ChiefsCountry
10-26-2004, 07:42 AM
Pinkel is starting to remind me alot like Vermeil, dog on a running back yet protect his crappy coordinator.
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Pinkel's thin skin is proving detrimental to his football team
JASON WHITLOCK
We can only hope that Gary Pinkel deals with his assistant coaches in the same no-nonsense fashion that he uses with his players.
If he does, Missouri offensive coordinator Dave Christensen will be suspended indefinitely for play-calling detrimental to the team. Quarterbacks coach David Yost might face suspension, too — quarterback development detrimental to the team. Pinkel could use some time off, too — stubbornness and insecurity detrimental to the team.
Pinkel has — once again — overreacted to criticism of his coaching and coaching staff. Tailback Damien Nash, the Tigers' leading rusher, joined ESPN broadcaster Lee Corso in Pinkel's doghouse.
After Saturday's 20-17, come-from-ahead loss to the Oklahoma State Cowboys, Nash tamely questioned the play-calling and substitution pattern in which he carried the ball just seven times in the second half and had Beau “Rudy” Viehmann line up at tailback (and carry the ball) on the most important play of the game.
“I wish I had the headphones on to hear what's going on. I wish I could call the offense. I didn't understand a lot of the plays,” Nash told me behind the Tigers' locker room Saturday.
For stating the obvious, Nash has been suspended indefinitely, won't play against the Nebraska Cornhuskers, and Rockhurst High's Tony Temple has lost his redshirt freshman season at Mizzou. With this thin-skinned overreaction, Pinkel is redefining conduct detrimental to a football team.
I had followed Nash and one of his friends out of the interview area. I could sense in Nash's earlier comments to the news media in a group setting that he was extremely frustrated by the alleged communication mishap that caused Brad Smith to hand the ball to Viehmann on third and 4 while Nash stood on the sideline. I tracked down Nash outside the interview area because I assumed in a more private environment he might elaborate on his frustration. My hunch was right.
Nash's sentiments mirrored the thoughts of 66,000 fans and probably most of the Missouri players not named Viehmann.
If you watched the Tigers blow a 17-point lead and go 31 straight minutes without scoring, you didn't understand a lot of the plays and probably thought you could do a much better job of calling them than Christensen, Yost or Pinkel. You might also have surmised that there was a kernel of truth in Corso's criticism of Pinkel earlier this season after the Tigers melted down against the Mighty Troy Trojans. Corso questioned Pinkel's ability to adjust during games.
Unable to suspend Corso, Pinkel publicly fired back at Corso, escalating a minor issue into a controversy.
Pinkel has done it again. He obviously enjoys a fight. By suspending Nash, Pinkel has intensified the scrutiny of Christensen's play-calling. I'm not just talking about public and media scrutiny. Pinkel's Tigers — not just Nash — will be closely analyzing Mizzou's play-calling. You can't bully (or suspend) players into believing in your system. You win your players' trust and respect with innovative ideas and schemes and game plans that make sense.
Nash deserved punishment. Bench him for a quarter or a half. Make him run stadium steps. An indefinite suspension makes Pinkel look petty and small, and I say that believing that Nash's postgame comments were probably the last straw in Nash's insubordination.
I also say that believing that Pinkel has been looking for an excuse to play Tony Temple. Every week this season there's been a new rumor about Missouri stripping Temple of his redshirt. Pinkel told me last week that had Temple practiced every day during fall camp, he would've played in Missouri's season opener. There are people who believe Temple is Mizzou's best running back right now.
Temple is scheduled to back up Marcus Woods on Saturday against Nebraska. It would be stupid to waste Temple's redshirt season just so he can spell Woods in a must-win road game. I'll be shocked if Temple doesn't get 15 carries on Saturday.
Pinkel would love nothing more than for Temple to usher in a new era at tailback. Christensen wants the same thing, but he'd like for “Rudy” Viehmann to get first crack at replacing Nash.
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Pinkel's thin skin is proving detrimental to his football team
JASON WHITLOCK
We can only hope that Gary Pinkel deals with his assistant coaches in the same no-nonsense fashion that he uses with his players.
If he does, Missouri offensive coordinator Dave Christensen will be suspended indefinitely for play-calling detrimental to the team. Quarterbacks coach David Yost might face suspension, too — quarterback development detrimental to the team. Pinkel could use some time off, too — stubbornness and insecurity detrimental to the team.
Pinkel has — once again — overreacted to criticism of his coaching and coaching staff. Tailback Damien Nash, the Tigers' leading rusher, joined ESPN broadcaster Lee Corso in Pinkel's doghouse.
After Saturday's 20-17, come-from-ahead loss to the Oklahoma State Cowboys, Nash tamely questioned the play-calling and substitution pattern in which he carried the ball just seven times in the second half and had Beau “Rudy” Viehmann line up at tailback (and carry the ball) on the most important play of the game.
“I wish I had the headphones on to hear what's going on. I wish I could call the offense. I didn't understand a lot of the plays,” Nash told me behind the Tigers' locker room Saturday.
For stating the obvious, Nash has been suspended indefinitely, won't play against the Nebraska Cornhuskers, and Rockhurst High's Tony Temple has lost his redshirt freshman season at Mizzou. With this thin-skinned overreaction, Pinkel is redefining conduct detrimental to a football team.
I had followed Nash and one of his friends out of the interview area. I could sense in Nash's earlier comments to the news media in a group setting that he was extremely frustrated by the alleged communication mishap that caused Brad Smith to hand the ball to Viehmann on third and 4 while Nash stood on the sideline. I tracked down Nash outside the interview area because I assumed in a more private environment he might elaborate on his frustration. My hunch was right.
Nash's sentiments mirrored the thoughts of 66,000 fans and probably most of the Missouri players not named Viehmann.
If you watched the Tigers blow a 17-point lead and go 31 straight minutes without scoring, you didn't understand a lot of the plays and probably thought you could do a much better job of calling them than Christensen, Yost or Pinkel. You might also have surmised that there was a kernel of truth in Corso's criticism of Pinkel earlier this season after the Tigers melted down against the Mighty Troy Trojans. Corso questioned Pinkel's ability to adjust during games.
Unable to suspend Corso, Pinkel publicly fired back at Corso, escalating a minor issue into a controversy.
Pinkel has done it again. He obviously enjoys a fight. By suspending Nash, Pinkel has intensified the scrutiny of Christensen's play-calling. I'm not just talking about public and media scrutiny. Pinkel's Tigers — not just Nash — will be closely analyzing Mizzou's play-calling. You can't bully (or suspend) players into believing in your system. You win your players' trust and respect with innovative ideas and schemes and game plans that make sense.
Nash deserved punishment. Bench him for a quarter or a half. Make him run stadium steps. An indefinite suspension makes Pinkel look petty and small, and I say that believing that Nash's postgame comments were probably the last straw in Nash's insubordination.
I also say that believing that Pinkel has been looking for an excuse to play Tony Temple. Every week this season there's been a new rumor about Missouri stripping Temple of his redshirt. Pinkel told me last week that had Temple practiced every day during fall camp, he would've played in Missouri's season opener. There are people who believe Temple is Mizzou's best running back right now.
Temple is scheduled to back up Marcus Woods on Saturday against Nebraska. It would be stupid to waste Temple's redshirt season just so he can spell Woods in a must-win road game. I'll be shocked if Temple doesn't get 15 carries on Saturday.
Pinkel would love nothing more than for Temple to usher in a new era at tailback. Christensen wants the same thing, but he'd like for “Rudy” Viehmann to get first crack at replacing Nash.