BERNIE BITS

Great news for retired Missouri football coach Gary Pinkel, who will be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame class of 2022. The honor is well deserved and serves an important purpose: to remind MU fans of Pinkel’s historically prominent impact on Mizzou football.

Pinkel retired after the 2015 season to fight for his life after being diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The cancer came out of remission in 2019, but Pinkel has said the disease isn’t totally curable and can still leave him vulnerable.

We should never forget Gary Pinkel, age 69. We should appreciate him more than ever. And his Hall of Fame career only reinforces the value of his leadership at Mizzou.

The Pinkel news was first reported by Brett McMurphy of the Action Network. The formal announcement will come next week. This is outstanding.

After a successful run as head coach at Toledo, Pinkel, now 69, was hired to lead the Tigers in 2001. By the time he retired after the 2015 season, Pinkel was the winningest coach in Missouri history with a record of 118-73. He’s also the winningest coach in Toledo history.

In 15 seasons under Pinkel the Tigers had 10 winning seasons, a winning percentage of .667 and competed in 10 bowl games.

In the 17 seasons before Pinkel’s arrival in Columbia, Mizzou won 33 percent of their games, had two winning records, and played in two bowl games.

It took a while to rebuild a down program, but Pinkel gradually developed Missouri into one of the better Big 12 teams. In their last five seasons as a Big 12 member, the Tigers won 27 of 41 conference games and played in two conference championships. (Both were losses to Oklahoma.)

Pinkel’s 2007 Mizzou team ascended to the No. 1 ranking in the nation after a late-season victory over Kansas in Kansas City. That squad finished as the No. 4 team in the final AP poll for 2007.

Pinkel’s strengthening of Missouri football made the program an appealing option for SEC membership when the nation’s most powerful conference expanded before the 2012 season.

Pinkel was overwhelmingly the top reason for Missouri’s successful SEC candidacy. And he validated that by going 14-2 in the SEC while winning back to back East titles in 2013 and ‘14.

Other Pinkel achievements include:

– Until late in that 2007, a Mizzou football team hadn’t been ranked No. 1 in the national poll in 47 years.

– Mizzou was ranked, at some point, in 11 of his final 13 seasons.

– Mizzou’s 96 wins from 2004 through 2014 were 14th nationally among Power 5 conference teams.

– From 2007 through 2014, Mizzou ranked 7th nationally among Power 5 teams with 76 wins.

– A record five 10+ win seasons at Missouri. Dan Devine was the only other Mizzou coach to have a 10-win season, back in 1960. Devine and Pinkel are the only two football coaches in MU history to notch nine or more wins in a season.

– Pinkel coached Mizzou to the school’s only 12-win seasons (2007 and 2013.)

– Over an eight-year stretch that began in 2007, Mizzou had an end-of-season, Top 20 AP ranking five times in: 4th in 2007 … 5th in 2013 … 14th in 2014 … 18th in 2010 … and 19th in 2008.

– A winning SEC record in his four seasons, 17-15. The 1-7 mark in 2015 warrants perspective because of the personal turmoil caused by his cancer and the professional challenges stemming from the volatile anti-racism protests on the Mizzou campus. And his 2-6 SEC record in 2012 was no surprise given that it was Mizzou’s transition year in the new conference.

– A total of 39 players recruited by Pinkel and his assistants were drafted into the NFL. That includes nine in the first round, 18 in the first three rounds and quarterbacks Brad Smith, Chase Daniel, Blaine Gabbert and Drew Lock. Through the completion of last week’s NFL schedule, Pinkel draft picks had combined for 1,067 games started in the NFL.

– Won a Coach of the Year award in two Power 5 conferences, Big 12 and SEC.

There were some bumps along the way, and it wasn’t easy for Pinkel to pull Missouri’s football program out of the ditch. But ultimately he gave us more victories than any Mizzou coach, developed a sequence of excellent quarterbacks, put an entertaining offense on the field, greatly improved the recruiting problems in St. Louis, made Mizzou worthy of SEC inclusion and the huge revenue sums that came with it, and turned CoMo an important destination for NFL team scouts. It’s one helluva legacy.

