Me-mories
Blair Kerkhoff of the Kansas City Star takes a look at the two-year soap opera that seems to finally have come to an end at Arkansas.
If you want to look back at how it all unfolded, this is a nice Reader’s Digest version of the entire saga that took place.
Over the last two years, there’s been so much to follow it’s been difficult to keep up. The longest-running melodrama in college football unfolded in the gentle hills of the Ozarks.
It got personal and ugly, involved fans, the coach’s wife and the media. It forced out players and coaches, even the head coach.
On Wednesday, the Razorbacks left it all behind, at least for now. They boarded a plane and headed to Dallas, where Arkansas will face Missouri in the Jan. 1 Cotton Bowl.
Even if some other bombshell drops sometime before kickoff, the team won’t be fazed.
“I guess you could say after all we’ve been through nothing would bother us now,” center Jonathan Luigs said. “We’re pretty used to it.”
ah… what memories… good posting though!
That “bombshell” might just be McFadden. Does anybody have the real story on that yet? Was McFadden and Conley there together?
I have it from a reliable source that the Oklahoma quarterback was on the payrolls at the dealership but wasn’t working at the time (although he was clocked in).
Seriously though, if this is true (which I hope it’s not), I don’t think it should be a violation, although it may be. There’s nothing wrong with McFadden’s parents buying a new vehicle and giving it to him, or with him buying it himself. I’m sure his credit is pretty good and he can get “$0 down and no payments until 2009!!” just like the rest of us.
The issue is if Mike Conley was there. If he’s not a “certified football agent” and has nothing to gain from the relationship, then what’s wrong with him helping out? These NCAA rules can be pretty silly sometimes. Coaches can negotiate, sign, and break contracts for tens of millions of dollars, but the players (who make or break those coaches) can’t even have a friend of the family help get a good deal on a car. I’m not sure if Mike Conley is a “friend of the family” or not, but I know he’s a friend of the Razorbacks. I only wish he had laid down the law and told his son to be a Razorback. We would probably be looking at Final Fours again with him at Point Guard, although Ohio State worked out pretty well for him (but that’s a different subject).
These rules were written back in the dark ages when college football was really an amateur sport. I’m all for keeping this an amateur sport, but anyone who thinks it’s not all about the big money is naive.
Go Hogs!! Beat Mizzou!! (so I don’t have to listen to my wife’s family talk about there ONE New Year’s Day bowl game in nearly 40 years!)
Nutt is gone - good riddance. His assistants whom wanted to be part of the ‘Ol Miss program with Nutt are gone - good. Pretty much a clean sweep so that Petrino can put together his own coaching team.
Nutt had allowed (or caused) all the other consternation and upset for the team - bad management - he got himself in the middle of it.
friscohog (Frisco, Texas, just North of Dallas). Haven’t you heard? - there was a retraction on that story, based on no facts to collaborate. What “bombshell?
Razorbackintexas, I hope we can be saying ‘good riddance’ in three or four years. Houston Nutt was placed in an unwinnable situation by being forced to hire people with different ideas about winning football than himself. When this didn’t perform up to expectations, he went with proven performers. When those who were dissatisfied with his coaching were unsuccessful in their efforts to get rid of him in that way, they turned to personal attacks, trying to dig up any possible dirt they could. Always telling only one side of the story and applying the worse possible motives to any and all actions stating evidence that backed up their opinions and ignoring evidence that it was not correct. Ignoring the fact that Houston Nutt had four children and the constant grief and harrassment they and his wife had to deal with.
Some were very upset that the Springdale bunch did not perform up to their hype and were angered that these Arkansas boys left the program. Houston Nutt went with a couple of other Arkansas boys , McFadden and Hillis, that had proven their ability to perform in the SEC.
In ten years under Nutt, Arkansas has three 9 win season and one 10 win season, suffered through 2 losing seasons. Nutt has ran three different offenses at Arkansas in order to make the most of the skills of his players. With Stoerner and Lucas, he ran one type of offense, another with Matt Jones and another with McFadden, Jones and Hillis. This year, Nutt’s boring and predictable offense set a new record for the most points scored by an Arkansas team. Breaking the record set in 2003–a team also coached by Houston Nutt. Also set a new record for points scored per game.
On another note, despite playing in three different systems in three years, being coached by three different coaches and playing less than two full seasons, Casey Dick is third on Arkansas’ quarterbacks list. This year, he was fourth in the SEC for quarterback efficency, completed between 57 and 58 percent of his passes with 18 touchdowns and 9 interceptions. I believe most any college coach would be quite happy with that performance from their quarterback.
Its a shame that all the negativity has overshadowed the accomplishments of both this team and individual players. (I didn’t even mention the amazing performances of McFadden and Jones–tieing at leas one SEC reocord and setting an NCAA record.) Everyone has the right to gripe and complain (that’s part of being a fan) but it would be a lot more meaningful if they would bother to check the facts first.
Learn a little about the game.
Clint Stoerner said “Football is the single most complicated game to play, coach or officate, and yet while so few of us know how difficult it is to game plan and succeed inside the lines,, we all feel free to question the coach’s philosophy, decisions, and play calling week in and week out.”
Like all Razorback fans, I’m elated when they win, disappointed when they lose but the last two years I’ve also been disappointed, ashamed and embarrassed by the lack of class and maturity displayed by a sgment of our fans. Most especially by those who were rooting for the Hogs to lose so Nutt would be fired. Those fans were the cause fo the consternation and upset for the team. I doubt any one of us could stand up to the mircoscope Houston Nutt’s life and actions were placed under. It a shame that this has overshadowed the
It’s past time to put that behind us and feel free to gripe and complain but ALWAYS root for the hogs no matter who the coach is and not cause our disappointments to influence us to ignore their accomplishments.