Time to Move All Games to Fayetteville and See What Happens
Robert Shields
When the University of Arkansas builds on the north end of Razorback Stadium and adds the additional luxury seating, the lure of the dollar will be too great -- all games will be moved from Little Rock.
I’m resigned to that fact and that says a lot since I have easily been the staunchest supporter of keeping games in Little Rock and at times have been the lone voice of the Great Stadium Debate.
The lure of money will be like the pursuit of the “one ring” that is the symbol of absolute power in J.R.R. Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” trilogy. In the books, many believed they were strong enough to control the ring not realizing that it had a will of its own to return to its master, Sauron. In the end, the ring destroys anyone who tries to control it.
Money rules all for the Razorback football program. Is the program strong enough to control it? We will see.
It’s fitting for me to open with an analogy to “Lord of the Rings” because in the past I have called Razorback Stadium “Mount Doom” (because of losses in big games), the place where the ring is finally destroyed. Although I admit that the atmosphere at Razorback Stadium has improved, the jury is still out on whether it provides a very good home-field advantage.
This past season, the Razorbacks won a top 10 match-up in Fayetteville for the first time in about 50 years. But let’s face it, it was against a South Carolina very undeserving of its ranking. The Hogs still have not won that marquee match-up in Fayetteville against the bellwethers of the conference in Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Tennessee, or Georgia.
I want to stop here because someone is going to email me news the Razorbacks beat No. 3 Tennessee in 1999. The problem is that Arkansas was not good that season finishing 7-4 and were unranked going into the game. The Hogs actually had to win the next week against No. 12 Mississippi State in Little Rock to lock up the Cotton Bowl.
Razorback Stadium has been the site of the unthinkable loss to the Citadel, maybe the most embarrassing loss in school history. Vanderbilt and Kentucky both came in and won in Fayetteville, and we all know those teams don’t win in Little Rock. Razorback Stadium is also the home of the most heartbreaking defeat maybe in all of college football with the 1969 Great Shootout loss to Texas.
You have to go back all the way to 1988 when Arkansas beat Texas A&M for a game to have true meaning in that stadium.
Some, though, apparently think they have the power to overcome this history as long as there is enough money flowing in. Nobody knows the outcome of moving all the games. But we are going to find out. Maybe Jeff Long is the necromancer and knows all and can control all.
I think that I am ready for the UA to move all the games to Fayetteville because I want to be alive when they come begging to return to Little Rock. And the only way we can find out if moving games is the best is to do it. The accounting sheet says it’s a definite yes once the new additions are done to Razorback Stadium. You can mark it down now that LSU will be in Fayetteville next year -- they just don’t want you to know until after all the RSVP donations are in the loft.
There was a reason years ago the Razorbacks started playing in Little Rock. It was to close down the state to outsiders and bring everyone together. Leave no doubt that playing in Little Rock unified the state behind the Razorbacks. Some obviously think with enough money the same thing can be accomplished moving everything to Fayetteville.
The Little Rock metropolitan area is still the center of Arkansas with a population of 700,000. It has increased by 100,000 in the last 10 years -- the same amount as northwest Arkansas, which is considered to be absolutely booming.
As an example, Bud Walton Arena has been empty on weeknights for the last decade without the rest of the state there after the mistake of firing Nolan Richardson led so many to be disinterested in Razorback basketball. People found other things to do. I’m sure basketball donations plummeted.
So this is where this story ends. If you’re a big Razorback fan, what you want to see when they move all the games out of Little Rock is outrage. It means the people of Central Arkansas still care and love the Hogs and want to see them play.
What you don’t want to see is apathy and a general opinion of “let them have them – I’ve got better things to do – My niece is playing volleyball – I’ll catch it on the DVR later.”
For nothing is immune to the Law of Diminishing Returns that truly rules all, but for one – love, and without it faith and hope will soon follow.
Send how you lose interest in things to fromthebench@yahoo.com.
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 15 years. His newest novel, “Daphne and the Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society” is part one in a series. The book is available on Kindle, Nook, Lulu and the iBookstore for $4.99. He is not the mime.
Monday, February 13, 2012
Monday, February 06, 2012
From the Bench
High-School Recruiting Has Turned Into a Strange Business
Robert Shields
Coaching legend Bobby Bowden once blamed his demise on recruiting services. To some degree, he started to rely on them too heavily instead of his own due diligence. After all, how could all these services be wrong with their estimations on a kid’s abilities? If Rob Shields Prep Services says a child is four stars along with all the other services, they must be right.
Anyone who pays even a little attention to these recruiting reports and websites knows these rankings are not exactly a science and that there is a lot of groupthink when it comes to rating recruits.
On National Signing Day (NSD to recruitniks), the Razorback fan base had its collective heart broken when a kid by the acronym DGB (Dorial Green-Beckham) decided to play for his home-state team in Missouri. There is little doubt Arkansas signing what the “experts” proclaimed as the best player in the nation would have been a big feather in its cap on NSD -- a victory in this new sport of who can fawn over an 18 year old boy the most. Missouri obviously won this round by flying a helicopter to visit the kid. You can talk about misplaced priorities right now if you want to.
Recruiting is only getting worse every year. It seems the youth today all think they are starring in their own reality show. All they want is followers. These highly prized kids are being taught self-confidence, which is great, but with no humility. These athletes are getting so much attention just for being good in a sport (which can make a coach and university millions) that it ends up building ego, arrogance, and a lack of self-discipline, which never hold up well to adversity.
I get excited for recruiting about as much as 7-on-7 summer football. Yet once a year I have to write a column on it as some fans wring their hands over lost kids and others rejoice over getting Johnny My-Head-is-Too-Big.
This year’s magnum opus on recruiting was written by Thayer Evans for Fox Sports. The story gives a lot of insight into the recruiting of DGB. The article mentioned how Missouri provided fried sushi at every meal, which is DGB’s favorite food (is fried sushi the same thing that I would call fried fish?). How can you think this kid will ever be normal when being met by a helicopter and fed food like a rock star upon his demand?
He is being fed a false reality by grownups. It’s not even marginally real and it won’t be that way once he steps foot on campus as a student.
The article was fascinating to me not just in how DGB was treated, but also by how all these visiting coaches acted while visiting him, such as reading to DGB’s little sister and going into her room to look at her toys to try to curry favor with the family. This is odd to me. I’m not letting any strange man into my daughter’s room to read to her. This is wrong on every level.
The parts of the story about Auburn trying to recruit DGB were comical. I thought I was reading a parody script. Auburn really thought showing DGB a video of the eagle and demonstrating 253 ways to tie a shoe were good recruiting ideas? Are you kidding me? Spending an hour on explaining the joys of Under Armour apparel is just strange.
The article also covered Bobby Petrino’s serendipitous meeting with DGB in the lobby of a hotel in San Antonio. Both parties had good explanations as to why they were coincidentally there, but back here in reality who really believes that was just by chance?
The story covered how DGB tried to order alcoholic drinks in front of his adoptive parents. With a child that has been so entitled, why would he think that he couldn’t? The rules don’t apply to him, and this has been enforced by other adults.
The article talked about how the parents ruled out Notre Dame because Brian Kelly tossed his headset down on the ground yet gloss over the Missouri coach being charged with a DUI. If you saw Notre Dame melt down time after time last season, it’s surprising Kelly didn’t throw his headset at his quarterback.
I don’t even get these in home visits where creepy coaches go read to little girls, pet the dog, and yuck it up on the back deck with family. Once your kid signs, this isn’t going to happen anymore. It’s a farce. It’s a business transaction cloaked to look like a church social. Maybe after all the hand wringing, Cam Newton’s father had it right.
Send your recruiting solutions to fromthebench@yahoo.com
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 15 years. His newest novel, “Daphne and the Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society” is part one in a series. The book is available on Kindle, Nook, Lulu and the iBookstore for $4.99. He is not the mime.
end
Robert Shields
Coaching legend Bobby Bowden once blamed his demise on recruiting services. To some degree, he started to rely on them too heavily instead of his own due diligence. After all, how could all these services be wrong with their estimations on a kid’s abilities? If Rob Shields Prep Services says a child is four stars along with all the other services, they must be right.
Anyone who pays even a little attention to these recruiting reports and websites knows these rankings are not exactly a science and that there is a lot of groupthink when it comes to rating recruits.
On National Signing Day (NSD to recruitniks), the Razorback fan base had its collective heart broken when a kid by the acronym DGB (Dorial Green-Beckham) decided to play for his home-state team in Missouri. There is little doubt Arkansas signing what the “experts” proclaimed as the best player in the nation would have been a big feather in its cap on NSD -- a victory in this new sport of who can fawn over an 18 year old boy the most. Missouri obviously won this round by flying a helicopter to visit the kid. You can talk about misplaced priorities right now if you want to.
Recruiting is only getting worse every year. It seems the youth today all think they are starring in their own reality show. All they want is followers. These highly prized kids are being taught self-confidence, which is great, but with no humility. These athletes are getting so much attention just for being good in a sport (which can make a coach and university millions) that it ends up building ego, arrogance, and a lack of self-discipline, which never hold up well to adversity.
I get excited for recruiting about as much as 7-on-7 summer football. Yet once a year I have to write a column on it as some fans wring their hands over lost kids and others rejoice over getting Johnny My-Head-is-Too-Big.
This year’s magnum opus on recruiting was written by Thayer Evans for Fox Sports. The story gives a lot of insight into the recruiting of DGB. The article mentioned how Missouri provided fried sushi at every meal, which is DGB’s favorite food (is fried sushi the same thing that I would call fried fish?). How can you think this kid will ever be normal when being met by a helicopter and fed food like a rock star upon his demand?
He is being fed a false reality by grownups. It’s not even marginally real and it won’t be that way once he steps foot on campus as a student.
The article was fascinating to me not just in how DGB was treated, but also by how all these visiting coaches acted while visiting him, such as reading to DGB’s little sister and going into her room to look at her toys to try to curry favor with the family. This is odd to me. I’m not letting any strange man into my daughter’s room to read to her. This is wrong on every level.
The parts of the story about Auburn trying to recruit DGB were comical. I thought I was reading a parody script. Auburn really thought showing DGB a video of the eagle and demonstrating 253 ways to tie a shoe were good recruiting ideas? Are you kidding me? Spending an hour on explaining the joys of Under Armour apparel is just strange.
The article also covered Bobby Petrino’s serendipitous meeting with DGB in the lobby of a hotel in San Antonio. Both parties had good explanations as to why they were coincidentally there, but back here in reality who really believes that was just by chance?
The story covered how DGB tried to order alcoholic drinks in front of his adoptive parents. With a child that has been so entitled, why would he think that he couldn’t? The rules don’t apply to him, and this has been enforced by other adults.
The article talked about how the parents ruled out Notre Dame because Brian Kelly tossed his headset down on the ground yet gloss over the Missouri coach being charged with a DUI. If you saw Notre Dame melt down time after time last season, it’s surprising Kelly didn’t throw his headset at his quarterback.
I don’t even get these in home visits where creepy coaches go read to little girls, pet the dog, and yuck it up on the back deck with family. Once your kid signs, this isn’t going to happen anymore. It’s a farce. It’s a business transaction cloaked to look like a church social. Maybe after all the hand wringing, Cam Newton’s father had it right.
Send your recruiting solutions to fromthebench@yahoo.com
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 15 years. His newest novel, “Daphne and the Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society” is part one in a series. The book is available on Kindle, Nook, Lulu and the iBookstore for $4.99. He is not the mime.
end
Monday, January 30, 2012
From the Bench
A Few Ideas to Help Maximize Revenue
for the Razorback Football Program
Robert Shields
Last week I asked this poignant question: Is whatever maximizes profit best for the Razorback football program? The answer was a resounding yes from those who provided feedback.
I fully admit that the strongest argument to move football games out of Little Rock is a financial one, at least in the short term. All other arguments are really nonsense. So let’s maximize those profits. I have a few ideas to do so if the board of trustees ever named me athletic director (and that would be my title).
The first change I would implement is to bring on the black jerseys. As a matter of fact, red should be phased out. There is already a red team in the league and it dominates the Hogs. We look stupid being on the field with them in the same color. I would also incorporate some really dark green into it, and I will explain that in a minute. After a few years when everyone has changed their colors to teal or whatever the bean counters say is selling with the kids, then you can go back to red or another color to boost sales.
Second change: The Razorback has got to go, but not completely. McDonald’s still keeps Ronald, but he’s just pushed back into the background as an equal to Grimace. Several teams have more than one mascot. For instance, somehow Alabama is both an elephant and a tide and Auburn is both a tiger and endangered bird. I say Arkansas should go with a really angry-looking Jolly Green Giant, but he ain’t jolly – he’s pissed and on the juice. Maybe like the Hulk. This is where the dark green comes into the scheme. No team in the SEC is green. It will help with marketing, product differentiation, and as a bonus represents what college athletics is all about. And the bottom line is, for people outside Arkansas it’s just a pig.
Third change to maximize revenue: The band is gone. It wastes money and nobody listens to them. Even if they did, no one and I mean no one can hear them over the jumbotron and I hear it is only going to get louder with the upgrade in time for next season (thanks, donors!). I say we go all jumbotron and cram as many commercials and logos between plays as the poor person working it can make happen.
Fourth change: Since the band won’t be there to form the A for the players to run through before the game starts, the fans form the A but it costs. It actually costs Razorbucks™. It’s my trademark for now.
Fifth change: Any fan interactions with the UA athletic department will be conducted using Razorbucks, except for seating. Though unlawful to print your own currency, Riverfest gets away with it and no one ever tells college athletics no, so I doubt it would be a legal issue. Here’s how it works -- you have to swap out your dollars for Razorbucks like you do at your church carnival. But unlike at church, the exchange rate for Razorbucks is less than kind. There will also be an easier way to get Razorbucks, but that will be explained in a minute.
