Contract Extensions

MU Board of Curators seek to extend Anderson; Pinkel contract
by MizzMatt - 3/22/11
Columbia, MO- The University of Missouri isn't known for big-name coaches.  We have the ability of getting lackluster coaches from smaller universities and turning them into national treasures that everyone wants a piece of.  Two coaches come to mind when talking about this- Gary Pinkel and Mike Anderson.

Pinkel, who came to Mizzou from University of Toledo in Ohio, took over for the retiring Larry Smith in December 2000.  As of the 2010 season, Pinkel is 77-49 overall in the win-loss column.  In 2008, a contract extension was reached which keeps Gary at MU thru the 2015 season.  His annual salary now is around the $2.5 mil/year mark.  He has taken Mizzou football from the mediocrity of Smith and turned it into a top-caliber team capable of producing star athletes.  The crown jewel of the Pinkel era is undoubtedly Chase Daniel, who has a Super Bowl ring to his hand, but it could become Blaine Gabbert, who many are predicting to go as high as third in the 2011 NFL Draft.


Mike Anderson took over in 2006 after coaching the UAB Blazers, and also after years of torment from the previous MU coaching staff.  NCAA sanctions and regulations depleted our basketball to settling for 15-win seasons.  Since Anderson took over, he's gone 111-57, marking him as the fastest coach to 100 victories at MU.  A lot of disgruntled moans have erupted from Mizzou Nation over the past couple of seasons as in 2010 he was eyeballing taking the job at Oregon and even listed Memphis as a possible target.  This year, it's rumored that he's eyeballing Arkansas.  The MU Board of Curators are currently working on an extension for Anderson as well.  In 2009, his contract was extended to a seven-year, $10.85 mil deal, and the new deal will up his annual salary of approximately $1.35 mil to nearly $2 million.  After helping his mentor Nolan Richardson to a 1994 national championship, he's always listed Arkansas, his home state, as a dream job, but after years of being turned down by the Razorbacks, he wound up in Birmingham and now Columbia.  Is he worth the $2 mil proposed extension?  He's taken the program from the cellar and has turned us into a talented team that has been know as the "Fastest 40 Minutes in Basketball."