Sept. 13, 2003

Editor's Note: This story ran in the Sept. 13 edition of the Mizzou football gameday program.

by Rob Coons

Bill Cocos doesn't miss many Missouri football games. That's probably why he remembers exactly where he was on October 7, 1972.

"I was on a float trip with some friends," Cocos said. "I missed the game at Oklahoma State that week."

Cocos remembers because since that date, the St. Louis native hasn't missed a single game - home or away. It's a remarkable streak that hit 350 consecutive Tiger football games last Saturday, when Cocos was at Ball State Stadium in Muncie, Ind.

"I never imagined the streak would get to be in the neighborhood of 350," Cocos said. "It's not a conscious thought: 'Oh I have to keep the streak going,' or anything like that.

"I just enjoy supporting Missouri."

Not that a streak of this magnitude has been easy to maintain. Over the years, health problems have forced Cocos, 72, to have several surgeries and hospitalizations. He's just scheduled them around the Tigers.

"In 1978, I had to have hip replacement surgery, but I put it off until the season was over," he said. "Then I had a heart by-pass on August 13, 1995, but I still made it to the first game (Sept. 2 vs. North Texas). Last November, I had an operation on my back, but I still managed to make those games as well."

The streak has survived changes in Cocos' life as well. When he got married in 1981, his wife Doris understood that along with Bill came Missouri football.

"She's been very supportive," Cocos said. "She comes to most of the home games with me. She's an avid Tiger fan."

Over the course of 31 seasons, Cocos has become a fixture in the Faurot Field tailgating scene. For home games, Cocos and friends pile in a custom bus and make the two-hour trip to Columbia.

Cocos also takes the bus to close road games (Ball State, Kansas), but usually flies on the longer trips.

"We usually have between 12 and 18 people on the bus," he said. "I really enjoy that. We have a good time."

When describing some of the games Cocos has seen since 1972, however, good isn't necessarily the first word to come to mind. Missouri has a 152-191-7 record during the streak, which makes Cocos glad he hasn't had to worry about job security in his role as a fan.

"If I were the coach, I'd have been fired long ago," he said with a laugh. "They'd have bought out my contract and sent me packing."

Despite the record, Cocos' enthusiasm for the Tigers has never wavered.

"It's easy to follow a winner, but if you're a true fan you stick with your team win, lose or draw," he said.

"I don't like losing. I'm a lot like Gary Pinkel that way, but you have to keep going."

To keep going is a lesson that Cocos learned early on in the streak. Game No. 1 was a 62-0 loss at sixth-ranked Nebraska. The Tigers followed that by going to South Bend, Ind., and upsetting No. 8 Notre Dame, 30-26, the next week. Cocos rates the upset of the Irish as one of the greatest MU games he's seen.

Cocos' affiliation with the University of Missouri outdates the streak. In fact, Cocos has a secondary streak in tact as well - he hasn't missed a game at Faurot Field since 1948, his freshman year at MU. That's a run that reaches 309 games this afternoon.

As a student, Cocos was a member of Marching Mizzou. It wasn't until 1952 that he switched from marching down the field to cheering from the stands. Besides his years as a student, Cocos also spent seven years on the Board of Curators, including serving as board president in 1983.

The University of Missouri and MU football have been a part of Cocos' life for so long, it's not surprising he considers them family.

"We don't have any children," he said, "so Tiger athletics are like our kids."

Spoken almost like a father, Cocos finds it impossible to pick a favorite Tiger player from the past.

"Roger Wehrli, Johnny Roland, and Kellen Winslow were all great because they all went on to become great professional players as well," he said.

Cocos also thinks one current Tiger could soon join that list.

"Brad Smith is a great player. That young man is fun to watch," he said. "I almost have to pinch myself, because it's like a dream. He's a leader, he runs the plays and he has great ability to make something happen. He will probably go down as one of the greatest to ever play at MU, if he can stay healthy."

Likewise, Cocos' streak will also go down as one of the greatest in Tiger football history.