Sixth change: Since it’s about money, the location of games will actually be auctioned off through an RFP process as required by state law. The UofA will submit its own self-provide option that will be the stalking horse offer. The possibility exists that all future games might be in Shreveport, but I was told good fans will travel anywhere, even those in the northwest corner of the state who would have to make a five-and-half-hour drive eight times a year.
Seventh change: If the UofA wins the bid for hosting the home football games, there will no longer be press credentials given out. Media will have to buy a seat like every other fan. I am told the state’s media will go all out to cover the Razorbacks no matter what, so why not capitalize on this potential customer base. What does media coverage really do for the Razorbacks anyway? Oh, how do you get Razorbucks, you ask? I’ll get to that in a minute.
Eighth change: Your donation is due a year earlier. This will give you an Auction Razorback Right (ARR, the sound the giant makes over the jumbotron when ads are not shown). What is an ARR? Great question. It gives you the right to enter the full-blown auction for seating if the UofA’s self-provide option prevails through the RFP process. The possibility exists that your ARRs may be worthless. It’s just a risk since you’ll have to take since your donation is due before the RFP process. All seating every year will be auctioned off to the highest bidder with their ARRs. Make sure you donate enough because otherwise the crowd may just turn into a weekly shareholders convention. Donations have to be due a year earlier because the possibility exists through the RFP process that no games will be held in Arkansas. I am not sure how Shreveport will handle tickets.
Ninth change: All parking will be auctioned off before tickets are auctioned off using your Razorbucks. This is also an assumed risk – a lottery if you will. You may be buying parking for a game that you do not have tickets for. You will not have the right to resell your parking because scalping would be against the law and it’s to prohibit people from squatting on parking they have no intention of using. There will be a secondary market for parking that is not going to be used after ticket holders are matched with parking owners. This auction will happen the week before the game and be broadcast by the Razorback Sports Network.
Tenth change: When you exit I-540 on game day and leave the interstate, a toll will be taxed on you that will be paid in Razorbucks. The same process will happen when you leave the game to head home (most people attending do not live in Fayetteville and will have to get on the interstate). And don’t think you can backdoor it going the old Pig Trail. There will also be a toll booth in Elkins and Mount Gaylor. The only way to avoid it if you are coming from the south is driving to Bella Vista and turning around, which will allow you to exit in Fayetteville without paying a toll.
Eleventh change: There is no postgame press conference anymore. When games are played in Arkansas, you can get an autograph, picture, or questions answered by any of the players or coach for $500 Razorbucks each. Coach Bobby Petrino costs $1,000 Razorbucks. They will all stay as long as people are paying, and this goes for the media as well – just get in line with your Razorbucks.
Twelfth change: Now the all-important matter of how to get Razorbucks. Being the coin of the realm, Razorbucks are procured by playing a video game through the Razorback website that can be accessed using your Xbox, Playstation, or expensive home computer (sorry, Wii users). The game costs $500 to buy. Then it deducts $20 from your credit card every time you play the game. You get Razorbucks every time your green giant accomplishes a Feat of Strength or AD Challenge, and there are different values put on each accomplishment. This is all online so you’re competing against other fans’ green giants in real time. It’s a way to have family time and get the new youth exposed to the giant in case they are not getting exposure to the program because games have been moved too far away.
Jeff Long, you are welcome. Next week, you get to hear my plans for a Razorback conscription youth work camp.
Send your money-making schemes to help the beleaguered Razorback football program to fromthebench@yahoo.com.
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 15 years. His newest novel, “Daphne and the Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society” is part one in a series. The book is available on Kindle, Nook, Lulu and the iBookstore for $4.99. He is not the mime.
Fruitbatbooks.com
You can follow me on Twitter @rsfromtehbench
Robert Shields
Last week I asked this poignant question: Is whatever maximizes profit best for the Razorback football program? The answer was a resounding yes from those who provided feedback.
I fully admit that the strongest argument to move football games out of Little Rock is a financial one, at least in the short term. All other arguments are really nonsense. So let’s maximize those profits. I have a few ideas to do so if the board of trustees ever named me athletic director (and that would be my title).
The first change I would implement is to bring on the black jerseys. As a matter of fact, red should be phased out. There is already a red team in the league and it dominates the Hogs. We look stupid being on the field with them in the same color. I would also incorporate some really dark green into it, and I will explain that in a minute. After a few years when everyone has changed their colors to teal or whatever the bean counters say is selling with the kids, then you can go back to red or another color to boost sales.
Second change: The Razorback has got to go, but not completely. McDonald’s still keeps Ronald, but he’s just pushed back into the background as an equal to Grimace. Several teams have more than one mascot. For instance, somehow Alabama is both an elephant and a tide and Auburn is both a tiger and endangered bird. I say Arkansas should go with a really angry-looking Jolly Green Giant, but he ain’t jolly – he’s pissed and on the juice. Maybe like the Hulk. This is where the dark green comes into the scheme. No team in the SEC is green. It will help with marketing, product differentiation, and as a bonus represents what college athletics is all about. And the bottom line is, for people outside Arkansas it’s just a pig.
Third change to maximize revenue: The band is gone. It wastes money and nobody listens to them. Even if they did, no one and I mean no one can hear them over the jumbotron and I hear it is only going to get louder with the upgrade in time for next season (thanks, donors!). I say we go all jumbotron and cram as many commercials and logos between plays as the poor person working it can make happen.
Fourth change: Since the band won’t be there to form the A for the players to run through before the game starts, the fans form the A but it costs. It actually costs Razorbucks™. It’s my trademark for now.
Fifth change: Any fan interactions with the UA athletic department will be conducted using Razorbucks, except for seating. Though unlawful to print your own currency, Riverfest gets away with it and no one ever tells college athletics no, so I doubt it would be a legal issue. Here’s how it works -- you have to swap out your dollars for Razorbucks like you do at your church carnival. But unlike at church, the exchange rate for Razorbucks is less than kind. There will also be an easier way to get Razorbucks, but that will be explained in a minute.
Sixth change: Since it’s about money, the location of games will actually be auctioned off through an RFP process as required by state law. The UofA will submit its own self-provide option that will be the stalking horse offer. The possibility exists that all future games might be in Shreveport, but I was told good fans will travel anywhere, even those in the northwest corner of the state who would have to make a five-and-half-hour drive eight times a year.
Seventh change: If the UofA wins the bid for hosting the home football games, there will no longer be press credentials given out. Media will have to buy a seat like every other fan. I am told the state’s media will go all out to cover the Razorbacks no matter what, so why not capitalize on this potential customer base. What does media coverage really do for the Razorbacks anyway? Oh, how do you get Razorbucks, you ask? I’ll get to that in a minute.
Eighth change: Your donation is due a year earlier. This will give you an Auction Razorback Right (ARR, the sound the giant makes over the jumbotron when ads are not shown). What is an ARR? Great question. It gives you the right to enter the full-blown auction for seating if the UofA’s self-provide option prevails through the RFP process. The possibility exists that your ARRs may be worthless. It’s just a risk since you’ll have to take since your donation is due before the RFP process. All seating every year will be auctioned off to the highest bidder with their ARRs. Make sure you donate enough because otherwise the crowd may just turn into a weekly shareholders convention. Donations have to be due a year earlier because the possibility exists through the RFP process that no games will be held in Arkansas. I am not sure how Shreveport will handle tickets.
Ninth change: All parking will be auctioned off before tickets are auctioned off using your Razorbucks. This is also an assumed risk – a lottery if you will. You may be buying parking for a game that you do not have tickets for. You will not have the right to resell your parking because scalping would be against the law and it’s to prohibit people from squatting on parking they have no intention of using. There will be a secondary market for parking that is not going to be used after ticket holders are matched with parking owners. This auction will happen the week before the game and be broadcast by the Razorback Sports Network.
Tenth change: When you exit I-540 on game day and leave the interstate, a toll will be taxed on you that will be paid in Razorbucks. The same process will happen when you leave the game to head home (most people attending do not live in Fayetteville and will have to get on the interstate). And don’t think you can backdoor it going the old Pig Trail. There will also be a toll booth in Elkins and Mount Gaylor. The only way to avoid it if you are coming from the south is driving to Bella Vista and turning around, which will allow you to exit in Fayetteville without paying a toll.
Eleventh change: There is no postgame press conference anymore. When games are played in Arkansas, you can get an autograph, picture, or questions answered by any of the players or coach for $500 Razorbucks each. Coach Bobby Petrino costs $1,000 Razorbucks. They will all stay as long as people are paying, and this goes for the media as well – just get in line with your Razorbucks.
Twelfth change: Now the all-important matter of how to get Razorbucks. Being the coin of the realm, Razorbucks are procured by playing a video game through the Razorback website that can be accessed using your Xbox, Playstation, or expensive home computer (sorry, Wii users). The game costs $500 to buy. Then it deducts $20 from your credit card every time you play the game. You get Razorbucks every time your green giant accomplishes a Feat of Strength or AD Challenge, and there are different values put on each accomplishment. This is all online so you’re competing against other fans’ green giants in real time. It’s a way to have family time and get the new youth exposed to the giant in case they are not getting exposure to the program because games have been moved too far away.
Jeff Long, you are welcome. Next week, you get to hear my plans for a Razorback conscription youth work camp.
Send your money-making schemes to help the beleaguered Razorback football program to fromthebench@yahoo.com.
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 15 years. His newest novel, “Daphne and the Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society” is part one in a series. The book is available on Kindle, Nook, Lulu and the iBookstore for $4.99. He is not the mime.
Fruitbatbooks.com
You can follow me on Twitter @rsfromtehbench
Monday, January 23, 2012
From the Bench
Is Whatever Maximizes Profit Always Best for Razorback Athletics?
Robert Shields
The opinions exploded from Razorback fans after my last column that leveled the charge that the University of Arkansas is planning to move the LSU game out of Little Rock once Jeff Long has collected his RSVP money on the April 1 deadline.
I called this move tantamount to firing the first shot in the Great Stadium Debate II and questioned why Long would even want to wade into those waters that weakened Frank Broyles stature in the state unless it is just step one to reduce the number of games in Little Rock down to one and appease his new RSVP donors in another part of the state.
I heard lots of attacks from those for moving the LSU game (and for playing all games on campus, for that matter), and I will call them attacks instead of arguments as the usual explanation was nothing but vitriolic with little reasoning behind -- proof this is still a very touchy subject in the state.
This is a hot-button issue and it sparks a lot of emotion from Eudora to Walnut Ridge, so why does Long want to take on this issue at a time when the program is prospering?
I will quickly concede that the best argument for those who want every game in Fayetteville is money. It’s a strong argument that the athletic program loses money in short-term thinking by playing in Little Rock. But decisions based purely on money are often the wrong decision on something this emotional.
It’s called greed, and it’s not a virtue, but a vice. I learned on the History Channel that basically all vices can be summed up by that one. Still, the money is a strong argument to move games, but it can be ameliorated by increasing the size of War Memorial, increasing ticket prices, or considering what playing games in Little Rock brings into the program in the long term.
Then this argument goes away, and for those that want all of the games in Fayetteville, it is simply a matter of greed.
The argument that the games need to be on campus would have weight if the previous argument didn’t matter. Since greed rules and apparently some want to run the Program like a whore house, games being played on campus don’t matter, either. It’s whatever maximizes profit.
Don’t forget because of the first argument over money, everything is for sale.
The argument that the Little Rock crowd (and those from the southeastern two-thirds of the state) only wants games in War Memorial Stadium out of convenience is partly true, but I don’t believe it to be the driving factor. Convenience is always a factor, and if it wasn’t I would be in a rock cave sharpening a spear. I have to stop to ask the question was the Michigan basketball game sold out because of people showing up from all parts of the state or only because northwest Arkansas showed up?
So convenience does matter and always has, but I believe those who want the games to stay in Little Rock believe it’s the best for the Program.
Why?
No doubt if games are pulled, there would be an enormous backlash, but the Program would live. The danger of moving games is a long-term gamble that will fail, and Long and Bobby Petrino probably won’t be here to see. As stated last week, the vast majority of Arkansans, and by extrapolation Razorback fans, have never stepped foot on campus. Little Rock provides a venue to showcase the Hogs to the whole state.
If the University of Arkansas abandons its presence in Central Arkansas, it is folly to think that media outside northwest Arkansas will always follow the Razorbacks. The biggest mistake anyone can make is assuming things will always be the same. Stations are driven by ratings, and the moment they think they can get better ratings by covering a high school game, Oaklawn race, or even Arkansas State football as the Gus Malzahn era begins with a bang with one of the best running backs in the country, University of Arkansas sports will be pushed down the list.
If the Razorbacks leave Little Rock, the one team that never wants to play the Hogs will be Arkansas State. Its best course of action would be an insipid one by making gains incrementally and generationally. By playing games with the Razorbacks, ASU would be forcing people to take sides.
As heard on the exciting world of talk radio time and again this year, some people are obviously OK supporting both. This is not good for the UA, and ASU appearing above the fold in the Central Arkansas edition of the statewide paper’s sports section frequently this year is really not good if you’re working in the Broyles Center because it’s only going to get worse with Malzahn.
If the Razorbacks vacate Central Arkansas, does the ASU coverage occur more or less? I’ll let you think about it after I remind you that the Central Arkansas television stations sent crews to cover ASU’s bowl game in Mobile as if they were the Razorbacks or something. And that was without Malzahn.
I just don’t believe the UA over time builds its base by playing in one corner of the state. It seems regressive to withdraw instead of progressive getting out in the state. I truly hope this is only paranoia on my part and Long has always intended to leave the LSU game in Little Rock, but the slow announcement of its location leaves me wondering.
