Mizzou Links, 11-28-12

Mizzou Basketball Links

Yeeeeeeeeeesh.

— Rock M Nation (@rockmnation) November 28, 2012

So I guess we officially know why Mike Dixon isn't playing right now, huh?

I'm not going to blurb any of the Dixon articles below, but if you didn't read at least one last night (and I assume everyone probably did), please do so. This is a gross issue, but it proves beyond a shadow of a doubt how dominated we all are by the gray area in between black and white. If I'm the accuser's friend, I think Mike Dixon is a rapist right now. If I'm Mike Dixon's friend, though? I probably think the accuser is just angry at him for not texting back. (I also probably think I'm friends with a manipulative a**hole, but if I were friends with him, I'd probably already know that if true.) I understand why police didn't charge him, and I understand why she couldn't take it and (foolishly) lashed out on Twitter last week.

I also understand why some combination of the student board and Frank Haith aren't letting Mike Dixon play basketball yet. Without criminal charges, I don't think I'd feel comfortable with him being suspended all year by any means, but if he were to miss the rest of the semester's games I couldn't complain much. We'll see how it goes. This sucks, basically. And assuming he does end up playing at some point, hopefully he has learned a lesson about being the aforementioned manipulative a**hole (if he is, indeed, that). We still have to root for you, Mike, so please be a good guy if you aren't one already.

• Dixon
  The Trib: No charges filed after Dixon accused of rape
  KC Star: Police report says MU's Dixon accused of rape but not charged
  Post-Dispatch: Police report says MU's Dixon accused of rape but not charged
• 2013 Recruiting
  PowerMizzou: Mizzou coach knows Etherington

Mizzou Football Links

Time to awkwardly change topics...

• Pinkel Speaks (Again)
  The Missourian: Gary Pinkel looking forward to next Missouri football season

  On Tuesday, Pinkel spoke about his first season in the Southeastern Conference. It did not go well, but he said he definitely thinks his team can compete.

  "Nothing that happened in this league was different than I expected," Pinkel said.

  He also praised the Missouri fans and MU for their strong support throughout the transition into a new conference.

  "I feel fine that the fans are upset that we're not going to a bowl, and that we didn't have a winning season," Pinkel said. "I like that. I like the attitude. I think it's good. That's the way it should be."

  Pinkel mentioned that this week the team would submit names of NFL draft-eligible players to be evaluated. Among them will be Sheldon Richardson, who has one year of eligibility left.

  "If I was a betting man, I'd say he's gonna go," Pinkel said.

  Pinkel said he recommends that players leave if they are projected to go in the first round of the NFL draft.

  KC Star: Pinkel: 'I'm fine fans are upset we're not going to a bowl'

  Pinkel also made it clear that despite the rough season, he doesn’t anticipate making any changes to the staff. And when asked directly if he expects some responsibilities to get be shifted around, he said he did not, though he would not hesitate to make a change if need be.

  "Hiring the wrong person is not what destroys your business," Pinkel said. "What destroys your business is keeping that person in your organization. So personnel, to me, is huge. I’ll never have anybody working for us that’s not good enough to be here."

  Pinkel said he sees a lot of head coaches around the country who have tough years and start firing guys, but added that will never be him because coaches don’t go from good to bad in one year.

  Post-Dispatch: Pinkel won't make staff changes
  Post-Dispatch: Pinkel: "When we've got problems ... I attack"

  "Any time you go through adversity, you grow and learn," he said. "We’ve always done that. You take advantage of it."

  As for how he might take advantage, Pinkel was more philosophical than specific about planks of the program that call for constant analysis of every component of the operation.

  Some might scoff at his willingness to make tangible, substantial changes.

  But the last time MU had a losing season, 2004, Pinkel went entirely against his football DNA and changed offenses to a spread. He also overhauled Mizzou’s entire defensive approach early in his 12-year tenure.

  He did both without making changes on his staff, and whatever comes from his audit of the program now apparently won’t entail a shake-up, either.

  "I’ll never have anybody working for us (who’s) not good enough to be here," he said, adding, "If a guy’s not good enough, he’s gone."

  With a reminder that he had fired coaches at Toledo, he added, "If that’s necessary I would do that, but I don’t anticipate that happening."

  Asked if he anticipated any shuffling of duties within the staff, Pinkel simply said, "No."

  PowerMizzou: Pinkel's 2012 Wrap-Up
  PowerMizzou: Amid criticism, Pinkel staying the course
  PowerMizzou: QB situation up in the air

  "To be honest with you, it's been very difficult on me to see all these guys get wiped out. James, going through this, who I thought he was gonna have just a great year this year," Pinkel said. "I expected him, just like most of our quarterbacks, just to be able to take off." […]

  "Quarterback's no different position for us than any other in our organization, how we interpret depth and decide on depth. And one thing that our players know is the best player plays. Everybody gets an opportunity," Pinkel said. I say that in recruiting. I said that to a recruit last night on the phone. There's not a pecking order here. We don't say well this guy's been here at offensive tackle or quarterback or defensive end, so he deserves to start. You deserve to start if you win the job and our players know that. Our players respect that. The quarterback position, like any other position, everybody will have an opportunity to get the job and win the job and everybody's got an opportunity to win any job in our program and we're just very consistent with how we handle that.

  "I use Brad Smith as an example. He beat out a three-year starter. The reason he played is that he beat him out. In practice. We didn't just slide him up there, we don't do that. So we'll see where it goes."

  KBIA Sports: Pinkel dispels retirement talk, says team won't make significant changes next season

Other Football Links

Two thoughts on Mark Stoops: 1) This hire in no way blows me away, and 2) Kentucky really wasn't going to be able to make a "Blow me away" hire, so this is as good as any. Hiring former coordinators works out well quite often and fails quite often. Good luck to him.

• Kentucky Hires A Stoops (Subtitle: The Disrespect Chronicles Live?)
  SB Nation: Mark Stoops named Kentucky football coach
  A Sea Of Blue: Mark Stoops Hired as Head Coach
  A Sea Of Blue: Reaction to the Hiring of Mark Stoops
  Team Speed Kills: Kentucky Hires Mark Stoops as Head Football Coach
  John Clay: Mitch Barnhart announces hiring of Mark Stoops

EXPANSIONAPALOOZA™ 2012

Tulane and East Carolina. I guess those might have been the most appealing (least unappealing) options available. I guess. Regardless...

• The Train Keeps A-Rollin'...
  Frank the Tank: If It's Tuesday, It's Conference Realignment Day: Big East invites Tulane and East Carolina, Rejection by BYU and ACC in the Navy
  SB Nation: The List: Candidates to join the Big East
  SB Nation: ACC expansion judgment day: Louisville might beat UConn for invite
  Card Chronicle: Big East Adding Tulane For All Sports, East Carolina For Football
  Card Chronicle: Report: Louisville One Vote Shy Of Landing ACC Invite
  Testudo Times: And so it begins: ACC files suit against Maryland

Other Mizzou Links

• Mizzou Wrestling
  MUtigers.com: No. 7 Ranked Tigers Head to Las Vegas for Star-Studded Invite
• Mizzou Women's Basketball
  The Trib (Ross Dellenger): Pingeton says she saw "resiliency, toughness" in Cancun
• Mizzou Volleyball
  MUtigers.com: Tigers Sign Six Commits for 2013 Season

Other

• Love The Longform Pieces
  SB Nation: Still Richard: Richard Simmons keeps grooving at 64