that secret to the Columbia Tribune early in spring practice, only to face internal reprimand. He’s shied away from the media since, and Odom denied, denied, denied when asked about the position. But reports sound as if the team is planning to walk a defensive end past the outside shoulder of the offensive tackle, stand him up and have him stunt on an inside rush, angle toward the quarterback out wide or drop into coverage as a blitzing linebacker like Donavin Newsom or Clarence Green screams toward the line.

It’s possible that at least Harris could approach double-digit sacks. But the Tigers should be able to deploy a relentless wave of A-list defensive tackles, players who are either too big or too quick for many centers and guards to handle.

The #DLineZou will be shaped differently in 2015, but it will remain one of, if not the, leading forces on the team.