The University of Arkansas has always had broad support in the state Legislature. It’s folly to assume that will always be the case when the Razorbacks leave Little Rock. Things reach their natural angle of repose gradually and over time, not instantly. Don’t think that it can’t slowly happen. There will be unintended and unforeseen consequences of abandoning Little Rock.
The Razorbacks won’t lose a single fan keeping games in Little Rock. I’ll let you think about how many fans it will eventually lose – including those from the generations to come -- if games are removed.
The value of playing in Little Rock for the UA is in the millions. It’s hard to estimate the value of when hotels and a plethora of other businesses put on their marquee or LED display welcoming the Razorbacks to town. It’s like a gift-wrapped and effortless public relations bonanza.
If you’re in the Powers That Be in the northwest quintile, you never want that sign to read “Welcome Red Wolves.”
This November when the Razorbacks play LSU, the signs in Little Rock better read “Welcome Hogs.”
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 15 years. His newest novel, “Daphne and the Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society,” is part one in a series and is available on Kindle, Nook, Lulu, and now the iBookstore for $4.99. He is not the mime.
You can follow me on Twitter @rsfromthebench
end
Robert Shields
The opinions exploded from Razorback fans after my last column that leveled the charge that the University of Arkansas is planning to move the LSU game out of Little Rock once Jeff Long has collected his RSVP money on the April 1 deadline.
I called this move tantamount to firing the first shot in the Great Stadium Debate II and questioned why Long would even want to wade into those waters that weakened Frank Broyles stature in the state unless it is just step one to reduce the number of games in Little Rock down to one and appease his new RSVP donors in another part of the state.
I heard lots of attacks from those for moving the LSU game (and for playing all games on campus, for that matter), and I will call them attacks instead of arguments as the usual explanation was nothing but vitriolic with little reasoning behind -- proof this is still a very touchy subject in the state.
This is a hot-button issue and it sparks a lot of emotion from Eudora to Walnut Ridge, so why does Long want to take on this issue at a time when the program is prospering?
I will quickly concede that the best argument for those who want every game in Fayetteville is money. It’s a strong argument that the athletic program loses money in short-term thinking by playing in Little Rock. But decisions based purely on money are often the wrong decision on something this emotional.
It’s called greed, and it’s not a virtue, but a vice. I learned on the History Channel that basically all vices can be summed up by that one. Still, the money is a strong argument to move games, but it can be ameliorated by increasing the size of War Memorial, increasing ticket prices, or considering what playing games in Little Rock brings into the program in the long term.
Then this argument goes away, and for those that want all of the games in Fayetteville, it is simply a matter of greed.
The argument that the games need to be on campus would have weight if the previous argument didn’t matter. Since greed rules and apparently some want to run the Program like a whore house, games being played on campus don’t matter, either. It’s whatever maximizes profit.
Don’t forget because of the first argument over money, everything is for sale.
The argument that the Little Rock crowd (and those from the southeastern two-thirds of the state) only wants games in War Memorial Stadium out of convenience is partly true, but I don’t believe it to be the driving factor. Convenience is always a factor, and if it wasn’t I would be in a rock cave sharpening a spear. I have to stop to ask the question was the Michigan basketball game sold out because of people showing up from all parts of the state or only because northwest Arkansas showed up?
So convenience does matter and always has, but I believe those who want the games to stay in Little Rock believe it’s the best for the Program.
Why?
No doubt if games are pulled, there would be an enormous backlash, but the Program would live. The danger of moving games is a long-term gamble that will fail, and Long and Bobby Petrino probably won’t be here to see. As stated last week, the vast majority of Arkansans, and by extrapolation Razorback fans, have never stepped foot on campus. Little Rock provides a venue to showcase the Hogs to the whole state.
If the University of Arkansas abandons its presence in Central Arkansas, it is folly to think that media outside northwest Arkansas will always follow the Razorbacks. The biggest mistake anyone can make is assuming things will always be the same. Stations are driven by ratings, and the moment they think they can get better ratings by covering a high school game, Oaklawn race, or even Arkansas State football as the Gus Malzahn era begins with a bang with one of the best running backs in the country, University of Arkansas sports will be pushed down the list.
If the Razorbacks leave Little Rock, the one team that never wants to play the Hogs will be Arkansas State. Its best course of action would be an insipid one by making gains incrementally and generationally. By playing games with the Razorbacks, ASU would be forcing people to take sides.
As heard on the exciting world of talk radio time and again this year, some people are obviously OK supporting both. This is not good for the UA, and ASU appearing above the fold in the Central Arkansas edition of the statewide paper’s sports section frequently this year is really not good if you’re working in the Broyles Center because it’s only going to get worse with Malzahn.
If the Razorbacks vacate Central Arkansas, does the ASU coverage occur more or less? I’ll let you think about it after I remind you that the Central Arkansas television stations sent crews to cover ASU’s bowl game in Mobile as if they were the Razorbacks or something. And that was without Malzahn.
I just don’t believe the UA over time builds its base by playing in one corner of the state. It seems regressive to withdraw instead of progressive getting out in the state. I truly hope this is only paranoia on my part and Long has always intended to leave the LSU game in Little Rock, but the slow announcement of its location leaves me wondering.
The University of Arkansas has always had broad support in the state Legislature. It’s folly to assume that will always be the case when the Razorbacks leave Little Rock. Things reach their natural angle of repose gradually and over time, not instantly. Don’t think that it can’t slowly happen. There will be unintended and unforeseen consequences of abandoning Little Rock.
The Razorbacks won’t lose a single fan keeping games in Little Rock. I’ll let you think about how many fans it will eventually lose – including those from the generations to come -- if games are removed.
The value of playing in Little Rock for the UA is in the millions. It’s hard to estimate the value of when hotels and a plethora of other businesses put on their marquee or LED display welcoming the Razorbacks to town. It’s like a gift-wrapped and effortless public relations bonanza.
If you’re in the Powers That Be in the northwest quintile, you never want that sign to read “Welcome Red Wolves.”
This November when the Razorbacks play LSU, the signs in Little Rock better read “Welcome Hogs.”
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 15 years. His newest novel, “Daphne and the Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society,” is part one in a series and is available on Kindle, Nook, Lulu, and now the iBookstore for $4.99. He is not the mime.
You can follow me on Twitter @rsfromthebench
end
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
From the Bench
Moving LSU Game Will Be First Shot in Great Stadium Debate II
Robert Shields
The Middle East had its Arab Spring, the United States had its Occupy movement, and I guess the University of Arkansas athletic department did not want to be left out of the upheaval as rumors have been ripe about the possibility of the LSU game being ripped out of Little Rock and moved to Fayetteville.
You may have missed it, but when the UA released the 2012 football schedule a few weeks ago, it listed “TBA” in the location column for all home games. I can understand time and television coverage being “TBA,” but location? What’s to figure out unless you just want to wait until the donations come in to announce a controversial change that is going to upset half of the state.
It has become tradition that the LSU game after Thanksgiving has been played at War Memorial Stadium when it is Arkansas’ turn to host. Why anyone in the UA athletic department would want to raise the dead specter of the Great Stadium Debate at this point after just launching a new fund-gauging drive is beyond me. If athletic director Jeff Long is paying attention, then he knows that Frank Broyles’ standing in the state never fully recovered from his foray into the initial Great Stadium Debate.
The chant you hear from some is that all other schools play their home games on campus. This, first, is complete nonsense as many teams play home games in other venues outside campus. It is a great way to make more money and increase your programs exposure. Secondly, even if that were true, Arkansas is not like any other program. If it were, it would be playing its in-state rival of ASU.
Moving the LSU game is tantamount firing of the first shot in the Great Stadium Debate II. It can be no other way. Again, why Jeff Long wants to take up the explosive issue is beyond me. No benefits will be worth the cost.
Bobby Petrino -- who gets whatever he wants at the UA, and remember that when a game is moved out -- will start his fifth season without ever losing in Little Rock. Since 1998, the Razorbacks are 29-2 (94 percent) in that stadium and have only lost two SEC games in those 14 years. You won’t find any stadium over the same period that even comes close to matching that record. We are only one year removed from the Hogs beating LSU in Little Rock to earn the Sugar Bowl invitation, if you remember.
Lou Holtz while at South Carolina and Nick Saban while at LSU both lamented how their teams had to play in Little Rock and posed the question why other teams did not ever have to make that journey. It is that kind of home-field advantage that it draws complaints of an unfair advantage from two legends of the coaching world.
Why would Long want to wade into these waters? If the LSU game is moved to Fayetteville next season and the Razorbacks lose that game, woe to the athletic director or whatever his two high-brow titles are. No doubt it will be an important game and to put that in Fayetteville to test those waters when the students are home and others want to stay closer to family is insane.
Since 1969, the venue in Fayetteville has been littered with crucial big-game losses. I will concede that it’s getting better at Razorback Stadium as the football team won its first top 10 matchup since the ‘60s in the stadium against South Carolina this year.
Anyone who thinks this is just about an oblong ball being snapped on ugly artificial turf has not been paying attention or is new to Arkansas. Razorback football, for better or worse, is woven into the fabric of the state like few other places as it enters culture, politics, and even religion.
The Great Stadium Debate is about a lot more than football, and if you don’t get that you’re almost certainly on the side that wants to move all games back to Fayetteville and there is a great probability you were not born here.
The great support the Razorbacks share across the entire state is not by accident, but with purpose that began in 1906 when F.C. Longman brought his Cardinals to Little Rock to play Southeast Missouri State. Arkansas won that game 12-10, one of only two wins the entire season. It most certainly would have been a one-win season had someone not gotten the grand idea to play in Little Rock.
Did you know playing the LSU series in Little Rock actually dates back to 1907? Even back then when the UA was only playing one game a year in Central Arkansas, someone knew that if they wanted to beat LSU they needed to put it in the best place for the entire state to watch.
In 1936, Arkansas won its first Southwest Conference championship, thanks to, you guessed it, a win over Texas in Little Rock.
From those early days, Arkansas had so much success playing one game a year in Little Rock that in 1948 John Barnhill had the bright idea to play at least three games there each season in order to take the program to the next level and garner true statewide support because the program could not thrive on the small following exclusively in northwest Arkansas.
The rest is history. But now thanks to a crowd made up largely of interests who did not grow up with this history, the book is going to be re-written for the next generation.
A large percentage of fans across the state who support the Razorbacks today probably have never stepped foot on the campus. The people of Arkansas have experienced what it is to be a Razorback thanks to games being played in Little Rock. It is crazy to forget that, especially for people like the athletic director and head football coach who do not have a life-long commitment to what they will leave behind.
If you hear one of these new jacks in favor of moving games to Fayetteville start an argument with “If you are a true fan…” stop them right there and slap them. It’s a non sequitor they are trying to trap you with.
You owe the University of Arkansas athletic program nothing as a fan. The UA owes you. And don’t let anyone define how you are supposed to be in order to be a “true” fan. Anything fans bestow upon a program is a luxury, not a right of that program. Never forget that fact. Seems like maybe they have in the Broyles Center.
What’s next, moving a game out of Little Rock to leave historic War Memorial Stadium with only one a year?
Send your argument to move the game to fromthebench@yahoo.com for a free retort.
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 14 years. His newest novel, “Daphne and The Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society” is part one in the series. The book is available on Kindle, the nook, and Lulu for $4.99. You can find these at fruitbatbooks.com. He is not the mime.
end
Robert Shields
The Middle East had its Arab Spring, the United States had its Occupy movement, and I guess the University of Arkansas athletic department did not want to be left out of the upheaval as rumors have been ripe about the possibility of the LSU game being ripped out of Little Rock and moved to Fayetteville.
You may have missed it, but when the UA released the 2012 football schedule a few weeks ago, it listed “TBA” in the location column for all home games. I can understand time and television coverage being “TBA,” but location? What’s to figure out unless you just want to wait until the donations come in to announce a controversial change that is going to upset half of the state.
It has become tradition that the LSU game after Thanksgiving has been played at War Memorial Stadium when it is Arkansas’ turn to host. Why anyone in the UA athletic department would want to raise the dead specter of the Great Stadium Debate at this point after just launching a new fund-gauging drive is beyond me. If athletic director Jeff Long is paying attention, then he knows that Frank Broyles’ standing in the state never fully recovered from his foray into the initial Great Stadium Debate.
The chant you hear from some is that all other schools play their home games on campus. This, first, is complete nonsense as many teams play home games in other venues outside campus. It is a great way to make more money and increase your programs exposure. Secondly, even if that were true, Arkansas is not like any other program. If it were, it would be playing its in-state rival of ASU.
Moving the LSU game is tantamount firing of the first shot in the Great Stadium Debate II. It can be no other way. Again, why Jeff Long wants to take up the explosive issue is beyond me. No benefits will be worth the cost.
Bobby Petrino -- who gets whatever he wants at the UA, and remember that when a game is moved out -- will start his fifth season without ever losing in Little Rock. Since 1998, the Razorbacks are 29-2 (94 percent) in that stadium and have only lost two SEC games in those 14 years. You won’t find any stadium over the same period that even comes close to matching that record. We are only one year removed from the Hogs beating LSU in Little Rock to earn the Sugar Bowl invitation, if you remember.
Lou Holtz while at South Carolina and Nick Saban while at LSU both lamented how their teams had to play in Little Rock and posed the question why other teams did not ever have to make that journey. It is that kind of home-field advantage that it draws complaints of an unfair advantage from two legends of the coaching world.
