UA’s ‘94 national championship team honored
The Northwest Arkansas Tip-Off club honored Nolan Richardson and members of the University of Arkansas’ 1994 national championship team Friday.
ANTHONY REYES /Northwest Arkansas Times
Former Arkansas basketball coach Nolan Richardson, right,
jokes with former Arkansas player Corliss Williamson Friday.
The luncheon was standing room only, according to an article penned by Nate Allen that will appear in Saturday’s Northwest Arkansas Times. UA athletics director Jeff Long was in attendance and plans to meet with Richardson soon to discuss honoring the 1994 team formally at Bud Walton Arena next year.
Here are some highlights:
“This is like a dream,” Scotty Thurman said. “I was driving about 90 miles an hour this morning to get there. Next year I hope we walk on Nolan Richardson Court. Because that’s what it is, whether they call it that or not.”
“This is one of the happiest days, I guess, since maybe 1994 and that great win [over Duke in the national championship game],” Richardson said.
Arkansas coach John Pelphrey and Long spoke to Richardson briefly Friday. Richardson, who will be traveling to El Paso, Texas soon because of the death of a close friend, said he and Long will schedule a time to meet and talk more thoroughly soon.
Is it about a national championship reunion in 2009 at Walton Arena?
“I think that’s what it is going to be,” Richardson said. “I’ve talked to people who said [Long] would be very interested in getting the 15th-year reunion and that’s something I am very interested in. It’s not about me, but it’s about these guys.”
For more, check out Allen’s article in the Times tomorrow.
4 Responses to “UA’s ‘94 national championship team honored”
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think about it-our only national championship[other than track] and nothing has been done to recognize those kids-embarrasing to the university. that’s why change is so important-some things are always more important than personal issues.
The blame is shared equally on both sides, hogbob. Nolan finally expressed some humility and a degree of blame that this recognition didn’t happen sooner. Although feeble in its effect, I do remember highlights of the ‘94 Championship season showing on the scoreboard at BWA before tipoff of a couple of games that I attended in 2004 (10th anniversary). It looks like our new AD wants the angst and bad feelings in the past. He made a good decision.
The saying can be quite true, “time heals all wounds.”
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