After going unselected in the 1971 NFL draft, Brinkman joined the Cincinnati Bengals, but was released before the start of the season. Following a short stint with the Cleveland Browns, he rejoined the team in 1972 and appeared in one game for Cleveland that season. Brinkman finished his career a member of the Buffalo Bills from 1973 to 1974.
Brinkman played for the freshman team at Louisville in 1967.[7] He joined the varsity team as a sophomore, playing the tight end position.[8] Brinkman also took over punting duties after an injury to Wally Oyler.[8][9] In his punting debut, he recorded punts of 59 and 47 yards.[8] The following week, Brinkman recorded an 89-yard punt against Tulsa which pinned them inside the 10-yard line and resulted in a safety a few plays later.[8] Louisville head coach Frank Camp called his punt "the turning point" of their 16–7 victory.[10] It set a new school record, far surpassing the previous mark of 65 yards,[10] and ended up being the longest punt in the nation that season.[3] Brinkman was named the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) offensive player of the week for his performance.[11] As a junior in 1969, Brinkman emerged as Louisville's leading receiver, making 25 catches for 357 yards and five touchdowns.[12] He caught two touchdowns in a 31–21 defeat to his hometown team, Cincinnati.[13]
Ahead of his senior season, Brinkman was elected team captain by his teammates.[14] The Cardinals were picked to finish last in the conference in the coaches' preseason poll.[15] However, they won the conference title after going undefeated in conference play.[16] Louisville earned a berth to the Pasadena Bowl, where Brinkman seemingly caught the game-winning touchdown pass from Cardinals running back Tom Jesukaitis on a broken play, though it was called back due to an illegal forward pass.[17] The game ended in a 24–24 tie.[17] Brinkman finished his senior season with a team-high 48 catches for 647 yards and four touchdowns,[18] earning a unanimous selection to the all-MVC team as well as honorable mention All-American honors from the Associated Press.[19][20] He also recorded 26 punts for 853 yards, averaging 32.8 yards per punt.[21] Brinkman was named the team's most outstanding senior.[22]
After cutting his weight and improving his speed, Brinkman was invited back to try out for the Cleveland Browns in 1972.[28] He was released on September 12 during final roster cuts and signed to the practice squad.[29][30] Brinkman was activated in December for one game against the Cincinnati Bengals.[31][32] He recorded no statistics and returned to the practice squad.
In May 1973, Brinkman signed with the Buffalo Bills.[33] He blocked a Chester Marcol field goal attempt in a preseason loss to the Green Bay Packers.[34] However, he broke his arm the following week in the kickoff of their game against the Washington Redskins and was placed on injured reserve.[35][36] Brinkman participated in the 1974 NFL strike, picketing with several of his Bills' teammates.[37] He attended unofficial "bootleg training camp" workouts hosted by team veterans in July.[38] On August 6, Brinkman became the second Bills veteran to report to training camp, after Bo Cornell.[39] In explaining his decision, he said: "I'm putting more on the line than anybody else on the team. I'm losing my job by staying out of camp and I know it."[39] Brinkman, who was trying out as a safety, was waived a few weeks later.[39][40]
Personal life
Brinkman was given the nickname "Cookie" by his older brother Gerard, who was 18 months older and could not properly pronounce "Charlie".[6] He also had two younger brothers named Joey and Jimmy.[6] A cousin of his, Jacob Ungruhe, played football at Morehead State.[41]
Brinkman served as the vice president of marketing at ASI Building Products in Tampa, Florida,[44] and later became the vice president of sales at Alcoa.[2] He died on October 24, 2019.[1]