Why would Long want to wade into these waters? If the LSU game is moved to Fayetteville next season and the Razorbacks lose that game, woe to the athletic director or whatever his two high-brow titles are. No doubt it will be an important game and to put that in Fayetteville to test those waters when the students are home and others want to stay closer to family is insane.
Since 1969, the venue in Fayetteville has been littered with crucial big-game losses. I will concede that it’s getting better at Razorback Stadium as the football team won its first top 10 matchup since the ‘60s in the stadium against South Carolina this year.
Anyone who thinks this is just about an oblong ball being snapped on ugly artificial turf has not been paying attention or is new to Arkansas. Razorback football, for better or worse, is woven into the fabric of the state like few other places as it enters culture, politics, and even religion.
The Great Stadium Debate is about a lot more than football, and if you don’t get that you’re almost certainly on the side that wants to move all games back to Fayetteville and there is a great probability you were not born here.
The great support the Razorbacks share across the entire state is not by accident, but with purpose that began in 1906 when F.C. Longman brought his Cardinals to Little Rock to play Southeast Missouri State. Arkansas won that game 12-10, one of only two wins the entire season. It most certainly would have been a one-win season had someone not gotten the grand idea to play in Little Rock.
Did you know playing the LSU series in Little Rock actually dates back to 1907? Even back then when the UA was only playing one game a year in Central Arkansas, someone knew that if they wanted to beat LSU they needed to put it in the best place for the entire state to watch.
In 1936, Arkansas won its first Southwest Conference championship, thanks to, you guessed it, a win over Texas in Little Rock.
From those early days, Arkansas had so much success playing one game a year in Little Rock that in 1948 John Barnhill had the bright idea to play at least three games there each season in order to take the program to the next level and garner true statewide support because the program could not thrive on the small following exclusively in northwest Arkansas.
The rest is history. But now thanks to a crowd made up largely of interests who did not grow up with this history, the book is going to be re-written for the next generation.
A large percentage of fans across the state who support the Razorbacks today probably have never stepped foot on the campus. The people of Arkansas have experienced what it is to be a Razorback thanks to games being played in Little Rock. It is crazy to forget that, especially for people like the athletic director and head football coach who do not have a life-long commitment to what they will leave behind.
If you hear one of these new jacks in favor of moving games to Fayetteville start an argument with “If you are a true fan…” stop them right there and slap them. It’s a non sequitor they are trying to trap you with.
You owe the University of Arkansas athletic program nothing as a fan. The UA owes you. And don’t let anyone define how you are supposed to be in order to be a “true” fan. Anything fans bestow upon a program is a luxury, not a right of that program. Never forget that fact. Seems like maybe they have in the Broyles Center.
What’s next, moving a game out of Little Rock to leave historic War Memorial Stadium with only one a year?
Send your argument to move the game to fromthebench@yahoo.com for a free retort.
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 14 years. His newest novel, “Daphne and The Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society” is part one in the series. The book is available on Kindle, the nook, and Lulu for $4.99. You can find these at fruitbatbooks.com. He is not the mime.
end
Monday, January 09, 2012
From the Bench
SEC Was the Story of the Year in College Football
Robert Shields
This season was the year for the SEC -- even for the Arkansas Razorbacks. The AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic win over No. 8 Kansas State ran Arkansas’ bowl winning streak to three when you include the victory over NCAA-aided cheat Ohio State. So, Kevin Trainor, go ahead and start counting these other cheaters from previous seasons such as USC and Alabama as vacated wins.
The SEC went 5-2 in bowl games this year not including the Allstate BCS National Championship Game, and I don’t know how to count it other than to say the SEC wins regardless. So, I’m going to count it as a 7-2 bowl season, which is amazing considering all SEC teams had to play up a bowl because the two best teams in the SEC are in the BCS championship game.
It was quite a year for the SEC. In fact, it even stole two very good athletic programs from the Big 12. Texas A&M and Missouri left for the rich money fields and in doing so made a decision that it really doesn’t matter if you win, rather “It’s all about the Hamilton’s baby." The Big Ten and Pac 12 were only good enough to steal one from the Big 12 -- the SEC doubled their efforts.
The magic of the SEC even helped A&M and Missouri as they both won their bowl games running the unofficial From the Bench total for the SEC to 9-2 in bowl games. The two losses were by Vanderbilt, which nobody really takes seriously in the SEC except to want them on the schedule rotation.
I heard all bowl season about how there was no defense in any of those games. It’s true if you exclude SEC teams, but false otherwise. The SEC teams played defense in their bowl games. Every SEC team that won did not allow more than 20 points scored. OK, that’s also not true because Auburn allowed Virginia to score 24, but it was a blowout anyway as Auburn almost doubled Virginia’s score.
The two SEC teams that lost allowed their opponents to score 30 or more. Georgia lost it in overtime thanks to panic by its coach. With a little more than a minute left in that game, Georgia had held Michigan State to 20 points. Vanderbilt allowed its opponent, Big East co-champion Cincinnati, 31 points and probably would have won if it had it not allowed a kickoff return.
Meanwhile the Razorback defense destroyed its bowl opponent. It was the best the Arkansas defense looked all year. It knocked Calvin Kleine -- or at least that is probably what he thought his name was -- from sideline to sideline. He got up one time after being hit with that look of “what was that?”
Some outlets in Kansas State country claimed that the Wildcats had not seen that kind of defensive speed all season. You -think. Make no mistake, the Razorback defense dominated the game and won it as the offense squandered opportunity after opportunity. It made little difference as Kansas State’s offense only engineered one real touchdown drive the entire game.
In most games if you make five trips inside your opponent’s 40-yard line and only coming away with nine points, you’re probably going to lose. In two of those trips, the Hogs moved inside the 10 with one of those reaching the 2-yard line. It made no difference as the Razorback defense really only allowed seven points all night.
You can’t blame the defense for the two points returned on an extra point by Kansas State nor the offense setting up K-State at the 13-yard line after a quarterback fumble.
The SEC plays defense, and other leagues will continue to struggle against them until they change their ways. The old adage, and it continues to be true, is that you win games with defense. The SEC does as did the Hogs in their bowl game. Other leagues may offer a more exciting brand of football if you like arena-league style of play. I don’t know what sport that was in that Baylor bowl game, but it looked like something Pulaski Academy does during the summer in 7-on-7 tournaments.
It’s hard to win when you don’t score. The SEC had an incredible season as it rode this crest in its history all the way to the end with two of its schools playing for the national championship. Arkansas got to be part of that history as the three best teams in the country played in the SEC West. The Hogs were just third. The Razorbacks rode this crest with their conference and brought a much-needed bowl win home, which has been so difficult in the past.
-
40 Minutes of Hell Yeah
I would be remiss not to mention Mike Anderson. It’s incredible what he is doing with this team that to be honest is very lacking in player personnel. Yet he is turning it into a real team and he is doing it the right way winning at home. It’s where you start. He will lose when he goes on the road, but he’s doing it right by making it tough on everyone else when they go on the road to come to our house. I believe the days of Coastal Carolina busing over to Bud Walton and beating the Razorbacks are done.
Send your experiences and photos from the Cotton Bowl to fromthebench@yahoo.com for my Facebook collage.
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 14 years. His newest novel, “Daphne and The Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society” is part one in the series. The book is available on Kindle, the nook, and Lulu for $4.99. He is not the mime.
end
Robert Shields
This season was the year for the SEC -- even for the Arkansas Razorbacks. The AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic win over No. 8 Kansas State ran Arkansas’ bowl winning streak to three when you include the victory over NCAA-aided cheat Ohio State. So, Kevin Trainor, go ahead and start counting these other cheaters from previous seasons such as USC and Alabama as vacated wins.
The SEC went 5-2 in bowl games this year not including the Allstate BCS National Championship Game, and I don’t know how to count it other than to say the SEC wins regardless. So, I’m going to count it as a 7-2 bowl season, which is amazing considering all SEC teams had to play up a bowl because the two best teams in the SEC are in the BCS championship game.
It was quite a year for the SEC. In fact, it even stole two very good athletic programs from the Big 12. Texas A&M and Missouri left for the rich money fields and in doing so made a decision that it really doesn’t matter if you win, rather “It’s all about the Hamilton’s baby." The Big Ten and Pac 12 were only good enough to steal one from the Big 12 -- the SEC doubled their efforts.
The magic of the SEC even helped A&M and Missouri as they both won their bowl games running the unofficial From the Bench total for the SEC to 9-2 in bowl games. The two losses were by Vanderbilt, which nobody really takes seriously in the SEC except to want them on the schedule rotation.
I heard all bowl season about how there was no defense in any of those games. It’s true if you exclude SEC teams, but false otherwise. The SEC teams played defense in their bowl games. Every SEC team that won did not allow more than 20 points scored. OK, that’s also not true because Auburn allowed Virginia to score 24, but it was a blowout anyway as Auburn almost doubled Virginia’s score.
The two SEC teams that lost allowed their opponents to score 30 or more. Georgia lost it in overtime thanks to panic by its coach. With a little more than a minute left in that game, Georgia had held Michigan State to 20 points. Vanderbilt allowed its opponent, Big East co-champion Cincinnati, 31 points and probably would have won if it had it not allowed a kickoff return.
Meanwhile the Razorback defense destroyed its bowl opponent. It was the best the Arkansas defense looked all year. It knocked Calvin Kleine -- or at least that is probably what he thought his name was -- from sideline to sideline. He got up one time after being hit with that look of “what was that?”
Some outlets in Kansas State country claimed that the Wildcats had not seen that kind of defensive speed all season. You -think. Make no mistake, the Razorback defense dominated the game and won it as the offense squandered opportunity after opportunity. It made little difference as Kansas State’s offense only engineered one real touchdown drive the entire game.
In most games if you make five trips inside your opponent’s 40-yard line and only coming away with nine points, you’re probably going to lose. In two of those trips, the Hogs moved inside the 10 with one of those reaching the 2-yard line. It made no difference as the Razorback defense really only allowed seven points all night.
You can’t blame the defense for the two points returned on an extra point by Kansas State nor the offense setting up K-State at the 13-yard line after a quarterback fumble.
The SEC plays defense, and other leagues will continue to struggle against them until they change their ways. The old adage, and it continues to be true, is that you win games with defense. The SEC does as did the Hogs in their bowl game. Other leagues may offer a more exciting brand of football if you like arena-league style of play. I don’t know what sport that was in that Baylor bowl game, but it looked like something Pulaski Academy does during the summer in 7-on-7 tournaments.
It’s hard to win when you don’t score. The SEC had an incredible season as it rode this crest in its history all the way to the end with two of its schools playing for the national championship. Arkansas got to be part of that history as the three best teams in the country played in the SEC West. The Hogs were just third. The Razorbacks rode this crest with their conference and brought a much-needed bowl win home, which has been so difficult in the past.
-
40 Minutes of Hell Yeah
I would be remiss not to mention Mike Anderson. It’s incredible what he is doing with this team that to be honest is very lacking in player personnel. Yet he is turning it into a real team and he is doing it the right way winning at home. It’s where you start. He will lose when he goes on the road, but he’s doing it right by making it tough on everyone else when they go on the road to come to our house. I believe the days of Coastal Carolina busing over to Bud Walton and beating the Razorbacks are done.
Send your experiences and photos from the Cotton Bowl to fromthebench@yahoo.com for my Facebook collage.
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 14 years. His newest novel, “Daphne and The Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society” is part one in the series. The book is available on Kindle, the nook, and Lulu for $4.99. He is not the mime.
end
Sunday, January 08, 2012
Giveaway - Daphne
Do you own a Kindle, nook, iPad or any e-reader and would you like a free book then register in the below giveaway:
Fruitbat Books is hosting a giveaway of an epub version of Daphne and The Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society each week in January. The winner will be drawn from the entrants each week. To enter, all you have to do is send an e-mail to fruitbatbooks (at) yahoo (dot) com that you want to be registered in the drawing for the book but please put in the subject line of your e-mail “Book Giveaway.” You will be notified if you are the winner. It’s just that simple.
(Your privacy is important and your e-mail will not be kept, stored, sold, used or solicited in anyway and your message will be deleted at the end of the weekly contest.)
Fruitbat Books is hosting a giveaway of an epub version of Daphne and The Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society each week in January. The winner will be drawn from the entrants each week. To enter, all you have to do is send an e-mail to fruitbatbooks (at) yahoo (dot) com that you want to be registered in the drawing for the book but please put in the subject line of your e-mail “Book Giveaway.” You will be notified if you are the winner. It’s just that simple.
(Your privacy is important and your e-mail will not be kept, stored, sold, used or solicited in anyway and your message will be deleted at the end of the weekly contest.)
Tuesday, January 03, 2012
From the Bench
Bowls Not Kind to Razorbacks and May Not Be Again in Cotton Bowl
Robert Shields
Last week, Jim Harris at Arkansas Sports 360 did a great column on Razorback football bowl history. It was an excellent read and suggested reading for any fan. Needless to say, Arkansas’ bowl history has been very bad and its winning percentage hangs around one win for every two loses.
Harris pointed out that when Lou Holtz left the Razorbacks were close to .500 in bowls, which is what should happen statistically considering in bowl games teams are theoretically evenly matched up. Bowl officials want good games not blowouts.
One problem for Arkansas is that ever since moving to the SEC, if you make it to a bowl game it’s typically a good one against a very good opponent -- the exception being two years ago when the Razorbacks drew East Carolina in the Liberty Bowl. But anyone having done a little research into that game and the Pirates that season would have known it was not going to be an easy game.
The SEC often puts a team into the BCS championship game, which shifts every team up a bowl slot, again meaning you’re having to play up. I think this hurts Arkansas in bowl games.
