By Bob Priddy, Missourinet contributing editor
(CANTON, OHIO)—-Dick Vermeil, the only man to serve as head coach of both of Missouri’s NFL teams, couldn’t thank enough people enough in his NFL Hall of Fame Speech. Given eight minutes to speak, Vermeil took twenty-three.
Along the way he saluted several people who made his enshrinement possible.
One of those was St. Louis Rams linebacker Mike Jones, who tackled Tennessee Titans wide receiver Kevin Dyson one yard short of a game-tying touchdown when the Rams won the 2000 Super Bowl “If he doesn’t make the tackle on the last play of Super Bowl 34, I’m not here today,” Vermeil said.
His bust was unveiled by John Shira (L) and Carl Peterson. Shira was the quarterback for Vermeil’s UCLA Bruins that defeated unbeaten Ohio State in the 1976 Rose Bowl. Peterson was an executive with the Philadelphia Eagles when Vermeil led the Eagles to four straight playoff appearances and to their first Super Bowl. Later, during his twenty-year tenure with the Kansas City Chiefs, he hired Vermeil two years after he had led the Rams to their Super Bowl Victory and then retiring.
He recalled UCLA’s win over Ohio State as the win that made him an NFL Coach. “If you don’t do that, the ownership form Philadelphia doesn’t get on a plane right after the game—so help me God it’s the truth—fly to Southern California…and recruiting me to come and coach your football team in Philadelphia.”
The Eagles were the first of three teams he led into the NFL playoffs.
But it was a basketball coach who taught him about coaching. He took every chance he had to watch John Wooden. “When you watch him practice, the intensity and the discipline and the structure was there of a great football practice.” Wooden counseled him not to worry about the players he failed to recruit to UCLA. “Just make sure you do a great job of making those who you have the best that they can possibly be,” he quoted Wooden, “And I’ve operated under that simple philosophy the rest of my coaching career. It is so true. So true.”
Vermeil told the audience, many of them former players or fellow coaches, “Players win games. It’s our job to prepare them to win games.”
Kansas City Chiefs Coach Andy Reid, one of those who succeeded Vermeil with the Eagles, left Chiefs training camp in St. Joseph, Missouri to fly to Canton for a Saturday night reception for the Hall of Fame Class of 2022. “I have never had in my coaching career a better display of respect from someone else in the profession than what Andy Reid did for me last night. It will always touch me…That was unbelieveable.”
(BASEBALL)—The longest game in the short history of the current Busch Stadium has brought the St. Louis Cardinals a sweep of a three-game series against the New York Yankees. It’s only the second time in Cardinals history they’ve won three straight against them.
Playing the Yankees is still rare for the Cardinals despite interleague play. The last time they won three straight against the New Yorkers was in the 1942 World Series when they won the last four games of a five-game series.
The Yankees have the second-best record in the American League but the Cardinals showed they could win tight games as well as slugging contests. Sunday’s game finished 12-9. The twenty-one runs were generated by 27 hits (only three of which were home runs). The Yankees left a dozen runners on base. The Cardinals stranded eight.
The Cardinals have now surged to a two game lead over Milwaukee in their division and are on a seven-game winning streak. The Yankees lost their first three-game series this year and are on a five-game losing streak.
Yadiar Molina singled in the third inning for his 1,000th career hit at home. The only catcher in baseball history with more is St. Louis native Yogi Berra with 1,042.
Across the state, the Royals hammered the Boston Red Sox 13-5 with rookie M. J. Melendez driving in six runs, three of them on a home run. The Royals have on four of their last five home series. It’s been nine years since they last won a four-game series against the Red Sox.
However they are not in any danger of playing in the post season. They’re 44-65. But they are not last in their division.
(NOW THE CARS)—Kevin Harvick, facing a win-or-else scenario for getting into the NASCAR playoffs, has made it in. Scott Dixon, running out of time to challenge for his seventh INDYCAR title, is knocking on the door with three races left.
Harvick, now 46 years old and 65 straight races without a win, is the fifteenth winner this year. He went into the race at Michigan as the first man out of the playoffs, based on the points standings although in ninth place. Playoff positions are based on wins and hadn’t had one in two years.
His victory is his 59th in Cup competition, 10th best all-time. It means Martin Truex Jr., is the odd man out. He’s fourth overall in points but doesn’t have a win this year. The only winless driver still in playoff contention is Ryan Blaney, who is second in overall points but also has yet to win a race this year.
There are three Cup races remaining before the field is set for the playoffs. If both Blaney and Truex win one of those races, Kurt Bush would be eliminated. Although he has a win this year, he is 20th in points. Busch has missed three races since suffering a concussion in a pre-race crash last month. Ty Gibbs, the grandson of team owner Joe Gibbs, has filled in for him and had his first career top ten finish \
In INDYCAR—Scott Dixon went from last to first in the last 51 laps on the Nashville street circuit to close within six points of the INDYCAR points lead. He’s looking to equal A. J. Foyt’s seven series championships, the record.
Dixon (with his family at last week’s Indianapolis road course race) was in last place after a penalty for pitting when the pits were closed. The win is the 53rd of his career, breaking a tie with Mario Andretti for second-most INDYCAR victories. Foyt had 67 career wins.
A late-race collision brought out a red flag that set up a two-lap shootout between Dixon and Scott McLaughlin. Dixon never made the high-pressure mistake during those two las and eat McLaughlin to the line by .1067 of a second, the closest finish of the year in INDYCAR racing.
Defending points champion Alex Palou was third. Last week’s winner at Indianapolis, Alexander Rossi, went a lap down after an early race shunt required repairs in his pit and then rallied to fourth. Teammate Colton Herta, also the victim of a too-close encounter with a competitor, also rallied from a lap down (also for repairs) to finish fifth.
The top five drivers in the INDYCAR point standings now are separated by just 33 points. Their next chance to shake up the standings will be at World Wide Technology Raceway, across the river from St. Louis, in two weeks.
(photo credits: Bob Priddy, Rick Gevers, NFL)