Pinkel fights tears reflecting on legacy at University of Missouri

He dismissed the idea that the week’s events in Columbia, Missouri, led to his decision.Pinkel, 63, said he was diagnosed with lymphoma in May.

After the Tigers played Vanderbilt on October 24, Pinkel had a scheduled PET scan on October 26 for reassessment.

Rhoades also touted Pinkel’s track record with respect to academics, including a 97-percent graduation for the football team during the last five years.

So it should not come as a surprise that as Pinkel prepares to step away as coach of Missouri at season’s end, he’ll miss one thing above everything else.

Dan Mullen directed his first words of his press conference on Monday to Gary Pinkel. “It’s an honor and a privilege to be coaching in this game with him”. “He said to me, ‘Coach are you OK?’ He came over put his arm around me and told me he loved me”.

“When I talked to them, it was remarkably emotional”. It was really, really hard. “I’ve been around him for eight years now, ever since he started to recruit me”. They’ve said a few of the nicest things to me.

The 63-year-old Pinkel said his decision had nothing to do with the turmoil at Missouri, or with the team’s struggles this season. As the news spread of his resignation, former players began to reach out to him on social media.

“It was emotional, for sure”, Tigers linebacker Mike Scherer said.

“Coach Pinkel was a father figure to me…” I know this works’.

After a tumultuous week away from the field culminated with a memorable night on it, the Tigers must turn around, regroup, and find a way to play more football. Truly one of my mentors both on and off the field.

“It’s a blood disease; there’s no cure for it”, Pinkel explained.

Moore, who received texts of support from members of the group before the game, said the team would have gone through with the boycott even if it had known of Pinkel’s cancer diagnosis.

“When you get it, it’s so numbing”, Pinkel said. The Vols haven’t made back-to-back bowl game appearances since the 2009-2010 seasons.

“I love Mizzou. I came here 15 years ago”. I have never been one of those guys looking for jobs all the time.

“I think our team was resilient, we fought hard, but had a few critical mistakes”.

Mullen said used Pinkel’s success at Missouri to model and build Mississippi State into a national contender.

Pinkel says he will use his time after coaching to focus on getting healthy and spending time with his wife, children and grandchildren. He now has 117 wins as Missouri coach.

“This is an unbelievable institution with great leadership”.

“They were obviously a good defense, but it just seemed like we were hesitant”, said BYU tight end Remmington Peck. “A few penalties and turnovers at the wrong time”, said BYU head coach Bronco Mendenhall. He will coach his final home game Saturday when the Tigers (5-5, 1-5 SEC) host Tennessee (6-4, 3-3). “That, to me, really showed the passion, the drive and the commitment that he had to build Mizzou to something that people would respect and recognize”. “But guess what, coach, you don’t get to decide this one”, Rhoades said. Is this the right way to spend my time? “I’m not going to get there, but I planned to coach for a long time”.