It’s not uncommon for an SEC team to make a bowl game with six wins and have to play a team with eight or nine wins. Vanderbilt faced such a situation this year. Vanderbilt, probably the weakest SEC team to make a bowl game with six wins, had to battle the Big East co-champion that had nine wins. Vanderbilt almost pulled off the upset. Again, I said it was Vanderbilt.
Arkansas should win Friday in the Cotton Bowl against Kansas State, but anyone who knows the Hogs’ bowl history knows it won’t be easy.
Even in that cold Liberty Bowl previously mentioned, the Arkansas had to have a lot of luck as the East Carolina kicker kept bailing out the Hogs with missed opportunities. Conversely, Arkansas did everything they possibly could to beat themselves against Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl last year.
Ohio State has since had to officially vacate the win and still does not have a victory over an SEC team including their loss to Florida this year. Penalties were leveled against Ohio State, and in my mind Arkansas needs to count it as a win in the record book.
Ohio State clearly played players who should not have taken the field in that game. Everyone knew it yet it still happened. Such is the fate of the Razorbacks when it comes to bowl games.
If they can have some luck, especially in the kicking game, Arkansas could put up big numbers. But the Razorback bowl history tells me differently. In bowl games since Holtz, Arkansas will typically have uncharacteristic turnovers, penalties, and often do not look like the team that played through the regular season.
You can count on these facts. The Kansas State game probably will not be easy. Kansas State is ranked No. 8 for a reason. The Wildcats were the second-best team in the Big Texas conference behind Oklahoma State, which just barely escaped against the Wildcats. Kansas State will be a well-coached team that probably won’t make mistakes, which is why the Razorbacks can’t make any. Bill Snyder will have his team ready. The Razorbacks had to come back against Texas A&M and at times A&M looked like the superior team. Kansas State had to come back and beat A&M in overtime, by the way, if you like comparing opponents.
Kansas State will have a very physical offensive line. The Razorback defense struggled against a similar type of offensive line in its last game of the season. Kansas State’s quarterback is not Tim Tebow or even Matt Jones, but he is a similar type of hammer at quarterback meaning he will be able to pick up the tough yard for first downs and keep drives alive.
The Razorbacks will need a big day out of its explosive and experienced receiving corps. It’s also time for them to step up in their last big game. In its two games against top opponents, this receiving group tended to fade away in those big games. They will need to make the catches and the plays.
The Kansas State defense will without doubt bring lots of pressure, so these key matchups with the Razorback receivers against the Wildcat defense will be so important. The Hogs must have a big game from them. This Kansas State team is probably the most SEC-like team from the Big Texas conference.
It also disturbs me more and more that the Razorbacks enter the game without its two coordinators. In the Liberty Bowl, Arkansas entered without its offensive coordinator, Paul Petrino. The offense struggled all day. You have to hope that does not repeat itself in this bowl game.
I believe Arkansas to be the superior team, but if history is any indication, then it will be a fight to the end.
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 14 years. His newest novel, “Daphne and The Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society” is part one in the series. The book is available on Kindle, the nook, and Lulu for $4.99. He is not the mime who wrote “Cats, Fish & Fools.”
You can follow me on twitter @rsfromthebench
end
Robert Shields
Last week, Jim Harris at Arkansas Sports 360 did a great column on Razorback football bowl history. It was an excellent read and suggested reading for any fan. Needless to say, Arkansas’ bowl history has been very bad and its winning percentage hangs around one win for every two loses.
Harris pointed out that when Lou Holtz left the Razorbacks were close to .500 in bowls, which is what should happen statistically considering in bowl games teams are theoretically evenly matched up. Bowl officials want good games not blowouts.
One problem for Arkansas is that ever since moving to the SEC, if you make it to a bowl game it’s typically a good one against a very good opponent -- the exception being two years ago when the Razorbacks drew East Carolina in the Liberty Bowl. But anyone having done a little research into that game and the Pirates that season would have known it was not going to be an easy game.
The SEC often puts a team into the BCS championship game, which shifts every team up a bowl slot, again meaning you’re having to play up. I think this hurts Arkansas in bowl games.
It’s not uncommon for an SEC team to make a bowl game with six wins and have to play a team with eight or nine wins. Vanderbilt faced such a situation this year. Vanderbilt, probably the weakest SEC team to make a bowl game with six wins, had to battle the Big East co-champion that had nine wins. Vanderbilt almost pulled off the upset. Again, I said it was Vanderbilt.
Arkansas should win Friday in the Cotton Bowl against Kansas State, but anyone who knows the Hogs’ bowl history knows it won’t be easy.
Even in that cold Liberty Bowl previously mentioned, the Arkansas had to have a lot of luck as the East Carolina kicker kept bailing out the Hogs with missed opportunities. Conversely, Arkansas did everything they possibly could to beat themselves against Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl last year.
Ohio State has since had to officially vacate the win and still does not have a victory over an SEC team including their loss to Florida this year. Penalties were leveled against Ohio State, and in my mind Arkansas needs to count it as a win in the record book.
Ohio State clearly played players who should not have taken the field in that game. Everyone knew it yet it still happened. Such is the fate of the Razorbacks when it comes to bowl games.
If they can have some luck, especially in the kicking game, Arkansas could put up big numbers. But the Razorback bowl history tells me differently. In bowl games since Holtz, Arkansas will typically have uncharacteristic turnovers, penalties, and often do not look like the team that played through the regular season.
You can count on these facts. The Kansas State game probably will not be easy. Kansas State is ranked No. 8 for a reason. The Wildcats were the second-best team in the Big Texas conference behind Oklahoma State, which just barely escaped against the Wildcats. Kansas State will be a well-coached team that probably won’t make mistakes, which is why the Razorbacks can’t make any. Bill Snyder will have his team ready. The Razorbacks had to come back against Texas A&M and at times A&M looked like the superior team. Kansas State had to come back and beat A&M in overtime, by the way, if you like comparing opponents.
Kansas State will have a very physical offensive line. The Razorback defense struggled against a similar type of offensive line in its last game of the season. Kansas State’s quarterback is not Tim Tebow or even Matt Jones, but he is a similar type of hammer at quarterback meaning he will be able to pick up the tough yard for first downs and keep drives alive.
The Razorbacks will need a big day out of its explosive and experienced receiving corps. It’s also time for them to step up in their last big game. In its two games against top opponents, this receiving group tended to fade away in those big games. They will need to make the catches and the plays.
The Kansas State defense will without doubt bring lots of pressure, so these key matchups with the Razorback receivers against the Wildcat defense will be so important. The Hogs must have a big game from them. This Kansas State team is probably the most SEC-like team from the Big Texas conference.
It also disturbs me more and more that the Razorbacks enter the game without its two coordinators. In the Liberty Bowl, Arkansas entered without its offensive coordinator, Paul Petrino. The offense struggled all day. You have to hope that does not repeat itself in this bowl game.
I believe Arkansas to be the superior team, but if history is any indication, then it will be a fight to the end.
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 14 years. His newest novel, “Daphne and The Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society” is part one in the series. The book is available on Kindle, the nook, and Lulu for $4.99. He is not the mime who wrote “Cats, Fish & Fools.”
You can follow me on twitter @rsfromthebench
end
Thursday, December 22, 2011
From the Bench
From the Bench Quiz Time!
Robert T. Shields
Who likes trivia? I know I do. Test your sports knowledge with this From the Bench quiz.
The most important accomplishment for this year’s Razorback football team was?
A) Getting Troy on the schedule
B) Driving a car without getting arrested
C) Making cards big enough to cover Petrino’s entire mouth on the sideline
D) Winning 10 games two years in a row for the first time since 1988-89
From the Bench’s most covered topic this season was?
A) Books by me
B) My trip to the Flora-Bama Lounge
C) The sociological impact of Sponge Bob
D) Who is Robert Shields?
From the Bench is afraid of?
A) Gimmick infringement
B) Someone besides an SEC team winning the national title if such a thing exists
C) Drunk Auburn fans
D) The other Robert Shields who is the mime
Kansas State used to drive Eddie Sutton’s basketball team crazy with what defense?
A) 2-3 zone
B) 2-1-2 zone
C) 1-3-1 zone
D) Keep fouling Darrell Walker until he loses it
Where do I keep my certificate for being the UA’s “Outstanding Student in Economics”?
A) Under my desk
B) On my wall
C) I didn’t really win the award
D) In a box in my garage next to the lawn mower
What player did not play for Kansas State’s basketball team?
A) Mitch Richmond
B) Rolando Blackmon
C) Michael Beasley
D) Robert Shields
Kansas State went undefeated through its regular season in 1998. Its marquee matchup against what team upstaged the undefeated matchup between Arkansas and Tennessee that same year?
A) Nebraska
B) Oklahoma
C) Texas
D) Kansas in basketball
Kansas State went to the Big 12 Championship in 1998 but lost to what team?
A) Texas A&M
B) Nebraska
C) Oklahoma
D) The team of bowl executives who did not want them in the BCS
Who was the MVP of the 2000 Cotton Bowl?
A) Roy Kramer
B) Gus Malzahn
C) Cedric Cobbs
D) Nobody is a valuable player at 10 a.m.
Merry Christmas from fromthbench@yahoo.com
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 14 years. His newest novel, “Daphne and The Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society” is part one in the series. The book is available on Kindle, the Barnes and Noble nook, and Lulu for $4.99.
end
Robert T. Shields
Who likes trivia? I know I do. Test your sports knowledge with this From the Bench quiz.
The most important accomplishment for this year’s Razorback football team was?
A) Getting Troy on the schedule
B) Driving a car without getting arrested
C) Making cards big enough to cover Petrino’s entire mouth on the sideline
D) Winning 10 games two years in a row for the first time since 1988-89
From the Bench’s most covered topic this season was?
A) Books by me
B) My trip to the Flora-Bama Lounge
C) The sociological impact of Sponge Bob
D) Who is Robert Shields?
From the Bench is afraid of?
A) Gimmick infringement
B) Someone besides an SEC team winning the national title if such a thing exists
C) Drunk Auburn fans
D) The other Robert Shields who is the mime
Kansas State used to drive Eddie Sutton’s basketball team crazy with what defense?
A) 2-3 zone
B) 2-1-2 zone
C) 1-3-1 zone
D) Keep fouling Darrell Walker until he loses it
Where do I keep my certificate for being the UA’s “Outstanding Student in Economics”?
A) Under my desk
B) On my wall
C) I didn’t really win the award
D) In a box in my garage next to the lawn mower
What player did not play for Kansas State’s basketball team?
A) Mitch Richmond
B) Rolando Blackmon
C) Michael Beasley
D) Robert Shields
Kansas State went undefeated through its regular season in 1998. Its marquee matchup against what team upstaged the undefeated matchup between Arkansas and Tennessee that same year?
A) Nebraska
B) Oklahoma
C) Texas
D) Kansas in basketball
Kansas State went to the Big 12 Championship in 1998 but lost to what team?
A) Texas A&M
B) Nebraska
C) Oklahoma
D) The team of bowl executives who did not want them in the BCS
Who was the MVP of the 2000 Cotton Bowl?
A) Roy Kramer
B) Gus Malzahn
C) Cedric Cobbs
D) Nobody is a valuable player at 10 a.m.
Merry Christmas from fromthbench@yahoo.com
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 14 years. His newest novel, “Daphne and The Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society” is part one in the series. The book is available on Kindle, the Barnes and Noble nook, and Lulu for $4.99.
end
Monday, December 19, 2011
From the Bench
Razorback Defense Set the Tone in Best Moments of the Year
Robert Shields
For the Razorback football team and its fans, it was a fantastic year -- the Hogs went 10-2 with both losses coming to the team ranked No. 1 at the time.
You would think the most important moment of the season might have come in one of those games against Alabama and LSU, but my nomination for the biggest moment was when Vanderbilt missed its field goal to tie the game and instead lost 31-28. In overtime, Arkansas probably wins, but we don’t know. If the Razorbacks had lost that game, suddenly we are talking about a season that would have been extremely disappointing. The win was a reminder of just how difficult it can be to win on the road in the SEC.
The runner-up for most important moment was at Oxford against Ole Miss when Tramain Thomas intercepted a pass to end the game. Arkansas struggled all day against the Rebels and had to come back from being down double digits. Houston Nutt pulled out all the stops, and in the end his team almost came up with a miracle comeback after a successful onside kick. Ole Miss was driving for the game-winning touchdown when Thomas came up with the game-saving and season-saving interception that again proved life on the road in the SEC is tough. There is no telling where the Hogs go if they had actually lost this game.
Honorable mention for most important moment was in Dallas against Texas A&M after the Razorbacks fell down by 18 points at 35-17. Arkansas stormed back in the second half to take the lead. A&M leveled one last challenge as it began its game-winning drive, which stalled and came down to a fourth and short. The Razorback defense stopped the run on the fourth down and took possession and the game to win 42-38, which probably set the tone to ruin the remainder of the Aggies’ season.
One other moment deserves mentioning, but it will be lost in history because the Razorbacks lost the game badly. The Arkansas defense made one of the most impressive goal-line stands in the school’s history against Alabama at Tuscaloosa when it held for four downs at the goal line to deny a Tide touchdown. This was all the more impressive considering the Hogs were without their two starting defensive tackles and Alabama had the best running back in the country in Trent Richardson.
Odd how all these very significant plays were on the defensive side that really built the great season, yet the defensive coordinator was let go.
The offense also had its moments. The offensive explosion against Mississippi State was impressive with Tyler Wilson completing a school-record 32 passes. Chris Gragg was used extensively in this beat down. The offense amassed a whopping 539 yards. The offense also exploded on Texas A&M, and it was Wilson’s best game of the season as he threw for an incredible school record of 510 yards. Most of it was to Jarius Wright, who had 13 catches for an astonishing 281 yards. The Hogs scored in the A&M game with 1:41 to play, which was by far one of the most exciting games of the season. It was also the welcome game for the Aggies to the SEC.
