Missouri’s Gary Pinkel says he’ll miss players most in retirement

Pinkel, who miraculously kept his team together and focused during all of this off-field controversy, announced the day before the game on the team bus that he was stepping down at the end of the season due to something he’d hidden from the team: he had been battling cancer.

Pinkel, who said the retirement is not related to the recent incidents at Mizzou, is the most winning coach in the history of Missouri.

But the most important people to him he says are his players, not just at Mizzou but from also from his 10 seasons at Toledo before coming to Missouri in 2001. After consulting with his family in late October he decided this would be his last season as head coach. “Prayers go up for Coach Pinkel and prayers go up for the coaching staff and everything this team’s had going on this week”.

He will finish the season, one that continued with a game against BYU last Saturday that appeared to be in jeopardy after Mizzou players joined the protest against Wolfe.

TAMPA – USF sophomore tailback Marlon Mack earned three weekly honors in the wake of his sparkling night (21 carries, 230 yards, two touchdowns) in Saturday’s 44-23 upset of Temple.

Cougar senior defensive lineman Bronson Kaufusi said the team knew what to expect with the Tigers having that extra motivation of trying to win the game for their coach, but pointed out that every team tries to put it all out there for each contest. “He’s like a dad to us, really”.

Pinkel declined to discuss his health before Monday’s news conference, which will be open to the public. But he did say his form of lymphoma is not as serious as a few others.

“I have to do something”, said the high energy Pinkel, who will continue to work, but have hours more like a normal person.

The oval-shaped jumbotrons captured coach Gary Pinkel’s overt reaction to the referees following an unsportsmanlike conduct call on Missouri’s freshman wide receiver Cam Hilton in the third quarter. His career mark is 191-108-3. When asked about it after Saturday’s 20-16 win over BYU, Pinkel paused and his voice dipped as he pondered life without Faurot Field. In the postgame press conference, he said he’d had a chance to talk to the Missouri head coach and express his support. But in 2007, Missouri went 12-2 and was a victory in the Big 12 title game against Oklahoma away from playing in the BCS championship game.

BYU responded with a field goal of its own early in the second quarter, but the running game and first down completions converted by freshman quarterback Drew Lock led to another Baggett field goal – his second of the day – as Missouri waltzed into halftime leading 6-3.

“That’s the thing I’m going to miss the most”, Pinkel said. They can get the other when they play the Vols in what will be Pinkel’s final home game. “I have a tremendous amount of respect for him”. Everything he promised he would do, he did for me. “I miss them. I’m going to miss our interaction, being around them”, he said. “But, God love them”.