Woo Pig Stewy!
If Houston Nutt was stock and Stewart Mandel was a broker he would be advising his clients to steer clear of it.
The same SI.com reporter, who earlier this season tried to give Nutt and the Razorbacks the benefit of the doubt after a close loss to Alabama, has lost all faith in the Hogs. He doesn’t rule out the possibility that the Razorbacks could lose to (gasp!) Ole Miss this weekend:
Speaking of Orgeron, his winless-in-the-SEC Rebels (0-4) host Nutt’s winless-in-the-SEC Razorbacks (0-3) this weekend — and despite the fact Arkansas won 10 games a year ago and has last year’s Heisman runner-up in its backfield, would anyone really be surprised if Ole Miss wins? I won’t. Not after the Rebels came within a few seconds of knocking off Alabama at home last week (and nearly rallied to beat Florida two weeks earlier), while the Razorbacks proved against Auburn that even a team with two superstars in its backfield (Darren McFadden and Felix Jones) can be held scoreless for nearly 59 minutes.
Remember all the craziness that hovered over Arkansas’ program last winter and spring (lawsuits, fans requesting cell-phone records, etc.)? Remember how bizarre it seemed to anyone outside that state that even a segment of the Razorbacks’ fan base could be so put out by a coach who had just orchestrated the school’s best season in 17 years?
Turns out, the very events that touched off their outrage — Nutt’s condescending treatment of offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn and subsequent transfer of ballyhooed QB Mitch Mustain — are what’s biting him now. Arkansas has no passing attack. None. Zippo. Certainly star receiver Marcus Monk’s season-long injury hasn’t helped, but neither has Nutt’s continued, puzzling faith in career 51-percent passer Casey Dick, or his mistaken belief that bringing back former assistant David Lee to be offensive coordinator (Malzahn, who subsequently left for Tulsa, was still on staff at the time), would fix the problem.
Mandel is probably receiving a lifetime membership to hogville.net and woopig.net as you read this.
how many times are we going to hear the importance of being BALANCED on offense while the coaching staff refuses to do anything about it? hehe… bringing in ken hatfield’s retread, david lee, has certainly helped the problem. as with last year, we have one of the worst - like the 108th - passing games in the country. nice work, lee.
in addition, apparently lee took it upon himself to “break down” the wildcat formation and effectively screw up the best running back tandem in college football. nice work, lee. you came to UA touting your “qualities” as a passing coach while with the dallas cowboys involving tony romo. it goes without saying that romo is having by far his best year in the NFL during your absence.
if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and then starts quacking, guess what? it’s a duck, man. david lee is a run oriented [option] coach, period. nutt, has evolved into the same way, post stoerner. combined, those two are about as creative as some pee wee, pop warner league coaches - on a good day. how in the world are these guys going to CONSISTENTLY implement any degree of BALANCE with an effective passing game? [tarvis jackson, who transferred under nutt from UA to Alabama State and now starts for the minnesota vikings may have an answer to this question] meanwhile, DMAC and Felix continue to get pounded by defenses that have absolutely NO fear of the pass. fans [rightfully] expect better, houston.
It’s time to hire Jimmy Johnson! National Championship becomes a reality and top recruits line up to play at Arkansas when that happens.
funny, because i used to feel the same way about houston nutt, but am with you now, allentxhog. and for me, it has absolutely nothing to do with malzahn, et al. i also like the guy at south florida. regardless, it seems clear that you have to pony up top dollar to get the best coaching talent. otherwise, the facilities and tremendous fan support at UA for a big time, consistent, winning program are second to none. it’s the only game in town.
Anyone but Nutt, let’s end this travesty once and for all.