The offensive play of the year to me was actually on special teams. It was Dennis Johnson’s 98-yard kickoff return against South Carolina. The return kept the Hogs close early in the game and made a big difference in giving the Razorbacks confidence to win what was a huge game in the first victory in a top 10 matchup in Fayetteville since 1965.
The unforgettable special team play of the year was the Joe Adams punt return against Tennessee. In the end, the punt return was meaningless as the Hogs pounded a helpless Volunteer team. The return, though, was spectacular as Adams ducked and dived through the entire Tennessee roster and essentially ran circles around them. The punt return was so spectacular it was replayed numerous times later on ESPN and ended up being the play of the week.
But not all that happened this past season was grand, so I end with three bad things.
The first was after holding Alabama on four downs at the goal line, the offense had a significant interception. Wilson’s pass was deflected and then snatched out of the air by the same defender and returned for a touchdown to make the game 17-7.
The second occurred with the Hogs winning 14-7 at LSU. After dropping a pass that would have been a first down to keep the drive alive, Arkansas instead had to punt. Tyrann Mathieu fielded the ball around his own three yard line and went the distance. The Hogs were never the same after that play.
Last was the heartbreaking news of the Razorback family losing Garrett Uekman on the Sunday after the Mississippi State game. As a graduate of Catholic High School, it really hit me. I had seen him play several times in high school. Catholic High has an alumni dinner each year, and at the dinner they read the names of the alumni who have died in the previous year in graduating class order. Unfortunately, I’m not getting any younger and this past year three names of my classmates were read. Garret Uekman’s name will be read this coming October. Hopefully, and surely, his will be the last read.
Send your favorite memories of the season to fromthebench@yahoo.com.
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 14 years. His upcoming novel, “Daphne and The Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society” will be part one in the series that will be released in January.
You can follow me on Twitter @rsfromthebench
Robert Shields
For the Razorback football team and its fans, it was a fantastic year -- the Hogs went 10-2 with both losses coming to the team ranked No. 1 at the time.
You would think the most important moment of the season might have come in one of those games against Alabama and LSU, but my nomination for the biggest moment was when Vanderbilt missed its field goal to tie the game and instead lost 31-28. In overtime, Arkansas probably wins, but we don’t know. If the Razorbacks had lost that game, suddenly we are talking about a season that would have been extremely disappointing. The win was a reminder of just how difficult it can be to win on the road in the SEC.
The runner-up for most important moment was at Oxford against Ole Miss when Tramain Thomas intercepted a pass to end the game. Arkansas struggled all day against the Rebels and had to come back from being down double digits. Houston Nutt pulled out all the stops, and in the end his team almost came up with a miracle comeback after a successful onside kick. Ole Miss was driving for the game-winning touchdown when Thomas came up with the game-saving and season-saving interception that again proved life on the road in the SEC is tough. There is no telling where the Hogs go if they had actually lost this game.
Honorable mention for most important moment was in Dallas against Texas A&M after the Razorbacks fell down by 18 points at 35-17. Arkansas stormed back in the second half to take the lead. A&M leveled one last challenge as it began its game-winning drive, which stalled and came down to a fourth and short. The Razorback defense stopped the run on the fourth down and took possession and the game to win 42-38, which probably set the tone to ruin the remainder of the Aggies’ season.
One other moment deserves mentioning, but it will be lost in history because the Razorbacks lost the game badly. The Arkansas defense made one of the most impressive goal-line stands in the school’s history against Alabama at Tuscaloosa when it held for four downs at the goal line to deny a Tide touchdown. This was all the more impressive considering the Hogs were without their two starting defensive tackles and Alabama had the best running back in the country in Trent Richardson.
Odd how all these very significant plays were on the defensive side that really built the great season, yet the defensive coordinator was let go.
The offense also had its moments. The offensive explosion against Mississippi State was impressive with Tyler Wilson completing a school-record 32 passes. Chris Gragg was used extensively in this beat down. The offense amassed a whopping 539 yards. The offense also exploded on Texas A&M, and it was Wilson’s best game of the season as he threw for an incredible school record of 510 yards. Most of it was to Jarius Wright, who had 13 catches for an astonishing 281 yards. The Hogs scored in the A&M game with 1:41 to play, which was by far one of the most exciting games of the season. It was also the welcome game for the Aggies to the SEC.
The offensive play of the year to me was actually on special teams. It was Dennis Johnson’s 98-yard kickoff return against South Carolina. The return kept the Hogs close early in the game and made a big difference in giving the Razorbacks confidence to win what was a huge game in the first victory in a top 10 matchup in Fayetteville since 1965.
The unforgettable special team play of the year was the Joe Adams punt return against Tennessee. In the end, the punt return was meaningless as the Hogs pounded a helpless Volunteer team. The return, though, was spectacular as Adams ducked and dived through the entire Tennessee roster and essentially ran circles around them. The punt return was so spectacular it was replayed numerous times later on ESPN and ended up being the play of the week.
But not all that happened this past season was grand, so I end with three bad things.
The first was after holding Alabama on four downs at the goal line, the offense had a significant interception. Wilson’s pass was deflected and then snatched out of the air by the same defender and returned for a touchdown to make the game 17-7.
The second occurred with the Hogs winning 14-7 at LSU. After dropping a pass that would have been a first down to keep the drive alive, Arkansas instead had to punt. Tyrann Mathieu fielded the ball around his own three yard line and went the distance. The Hogs were never the same after that play.
Last was the heartbreaking news of the Razorback family losing Garrett Uekman on the Sunday after the Mississippi State game. As a graduate of Catholic High School, it really hit me. I had seen him play several times in high school. Catholic High has an alumni dinner each year, and at the dinner they read the names of the alumni who have died in the previous year in graduating class order. Unfortunately, I’m not getting any younger and this past year three names of my classmates were read. Garret Uekman’s name will be read this coming October. Hopefully, and surely, his will be the last read.
Send your favorite memories of the season to fromthebench@yahoo.com.
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 14 years. His upcoming novel, “Daphne and The Mysterious Girls Secret Bathroom Society” will be part one in the series that will be released in January.
You can follow me on Twitter @rsfromthebench
Monday, December 12, 2011
From the Bench
Coaching ‘Carousel’ Taking on Whole New Meaning in BCS Era
Robert Shields
In the futuristic ‘70s movie “Logan’s Run,” people were allowed to live only to 30 years of age before they were terminated. When an individual’s time was up, they were sent to the “Carousel,” which systematically killed people and was also a form of entertainment for those who went as spectators.
In college football, we get to experience the Carousel in a different way. Let’s call it “Coach’s Run.” Coaches get fired or leave their schools this time every season at an ever-increasing rate. After a great season of winning 10 games, even Arkansas was lighter by three coaches who have all since been replaced.
Arkansas’ offensive coordinator left to become head coach at another school but was rapidly replaced by Brother Paul Petrino, who was also looking for a job because Illinois had fired its head coach. The reality these days in major college football is that if you’re not going to a BCS game or at least getting very close, then fans think the head coach should be sent to the Carousel.
A new head coach is not really given any time to turn things around at the program he inherits. To the fans, it has to be immediate. I wrote back at the end of the summer about my interactions with fans at the beach as I do every year. I won’t forget the conversation with the Florida fan who was already down on Will Muschamp even though the guy had not coached in a single game. I said then that if the sentiment was prevalent in Gator nation that Muschamp had very little time.
Make no mistake that after only winning six games this season he is already on the hot seat next year. Eight wins may not be enough to save his job. Let’s face it, Derek Dooley at Tennessee is also a short-timer if things do not improve next season.
Even the Georgia nation wanted to fire Mark Richt at the beginning of the season. Kudos to those fans who stuck by his side. He righted the ship and took the Bulldogs to the SEC championship game winning the SEC East. Not bad for a coach who just a few weeks before needed to be fired. Ironically, he is still on the hot seat among some Georgia fans.
The absolute pandemonium with coaching jobs and their stability is due to unrealistic expectations from fans and boosters. To a great extent, I blame this on the BCS.
I think the pressure on football coaches would be slightly reduced with a playoff format and proper conference realignment. It would bring some semblance of sanity to the sport.
The craziness engulfing college coaches makes me draw from a scene from “Monty Python and the Holy Grail.” The locals put a woman on trial for being a witch, and they go through a long thought process of how to determine if she is a witch. They come to the conclusion that witches float as do ducks. So they put her on a rigged scale with the duck on the other side. The result is what is demanded and therefore she is a witch.
I feel the same way regarding how some coaches are put on trial. It’s almost the same bizarre process. If you don’t like a coach and want him to be fired, you will find something to justify your case.
The firing of coaches has become so systemic in the game that little thought is given to the fact that you have a bowl game being played this year with neither team having their head coach because they were both fired. This also tells you all you need to know about the meaningless importance of bowl games.
I want to reiterate my bowl rules that should be adopted by the NCAA:
1) If you fire your head coach, your school can’t go to a bowl game.
2) If Hawaii goes to a bowl game, it must leave the island.
3) If you have to play Rice in a bowl game, you must forfeit.
It is hard to believe the number of coaching vacancies this year, and as one school fires a coach to date the new hot girl in the school, it creates a domino effect. Ole Miss, Penn State, Ohio State, Texas A&M, UCLA, Illinois, Arizona, Arizona State, and Kansas all come to mind. By hiring Houston’s hot name on the coaching board, Texas A&M made that domino fall so Houston now has to hire a new coach.
All this creates weird scenarios where these teams have to go to their bowl games without their head coach. Slap anyone who says the bowl games are about the players because that ship left a long time ago. A coach should stay with his team through a bowl game if the game was really about the players. The game right now is about the insatiable desire of college administrators to get a big check and the fans to win the big one. It drives everything.
I think with a playoff, coaches stick around until the playoff is done. It adds stability and a cooling-off period. You don’t see coaches in college basketball leaving while their team is playing in the NCAA tournament.
I say keep the 12-game seasons, get rid of the stupid conference championship games, and go to a 16-team playoff. Some teams already now play a 14-game season, and only two teams will have to play 16 games. The regular season has to stay at 12 because of the revenue generated by those games.
I’m also a realist and know the conference championship games are going nowhere because of all the television money that they generate. As a friend suggested to me, instead of playing the games, they should just have cheerleaders from each school jump in piles of money because that’s all the games are really about.
As long as the BCS exists, the coaching Carousel will continue to get worse. And maybe that is what the fans want because they enjoy going to Carousel to see the termination of coaches.
Send your techniques for sending coaches to the Carousel to fromthebench@yahoo.com.
If you’re searching for a last minute Christmas gift for your favorite Hog fan – Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided is available on Kindle, Amazon, Barnes and Noble nook, and on ibooks.
Robert Shields
In the futuristic ‘70s movie “Logan’s Run,” people were allowed to live only to 30 years of age before they were terminated. When an individual’s time was up, they were sent to the “Carousel,” which systematically killed people and was also a form of entertainment for those who went as spectators.
In college football, we get to experience the Carousel in a different way. Let’s call it “Coach’s Run.” Coaches get fired or leave their schools this time every season at an ever-increasing rate. After a great season of winning 10 games, even Arkansas was lighter by three coaches who have all since been replaced.
Arkansas’ offensive coordinator left to become head coach at another school but was rapidly replaced by Brother Paul Petrino, who was also looking for a job because Illinois had fired its head coach. The reality these days in major college football is that if you’re not going to a BCS game or at least getting very close, then fans think the head coach should be sent to the Carousel.
A new head coach is not really given any time to turn things around at the program he inherits. To the fans, it has to be immediate. I wrote back at the end of the summer about my interactions with fans at the beach as I do every year. I won’t forget the conversation with the Florida fan who was already down on Will Muschamp even though the guy had not coached in a single game. I said then that if the sentiment was prevalent in Gator nation that Muschamp had very little time.
Make no mistake that after only winning six games this season he is already on the hot seat next year. Eight wins may not be enough to save his job. Let’s face it, Derek Dooley at Tennessee is also a short-timer if things do not improve next season.
Even the Georgia nation wanted to fire Mark Richt at the beginning of the season. Kudos to those fans who stuck by his side. He righted the ship and took the Bulldogs to the SEC championship game winning the SEC East. Not bad for a coach who just a few weeks before needed to be fired. Ironically, he is still on the hot seat among some Georgia fans.
The absolute pandemonium with coaching jobs and their stability is due to unrealistic expectations from fans and boosters. To a great extent, I blame this on the BCS.
I think the pressure on football coaches would be slightly reduced with a playoff format and proper conference realignment. It would bring some semblance of sanity to the sport.
The craziness engulfing college coaches makes me draw from a scene from “Monty Python and the Holy Grail.” The locals put a woman on trial for being a witch, and they go through a long thought process of how to determine if she is a witch. They come to the conclusion that witches float as do ducks. So they put her on a rigged scale with the duck on the other side. The result is what is demanded and therefore she is a witch.
I feel the same way regarding how some coaches are put on trial. It’s almost the same bizarre process. If you don’t like a coach and want him to be fired, you will find something to justify your case.
The firing of coaches has become so systemic in the game that little thought is given to the fact that you have a bowl game being played this year with neither team having their head coach because they were both fired. This also tells you all you need to know about the meaningless importance of bowl games.
I want to reiterate my bowl rules that should be adopted by the NCAA:
1) If you fire your head coach, your school can’t go to a bowl game.
2) If Hawaii goes to a bowl game, it must leave the island.
3) If you have to play Rice in a bowl game, you must forfeit.