READING TIME, 5 MINUTES

ESPN.com put the Blues at No. 8 in this week’s NHL rankings, an improvement from the previous ranking at No. 12. ESPN posed this fair and accurate question: “Can the Blues play Cup-worthy defense? If you’ve seen Jordan Kyrou or Vladimir Tarasenko lately, you know St. Louis has scoring prowess to spare. It’s the Blues’ defensive game that’s needed attention and could potentially hold them back from another Stanley Cup run. Colton Parayko rebounding from a tough start will be crucial. The growth of 25-year-old Niko Mikkola must be accelerated. And of course, good team defense will go a long way in helping netminder Jordan Binnington,” …

One wish for the 2022 MLB season, if there is one: 16 individual pitcher wins for Adam Wainwright. Not that anyone is ruling out the possibility of Waino pitching beyond 2022. But for the sake of conversation – if ‘22 is Wainwright’s farewell journey it would be great to see him pitch a full season and seize 16 wins to reach 200 for his career. If Wainwright gets to No. 200, that would put him special company. During the Modern Era (1900-present) only 97 MLB pitchers have amassed 200 career victories. (That, according to the search-engine data at FanGraphs.) Wainwright currently ranks 3rd in Cardinals history with 184 wins behind Bob Gibson (251) and Jesse “Pop” Haines (210) …

Great stat from Ross Dellenger of SI.com as we get ready for Monday’s college football title game between Alabama and Georgia: In their last four meetings, all won by Alabama, the teams have played 240 minutes of football. Georgia has led or been tied for 171 of those minutes – or 71% of the time. In a related note, the wagering money is shifting back to the Georgia side. The Dawgs opened as a popular 2.5-point favorite, the line was adjusted to 3 points, and now it’s back to 2.5 because of the action coming in on Georgia, even though Alabama’s Nick Saban has won seven in a row against the Bulldogs …

Retired St. Louis Rams wide receiver Torry Holt is waiting and hoping for some good news: For the third consecutive year he’s one of 15 finalists for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the voting will be completed next week. A maximum of five of the 15 finalists will make it. Holt has a shot, but his competition includes Reggie Wayne and Andrew Johnson – wide receivers that are finalists for the first time. I’ll have more to write about this next week …

In an appearance with Randi Naughton on Fox 2 News this week, Holt said it’s his time to be welcomed into Canton. Holt has been patient and unselfish – sincerely happy for Rams teammates that have already been voted into the Hall: Marshall Faulk, Orlando Pace, Aeneas Williams, Kurt Warner and Isaac Bruce …

“I’m super excited,” he said. “It’s a fantastic class (of 15 finalists), and so many guys, all deserving. But it’s my turn.” Holt said his heart will always be in St. Louis. “Yes, absolutely. With us being able to win for the city of St. Louis, for the St. Louis Rams, I’m always going to represent St. Louis. St. Louis is home, that’s where I grew up for my opportunity and first introduction in the NFL. So to the folks in St. Louis: thank you, I love you, and I miss you. I’m always going to represent St. Louis and also represent ‘The Greatest Show’ on turf …

Blues defenseman Colton Parayko is absolutely the team’s largest underachiever, and I’m not talking about his height and weight. Among 94 NHL defensemen that have played a minimum 500 minutes at five-on-five this season, Parayko ranks 88th in his team’s goal percentage (40.85) when he’s on the ice. And his expected goals percentage (44.1%) is 86th. When Parayko is in action, the Blues have been outscored 42-29 at five-on-five. The 42 goals allowed with Parayko on ice are the most of any defenseman in the NHL so far …

The Boston Celtics have lost 10 of their last 15 games to fall to 18-21 on the season. The Celts reached a new low Thursday by blowing a 25-point lead in a 108-105 road loss to the NY Knicks. First-year coach Ime Udoka responded by blasting his team after the game. “I think it’s a lack of mental toughness to fight through those adverse times,” he told reporters, adding that Boston needs “a calming presence … some leadership. Somebody that can calm us down and not get rattled when everything starts to go a little south,” …

