Daniel Parker Jr. was not available for the Tigers when they started the first spring practice of the Eli Drinkwitz era and now we know why.

The rising senior tight end was dealing with a serious infection that traveled up his face and into the back of his eye. A few surgeries later, Parker is thankfully back to normal but the gruesome photo shared below shows just how awful of shape the Mizzou tight end was in at one point.

During his first two seasons on the field for Missouri, Parker registered 21 catches for 203 yards and a single touchdown. He signed with Missouri out of Blue Springs, Mo., in the 2018 recruiting cycle.

Based on the two photos, Parker’s recovery in a relatively short time has been remarkable.

https://twitter.com/DanielParkerJr/status/1260720292999188484?s=20