It is hard to believe the number of coaching vacancies this year, and as one school fires a coach to date the new hot girl in the school, it creates a domino effect. Ole Miss, Penn State, Ohio State, Texas A&M, UCLA, Illinois, Arizona, Arizona State, and Kansas all come to mind. By hiring Houston’s hot name on the coaching board, Texas A&M made that domino fall so Houston now has to hire a new coach.
All this creates weird scenarios where these teams have to go to their bowl games without their head coach. Slap anyone who says the bowl games are about the players because that ship left a long time ago. A coach should stay with his team through a bowl game if the game was really about the players. The game right now is about the insatiable desire of college administrators to get a big check and the fans to win the big one. It drives everything.
I think with a playoff, coaches stick around until the playoff is done. It adds stability and a cooling-off period. You don’t see coaches in college basketball leaving while their team is playing in the NCAA tournament.
I say keep the 12-game seasons, get rid of the stupid conference championship games, and go to a 16-team playoff. Some teams already now play a 14-game season, and only two teams will have to play 16 games. The regular season has to stay at 12 because of the revenue generated by those games.
I’m also a realist and know the conference championship games are going nowhere because of all the television money that they generate. As a friend suggested to me, instead of playing the games, they should just have cheerleaders from each school jump in piles of money because that’s all the games are really about.
As long as the BCS exists, the coaching Carousel will continue to get worse. And maybe that is what the fans want because they enjoy going to Carousel to see the termination of coaches.
Send your techniques for sending coaches to the Carousel to fromthebench@yahoo.com.
If you’re searching for a last minute Christmas gift for your favorite Hog fan – Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided is available on Kindle, Amazon, Barnes and Noble nook, and on ibooks.
Monday, December 05, 2011
From the Bench
Win #11 in Cotton Bowl Would Complete Best Razorback Season in 30 Years
Robert Shields
The Arkansas Razorback football team finished the regular season with 10 wins two years in a row. Every Razorback fan should be happy. Winning 10 games in the rugged SEC is always great, and now the team needs to win only one more game to make that very magical plateau of 11 wins. Very few teams reach 11, and the Hogs have not done it since 1977 with Lou Holtz’s Orange Bowl team that beat Oklahoma.
Winning 11 games in a season is an extremely tough task while playing in the SEC, which is by far the best football conference. You can just look at the players on the field and tell they are bigger, faster, and hit harder. The downside is that the SEC is becoming a product that is looking more and more like the NFL and less and less like college teams. I see Oklahoma State and I see a college team -- that would be killed by the professionals at LSU.
The really good teams in the SEC really are that good. Because of this, the SEC is actually very predictable unlike the Big Texas 12 whatever it’s called now. With a wealth of mediocre teams, the ACC is also extremely unpredictable. Just follow Clemson. The talent level at each of the schools in these conferences is very similar to each other. Even Baylor is beating Texas these days. Northwestern can occasionally win the Big Ten. But in the SEC, you just don’t have that year when Vanderbilt is good and beats Alabama. Vanderbilt will never win the SEC in football unless the whole conference goes on probation.
The downside to this is that the SEC is also becoming a product that is not as exciting because it is so predictable. Never do you see a team play the spoiler role in the SEC championship game. The SEC has had a hard time matching the excitement that has transpired in conferences like the Big Ten. Every time Wisconsin and Michigan State have played, it’s been extremely exciting. It’s been exciting every time Oklahoma State takes the field because they can’t play defense, which is how the Cowboys lose to teams like Iowa State. LSU and Alabama would beat Iowa State every time they played even if they only used the second-team offense.
It would be fun to have all the talk leading up to an Oklahoma State and LSU national-championship matchup, but the reality is that LSU would kill them. I promise you that an Oklahoma State receiver has never been hit as hard as he would the first time he caught the ball if these two teams matched up. Oklahoma State is better off watching the game at home.
That said, the BCS needs to disappear. This is the year that a playoff needs to be instituted, but it won’t happen because of 70 college presidents and athletic directors schools get payouts with the bowls. Slap any person who ever says that college football is great because every week is a playoff elimination. This season puts that argument to rest as we get to witness a rematch of LSU and Alabama. If it was really an elimination, then Alabama should have been eliminated when it lost to LSU. What does it prove if Alabama beats LSU? It proves they are equal. If LSU wins, we already knew that answer.
The bowls are not going away short of an act of Congress. Since we have to live with the bowls, I still hate the BCS system. The old system prior to the BCS was superior. Just send teams to their respective bowls and let things play out. This year would see LSU versus Stanford in the Sugar Bowl and Alabama versus Oklahoma State in the Orange Bowl. If you go back to the old system, this is where you can then have the “plus one” game if No. 1 is still in doubt -- and there will always be doubt.
Ranked at No. 7, Arkansas has been left out of the BCS bowls and is instead heading to the nearby Cotton Bowl Classic. For the last week, we’ve heard some fans on the Bo Mattingly show lamenting that the projections were showing the Hogs were going to the Cotton instead of the Capital One Bowl (old Tangerine Bowl to me). They were lamenting because the Capital One paid more money and supposedly is more prestigious. The same fans also mocked those wanting to go to the Cotton as being prehistoric and still stuck in the old SWC.
This is not true. The Cotton Bowl is coming back in status, and the move to the new Cowboys Stadium puts the game in the best venue in the nation. Last year, the Cotton Bowl drew more viewers than the Capital One Bowl by a good margin. It probably will again this year. It will feature the best matchup by rankings outside the BCS and as a bonus will have Gus Johnson on the mic on a Friday night on Fox.
The Cotton Bowl is the right game for the Razorbacks this year. Now they just need to win it.
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 14 years. His upcoming novel, “Daphne and Her No. 2 Ticonderoga,” will be part one in “The Mysterious Girls’ Secret Bathroom Society” series. He can be reached at fromthebench@yahoo.com.
You can also follow me on Twitter @rsfromthebench
end
Robert Shields
The Arkansas Razorback football team finished the regular season with 10 wins two years in a row. Every Razorback fan should be happy. Winning 10 games in the rugged SEC is always great, and now the team needs to win only one more game to make that very magical plateau of 11 wins. Very few teams reach 11, and the Hogs have not done it since 1977 with Lou Holtz’s Orange Bowl team that beat Oklahoma.
Winning 11 games in a season is an extremely tough task while playing in the SEC, which is by far the best football conference. You can just look at the players on the field and tell they are bigger, faster, and hit harder. The downside is that the SEC is becoming a product that is looking more and more like the NFL and less and less like college teams. I see Oklahoma State and I see a college team -- that would be killed by the professionals at LSU.
The really good teams in the SEC really are that good. Because of this, the SEC is actually very predictable unlike the Big Texas 12 whatever it’s called now. With a wealth of mediocre teams, the ACC is also extremely unpredictable. Just follow Clemson. The talent level at each of the schools in these conferences is very similar to each other. Even Baylor is beating Texas these days. Northwestern can occasionally win the Big Ten. But in the SEC, you just don’t have that year when Vanderbilt is good and beats Alabama. Vanderbilt will never win the SEC in football unless the whole conference goes on probation.
The downside to this is that the SEC is also becoming a product that is not as exciting because it is so predictable. Never do you see a team play the spoiler role in the SEC championship game. The SEC has had a hard time matching the excitement that has transpired in conferences like the Big Ten. Every time Wisconsin and Michigan State have played, it’s been extremely exciting. It’s been exciting every time Oklahoma State takes the field because they can’t play defense, which is how the Cowboys lose to teams like Iowa State. LSU and Alabama would beat Iowa State every time they played even if they only used the second-team offense.
It would be fun to have all the talk leading up to an Oklahoma State and LSU national-championship matchup, but the reality is that LSU would kill them. I promise you that an Oklahoma State receiver has never been hit as hard as he would the first time he caught the ball if these two teams matched up. Oklahoma State is better off watching the game at home.
That said, the BCS needs to disappear. This is the year that a playoff needs to be instituted, but it won’t happen because of 70 college presidents and athletic directors schools get payouts with the bowls. Slap any person who ever says that college football is great because every week is a playoff elimination. This season puts that argument to rest as we get to witness a rematch of LSU and Alabama. If it was really an elimination, then Alabama should have been eliminated when it lost to LSU. What does it prove if Alabama beats LSU? It proves they are equal. If LSU wins, we already knew that answer.
The bowls are not going away short of an act of Congress. Since we have to live with the bowls, I still hate the BCS system. The old system prior to the BCS was superior. Just send teams to their respective bowls and let things play out. This year would see LSU versus Stanford in the Sugar Bowl and Alabama versus Oklahoma State in the Orange Bowl. If you go back to the old system, this is where you can then have the “plus one” game if No. 1 is still in doubt -- and there will always be doubt.
Ranked at No. 7, Arkansas has been left out of the BCS bowls and is instead heading to the nearby Cotton Bowl Classic. For the last week, we’ve heard some fans on the Bo Mattingly show lamenting that the projections were showing the Hogs were going to the Cotton instead of the Capital One Bowl (old Tangerine Bowl to me). They were lamenting because the Capital One paid more money and supposedly is more prestigious. The same fans also mocked those wanting to go to the Cotton as being prehistoric and still stuck in the old SWC.
This is not true. The Cotton Bowl is coming back in status, and the move to the new Cowboys Stadium puts the game in the best venue in the nation. Last year, the Cotton Bowl drew more viewers than the Capital One Bowl by a good margin. It probably will again this year. It will feature the best matchup by rankings outside the BCS and as a bonus will have Gus Johnson on the mic on a Friday night on Fox.
The Cotton Bowl is the right game for the Razorbacks this year. Now they just need to win it.
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 14 years. His upcoming novel, “Daphne and Her No. 2 Ticonderoga,” will be part one in “The Mysterious Girls’ Secret Bathroom Society” series. He can be reached at fromthebench@yahoo.com.
You can also follow me on Twitter @rsfromthebench
end
Monday, November 28, 2011
From the Bench
Last Two Seasons as Good as It Will Get Without Defense and Running Game
Robert Shields
Arkansas may actually be the No. 3 team in the nation. Unfortunately for the Razorbacks, they had to play No. 1 and No. 2 this season.
After Arkansas took a 14-0 lead against No. 1 on Friday, the Razorbacks were outscored 41-3 the rest of the way and that’s all you really need to know.
Amazingly the score was only 24-17 going into the fourth quarter. The Hogs were within a touchdown with only a quarter to play. Before the game, I would have taken that scenario. Arkansas had been very dominant in the fourth quarter all year, but not this game.
Predicated on the fact the Hogs might win, I told lots of people to not worry about the BCS. I said that LSU was clearly the best team in the nation and if Arkansas actually beat them in Baton Rouge everything else would take care of itself. In the end, the Razorbacks never had to worry about any of it. LSU took care of it all and all the hand-wringing over a three-way tie was nonsense.
I wrote the same thing after the Alabama game. The SEC is a defensive league. You win with defense. Some might call Arkansas’ defense average, but what it is certainly is not great.
You can take this to the bank – you win in the SEC by running the ball and playing great defense. Time and again, you see that great defenses beat great offenses in the SEC. All this has come to pass twice for the Hogs this year in its losses.
Some wonder if Bobby Petrino has accepted this fact yet or if he still thinks his system is superior to what has won the SEC the last five (soon to be six) national championships. This isn’t Conference USA or the Big East. Petrino is a great coach, but he has to accept this fact about the league.
The Hogs have an exceptional offense. But great defenses in the SEC will always find ways to beat it and probably dominate it.
With Arkansas’ current formula, the last two years is probably as good as it will get, which is still quite good, and better than fans have been accustomed. The Hogs were the third best team in the SEC this season, but without finding a dominating defense it will struggle to get to the pinnacle of the conference.
The Razorback defense plays really hard. It came up with crucial stops during the season and is greatly responsible for winning 10 games. But the defense is not on the same level as LSU and Alabama, which are faster and bigger and create a chasm of difference on the field. Arkansas may be a 9, but LSU and Alabama are a 10.
Arkansas has a record of 20-5 over the last two years. All five losses came to teams that were ranked No. 1 at some point during that season. The Razorbacks are a top 10 team, but they still have a lot of work to get into that very top group. Arkansas needed this win against LSU in a bad way to earn national respect. But Arkansas has folded in these big matchups time and again. Why did we expect anything different this time?
The biggest disappointment was how the Razorbacks lost their composure and became very frustrated. Championship teams respond to adversity, and those only striving to become one get frustrated when failing. After falling down by 14, LSU immediately responded with a long drive and a touchdown. The Tigers never panicked or showed frustration.
This was Tyler Wilson’s worst game. It was the only time this season that he appeared frustrated, and it even looked like he was talking to his receivers in a different way than he had all season. He was sacked four times and pressured almost on all other passing downs. His interception was out of desperation.
The coach was not far behind in his frustration, and he’s the one guy who has to be in control. The gesture caught on camera toward the end of the game was not one of Bobby Petrino’s finer moments. This was a bad example to set for the players and did not reflect well on the university at all. I am hopeful that he regrets it, and anyone can lose their temper especially under the stress he had been under all week with the death of a player.
So on to a bowl game for the Razorbacks, who desperately need to win it to end a great season on a better note. Arkansas has not won 11 games in a long time. It would be a great way to end the season and erase the losses with more than likely a top 10 finish, which also has not happened in a long time.
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 14 years. His upcoming novel, “Daphne and Her No. 2 Ticonderoga,” will be part one in “The Mysterious Girls’ Secret Bathroom Society” series. He can be reached at fromthebench@yahoo.com.
YOu can also follow me on Twitter @rsfromthebench
end
Robert Shields
Arkansas may actually be the No. 3 team in the nation. Unfortunately for the Razorbacks, they had to play No. 1 and No. 2 this season.