In Boston, Udoka’s comments were interpreted as a shot at Celtics stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Our Town’s Tatum seems down. “In the grand scheme of things, I look back to those years when we were going to the Conference Finals and it makes you really appreciate those moments, because it’s hard, it’s not easy. Early on in my rookie year, I thought it was normal,” he said following the loss to the Knicks …

In his rookie season Tatum made 43.4 percent of his three-point shots and Boston was ranked 3rd in the league in three-point shooting percentage. This season Tatum has made only 33.3% of his threes; the Celtics are 24th in three–point percentage. In his last three games Tatum has made only 16 percent of his threes (4 for 25). This prompted Boston.com to solicit a scathing review from shooting guru Dave Hopla …

“Tatum’s footwork is not consistent. On a couple clips it looks like he is landing on his toes or flat footed, sometimes he hops,” sayeth the guru. “Consistent footwork leads to a consistent shot. On several occasions he has a super wide base. When this happens no elevation on shot or power. Jayson could do a much better job of being shot ready: knees flexed, shoulders in front of feet, palm to passer, wrist wrinkled, cocked, and locked. He cocks his wrist after catching the ball going into his shooting motion. His follow through is very inconsistent,” …

Um, maybe The shooting guru Hopla can work with Mizzou’s basketball team? The Tigers, ranked No. 160 nationally among 358 teams in overall quality and efficiency at both ends of the floor, are 357th in three-point shooting at 23.8 percent. Yes, No. 357 out of 358. This is preposterously bad. Only Florida A&M is worse at 22.3 percent …

Among 25 NHL goaltenders that have played at least 900 minutes at five-on-five this season, the Blues’ Jordan Binnington ranks 16th with a .920 save percentage and is 17th in goals saved above average, at minus 0.08 … and among 27 goaltenders that have played at least 1,000 minutes at all strengths Binnington ranks tied for 19th with a .908 save percentage. He’s 20th in goals saved above average, at minus 1.41. Binnington also ranks 18th in medium danger save percentage (.910.) It’s pretty obvious: Binnington can play better. And as long as he’s their No. 1 goaltender, he must play better …

In terms of watching games, I’m still in the college basketball warmup phase. But I make sure to watch as much Illinois basketball as I can, because Kofi Cockburn is the most exciting player in the nation. In four Big Ten games (4-0) he’s averaging 20.5 points and 15.3 rebounds and is fourth in the league in blocks. Cockburn makes rebounding fun, ranking 32nd nationally in offensive-rebound percentage and 12th in defensive-rebound percentage. After watching Cockburn destroy his Maryland team with 23 points and 18 rebounds Thursday night, interim Terrapins coach Danny Manning said “Kofi is one of the most dominant bigs in the country” …

We mentioned former Mizzou QB Drew Lock earlier in the Bits. Even though the Denver Broncos lost to the Chargers 34-13 in LA last week, Lock played a solid game in completing 18 of 25 passes for 245 yards, a touchdown, no pickoffs, and a 116.2 passer rating. Lock was pleased with himself. And should the Broncos move on from him after the season? “It’s going to take other people watching my film and seeing that from me and wanting that for me, in whatever program that it is,” Lock said. “But I do personally believe that if you give me a starting job, you let me prep throughout the week, I’m going to give you a damn good chance to win a football game.” …

A non-sports Bit, if I may: Many sorrowful but brilliant songs have been written about the cruelty that can hit so hard when a romantic relationship crashes hard, but my favorite might be John Prine’s “Speed and the Sound of Loneliness.” …

Here’s the key lyric – and don’t worry, I’ve been married since 2006 and we’re not breaking up. I love my wife. And I love a well-written and poignant song …

So what in the world’s come over you
And what in heaven’s name have you done
You’ve broken the speed of the sound of loneliness
You’re out there running just to be on the run

Man, how I miss the late John Prine, who died of COVID-19 complications in the spring of 2020.

Thanks for reading and have a great weekend!

–Bernie

Bernie invites you to listen to his opinionated sports-talk show on 590-AM The Fan, KFNS. It airs Monday through Thursday from 3-6 p.m. and Friday from 4-6 p.m. You can listen by streaming online or by downloading the “Bernie Show” podcast at 590thefan.com — the 590 app works great and is available in your preferred app store.

Follow Bernie on Twitter @miklasz