After Arkansas took a 14-0 lead against No. 1 on Friday, the Razorbacks were outscored 41-3 the rest of the way and that’s all you really need to know.
Amazingly the score was only 24-17 going into the fourth quarter. The Hogs were within a touchdown with only a quarter to play. Before the game, I would have taken that scenario. Arkansas had been very dominant in the fourth quarter all year, but not this game.
Predicated on the fact the Hogs might win, I told lots of people to not worry about the BCS. I said that LSU was clearly the best team in the nation and if Arkansas actually beat them in Baton Rouge everything else would take care of itself. In the end, the Razorbacks never had to worry about any of it. LSU took care of it all and all the hand-wringing over a three-way tie was nonsense.
I wrote the same thing after the Alabama game. The SEC is a defensive league. You win with defense. Some might call Arkansas’ defense average, but what it is certainly is not great.
You can take this to the bank – you win in the SEC by running the ball and playing great defense. Time and again, you see that great defenses beat great offenses in the SEC. All this has come to pass twice for the Hogs this year in its losses.
Some wonder if Bobby Petrino has accepted this fact yet or if he still thinks his system is superior to what has won the SEC the last five (soon to be six) national championships. This isn’t Conference USA or the Big East. Petrino is a great coach, but he has to accept this fact about the league.
The Hogs have an exceptional offense. But great defenses in the SEC will always find ways to beat it and probably dominate it.
With Arkansas’ current formula, the last two years is probably as good as it will get, which is still quite good, and better than fans have been accustomed. The Hogs were the third best team in the SEC this season, but without finding a dominating defense it will struggle to get to the pinnacle of the conference.
The Razorback defense plays really hard. It came up with crucial stops during the season and is greatly responsible for winning 10 games. But the defense is not on the same level as LSU and Alabama, which are faster and bigger and create a chasm of difference on the field. Arkansas may be a 9, but LSU and Alabama are a 10.
Arkansas has a record of 20-5 over the last two years. All five losses came to teams that were ranked No. 1 at some point during that season. The Razorbacks are a top 10 team, but they still have a lot of work to get into that very top group. Arkansas needed this win against LSU in a bad way to earn national respect. But Arkansas has folded in these big matchups time and again. Why did we expect anything different this time?
The biggest disappointment was how the Razorbacks lost their composure and became very frustrated. Championship teams respond to adversity, and those only striving to become one get frustrated when failing. After falling down by 14, LSU immediately responded with a long drive and a touchdown. The Tigers never panicked or showed frustration.
This was Tyler Wilson’s worst game. It was the only time this season that he appeared frustrated, and it even looked like he was talking to his receivers in a different way than he had all season. He was sacked four times and pressured almost on all other passing downs. His interception was out of desperation.
The coach was not far behind in his frustration, and he’s the one guy who has to be in control. The gesture caught on camera toward the end of the game was not one of Bobby Petrino’s finer moments. This was a bad example to set for the players and did not reflect well on the university at all. I am hopeful that he regrets it, and anyone can lose their temper especially under the stress he had been under all week with the death of a player.
So on to a bowl game for the Razorbacks, who desperately need to win it to end a great season on a better note. Arkansas has not won 11 games in a long time. It would be a great way to end the season and erase the losses with more than likely a top 10 finish, which also has not happened in a long time.
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 14 years. His upcoming novel, “Daphne and Her No. 2 Ticonderoga,” will be part one in “The Mysterious Girls’ Secret Bathroom Society” series. He can be reached at fromthebench@yahoo.com.
YOu can also follow me on Twitter @rsfromthebench
end
Monday, November 21, 2011
From the Bench
LSU Stands in Way of Magical Scenario for Razorback Football
Robert Shields
Any scenario that you want to dream about starts with a victory at Death Valley against No.1 LSU. The task will be Herculean. LSU beat Oregon and West Virginia early in the season on the road and Alabama late at Tuscaloosa. Rightfully so, they are the undisputed No. 1 gathering all the first place votes, which seldom happens.
But Arkansas’ dream season continues for another week and into what will be the biggest regular season game since the 1969 Big Shootout with No. 1 Texas. The 1998 game against Tennessee was big, but not this big. The Hogs had a series of games in 1977 through 1980 with Texas with both teams being in the top 10. In 1977 in Fayetteville, the No. 9 Hogs lost to No. 2 Texas. In 1978 in Austin, the No. 3 Hogs lost to No. 8 Texas. In 1979 in Little Rock, the No. 10 Hogs beat No. 2 Texas. In 1980 in Austin, the No. 6 Hogs lost to No. 10 Texas.
This will be No. 3 Arkansas versus No. 1 LSU. This does not happen very often for the UA. Make sure your children watch it with you because it is history for our state.
This season as the Razorbacks won, the pretenders fell by the wayside. Oklahoma State lost to Iowa State in double overtime. Oregon missed a field at the end of its game against USC and had its hopes dashed. And lastly, Robert Griffin III (#RG3 to the hipsters, he deserves the Heisman) beat Oklahoma with eight seconds remaining to crush the Sooner’s hopes of another national title. The previous week, it was Boise State and Stanford.
LSU’s defense will be as good as Alabama, which will make the Razorback offense sputter some. But, there is a reason that the Hogs have won the last three out of four with the Tigers. LSU’s defensive strength is its secondary as exhibited in the key interception at the goal line against Alabama. For whatever the reason, the excellent secondary has at times had matchup problems with the Razorback receiving corps. We will see if that continues on Friday.
Arkansas will have to have a running attack to control the game, and the Razorback rushing attack keeps looking better every week as the offensive line has grown into its role. The change to Jason Peacock at left tackle made a difference.
When LSU has beaten the Hogs of late in 2006 and 2009, it was with special teams play with long touchdown returns. The Hogs cannot allow a bust in the special teams or give up an easy six in that phase of the game and have any hope of winning on the road in Louisiana.
I can’t do justice what this game means to the Razorback Program. It’s the biggest stage for the Hogs to ever be on and it’s what all fans have been hoping and waiting for. Regardless of the outcome, you need to be thankful this Thanksgiving to reach this point where your team still matters. Your team is in the conversation. Your team is relevant even if it’s just for one more week. It doesn’t happen very often.
The most bizarre scenario to me is if Arkansas beats LSU, and the Associated Press votes Arkansas No. 1. Many years ago, the AP got out of the BCS because it did not want a say in crowning the BCS national championship. The SEC sends Alabama to the SEC championship game based on its tiebreaker rules. Alabama beats Georgia. The BCS pits Alabama against LSU. Arkansas goes to the Sugar Bowl and plays a conference champion such as Virginia Tech. The AP leaves Arkansas No. 1. LSU beats Alabama again. The Hogs beat Virginia Tech. The AP is not going to rank an LSU team that lost at home to Arkansas above the Hogs. BCS gives crystal ball to LSU. AP gives it to Hogs. A crazy scenario that I freely admit is way out there, but how the last two weeks have played out, I can’t rule anything out.
So remember, there is a chance Arkansas could claim the national championship even if it does not get the BCS version.
In many ways, the SEC championship is irrelevant and actually having to go to the SEC championship game is full of risks. The team from the West that goes has to play an emerging Georgia team that has a very good quarterback and has won nine games in a row. It is very possible that Georgia wins and ruins the West representative’s hopes of planning for a national title as the other two SEC teams watch and probably pull for Georgia.
If Alabama goes to the SEC championship game and loses to Georgia, you could have an LSU and Arkansas rematch in the BCS title game. This is the year more than any -- especially if the Hogs win at LSU -- that a playoff format is needed.
If you’re going to stick with bowl games, the BCS does not need to exist. Alabama, LSU, and Arkansas all need to go to separate bowls and play conference champions from other regions of the country and see who emerges.
-
The Golf Course Experience
As Arkansas kept its hopes alive beating a decent Mississippi State team in Little Rock, the tailgating was hot as usual. One of the more fun moments on the golf course came when a group of revelers tried to hit a piñata blindfolded. It provided many laughs if you were drunk.
The new thing on the golf course (which I don’t know if it’s a good idea) is bringing your dog. I saw puppies in wagons. Little dogs dressed as Santa. A massive mastiff wearing a large man’s T-shirt.
The reserved scholarship tailgating west of the creek needs to be moved off Markham if that group continues to arrive two hours before the game. They are not as worthy as the group that arrives before 5 a.m. to get their spots on the golf course.
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 14 years. His upcoming novel, “Daphne and Her No. 2 Ticonderoga,” will be part one in “The Mysterious Girls’ Secret Bathroom Society” series. He can be reached at fromthebench@yahoo.com.
You can follow me on Twitter @rsfromthebench
end
Robert Shields
Any scenario that you want to dream about starts with a victory at Death Valley against No.1 LSU. The task will be Herculean. LSU beat Oregon and West Virginia early in the season on the road and Alabama late at Tuscaloosa. Rightfully so, they are the undisputed No. 1 gathering all the first place votes, which seldom happens.
But Arkansas’ dream season continues for another week and into what will be the biggest regular season game since the 1969 Big Shootout with No. 1 Texas. The 1998 game against Tennessee was big, but not this big. The Hogs had a series of games in 1977 through 1980 with Texas with both teams being in the top 10. In 1977 in Fayetteville, the No. 9 Hogs lost to No. 2 Texas. In 1978 in Austin, the No. 3 Hogs lost to No. 8 Texas. In 1979 in Little Rock, the No. 10 Hogs beat No. 2 Texas. In 1980 in Austin, the No. 6 Hogs lost to No. 10 Texas.
This will be No. 3 Arkansas versus No. 1 LSU. This does not happen very often for the UA. Make sure your children watch it with you because it is history for our state.
This season as the Razorbacks won, the pretenders fell by the wayside. Oklahoma State lost to Iowa State in double overtime. Oregon missed a field at the end of its game against USC and had its hopes dashed. And lastly, Robert Griffin III (#RG3 to the hipsters, he deserves the Heisman) beat Oklahoma with eight seconds remaining to crush the Sooner’s hopes of another national title. The previous week, it was Boise State and Stanford.
LSU’s defense will be as good as Alabama, which will make the Razorback offense sputter some. But, there is a reason that the Hogs have won the last three out of four with the Tigers. LSU’s defensive strength is its secondary as exhibited in the key interception at the goal line against Alabama. For whatever the reason, the excellent secondary has at times had matchup problems with the Razorback receiving corps. We will see if that continues on Friday.
Arkansas will have to have a running attack to control the game, and the Razorback rushing attack keeps looking better every week as the offensive line has grown into its role. The change to Jason Peacock at left tackle made a difference.
When LSU has beaten the Hogs of late in 2006 and 2009, it was with special teams play with long touchdown returns. The Hogs cannot allow a bust in the special teams or give up an easy six in that phase of the game and have any hope of winning on the road in Louisiana.
I can’t do justice what this game means to the Razorback Program. It’s the biggest stage for the Hogs to ever be on and it’s what all fans have been hoping and waiting for. Regardless of the outcome, you need to be thankful this Thanksgiving to reach this point where your team still matters. Your team is in the conversation. Your team is relevant even if it’s just for one more week. It doesn’t happen very often.
The most bizarre scenario to me is if Arkansas beats LSU, and the Associated Press votes Arkansas No. 1. Many years ago, the AP got out of the BCS because it did not want a say in crowning the BCS national championship. The SEC sends Alabama to the SEC championship game based on its tiebreaker rules. Alabama beats Georgia. The BCS pits Alabama against LSU. Arkansas goes to the Sugar Bowl and plays a conference champion such as Virginia Tech. The AP leaves Arkansas No. 1. LSU beats Alabama again. The Hogs beat Virginia Tech. The AP is not going to rank an LSU team that lost at home to Arkansas above the Hogs. BCS gives crystal ball to LSU. AP gives it to Hogs. A crazy scenario that I freely admit is way out there, but how the last two weeks have played out, I can’t rule anything out.
So remember, there is a chance Arkansas could claim the national championship even if it does not get the BCS version.
In many ways, the SEC championship is irrelevant and actually having to go to the SEC championship game is full of risks. The team from the West that goes has to play an emerging Georgia team that has a very good quarterback and has won nine games in a row. It is very possible that Georgia wins and ruins the West representative’s hopes of planning for a national title as the other two SEC teams watch and probably pull for Georgia.
If Alabama goes to the SEC championship game and loses to Georgia, you could have an LSU and Arkansas rematch in the BCS title game. This is the year more than any -- especially if the Hogs win at LSU -- that a playoff format is needed.
If you’re going to stick with bowl games, the BCS does not need to exist. Alabama, LSU, and Arkansas all need to go to separate bowls and play conference champions from other regions of the country and see who emerges.
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The Golf Course Experience
As Arkansas kept its hopes alive beating a decent Mississippi State team in Little Rock, the tailgating was hot as usual. One of the more fun moments on the golf course came when a group of revelers tried to hit a piñata blindfolded. It provided many laughs if you were drunk.
The new thing on the golf course (which I don’t know if it’s a good idea) is bringing your dog. I saw puppies in wagons. Little dogs dressed as Santa. A massive mastiff wearing a large man’s T-shirt.
The reserved scholarship tailgating west of the creek needs to be moved off Markham if that group continues to arrive two hours before the game. They are not as worthy as the group that arrives before 5 a.m. to get their spots on the golf course.
Robert Shields is the bestselling author of “Scarlet Fever: A Razorback House Divided” and “The Economics of Sex” and has written the weekly “From the Bench” sports column for the last 14 years. His upcoming novel, “Daphne and Her No. 2 Ticonderoga,” will be part one in “The Mysterious Girls’ Secret Bathroom Society” series. He can be reached at fromthebench@yahoo.com.
You can follow me on Twitter @rsfromthebench
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