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Arkansas Football is Dead.
Posted on 12/19/23 at 11:33 am
Posted on 12/19/23 at 11:33 am
When Arkansas joined the SEC in 1991-92, Arkansas had won 4 conference titles in the previous 15-20 years, had six 10 or more win seasons, and eleven seasons of 8 or more wins (only 11 regular season games).
Arkansas joined the SEC and lucked into winning the SEC West in 1995 with Alabama being ineligible, but it was still a nice notch in the belt only 3 years into the league. Houston Nutt is hired in the late 90's and in 1998 the Hogs get on a nice run and are ranked inside the top 10, only to lose two games in a row and miss their second trip to the SEC Championship game in four seasons.
Fast forward to the years 2012 - 2023. No 10 win seasons. Seven losing seasons. Two streaks of the programs longest conference losing runs ever. For those counting, that included 3 seasons of going 0-8 in SEC play. One season of winning one SEC game. Two seasons of winning only 2 league games.
Those of us old enough to remember watching Arkansas be relevant in the national landscape of football, may never see it again unfortunately. This. Is. The. Realization. Now.
Arkansas firmly sits at the bottom of the Southeastern Conference in the football pecking order along with Vanderbilt. Both Mississippi schools have passed the Razorbacks by. A perennial midwestern afterthought in football Missouri, has passed Arkansas by in football. Texas A&M, historically the Hogs' lesser Texas competitor has now won 11 out of the last 12 games against the Razorbacks. An absurd thought even as recently as 2011.
My thoughts are this...Get comfortable with the position the program is in. If you have season tickets, plan on staying until the half and heading back to your tailgate location to watch other league teams battle it out on your TV. Pour the vast amount of your money into the basketball, baseball, and softball programs. While those teams are not winning national titles either, at least they are bringing home NCAAt runs and conference title hardware.
Arkansas joined the SEC and lucked into winning the SEC West in 1995 with Alabama being ineligible, but it was still a nice notch in the belt only 3 years into the league. Houston Nutt is hired in the late 90's and in 1998 the Hogs get on a nice run and are ranked inside the top 10, only to lose two games in a row and miss their second trip to the SEC Championship game in four seasons.
Fast forward to the years 2012 - 2023. No 10 win seasons. Seven losing seasons. Two streaks of the programs longest conference losing runs ever. For those counting, that included 3 seasons of going 0-8 in SEC play. One season of winning one SEC game. Two seasons of winning only 2 league games.
Those of us old enough to remember watching Arkansas be relevant in the national landscape of football, may never see it again unfortunately. This. Is. The. Realization. Now.
Arkansas firmly sits at the bottom of the Southeastern Conference in the football pecking order along with Vanderbilt. Both Mississippi schools have passed the Razorbacks by. A perennial midwestern afterthought in football Missouri, has passed Arkansas by in football. Texas A&M, historically the Hogs' lesser Texas competitor has now won 11 out of the last 12 games against the Razorbacks. An absurd thought even as recently as 2011.
My thoughts are this...Get comfortable with the position the program is in. If you have season tickets, plan on staying until the half and heading back to your tailgate location to watch other league teams battle it out on your TV. Pour the vast amount of your money into the basketball, baseball, and softball programs. While those teams are not winning national titles either, at least they are bringing home NCAAt runs and conference title hardware.
This post was edited on 12/19/23 at 11:35 am
7
Posted on 12/19/23 at 11:37 am to Hawgeye
quote:
If you have season tickets…
Posted on 12/19/23 at 11:40 am to Hawgeye
What could we do to pull ourselves up? There’s got to be something we can do as a program.
Posted on 12/19/23 at 11:45 am to Hawgnsincebirth55
If Missouri can win with a nerd, Arkansas can be a viable program.
Posted on 12/19/23 at 11:46 am to Hawgeye
quote:
My thoughts are this...Get comfortable with the position the program is in
I can remember getting pissed about Hatfield losing bowl games.
I'd almost give my left nut to have teams like that again.
Apathy started with me in 2018.
Bring on baseball!
Posted on 12/19/23 at 11:47 am to Hawgnsincebirth55
quote:
What could we do to pull ourselves up? There’s got to be something we can do as a program.
I don’t think anyone whether it’s the BoT, athletic department, boosters, fans, or athletes are willing to do what it takes to win. It’s not a coincidence that we shoot ourselves in the dick in pretty much every sport but(outside of football) usually compete at a pretty high level. We have a “snake bit” mentality and it’s systemic. I guess the good news is that we aren’t Aggie, lol. They’ve got nothin to show for all that dough.
Posted on 12/19/23 at 11:47 am to Hawgnsincebirth55
quote:
What could we do to pull ourselves up? There’s got to be something we can do as a program.
There is nothing that can be done. This is the new normal. Get used to it. Lower your expectations. 2012-2023 is what Arkansas football is at this point.
Posted on 12/19/23 at 11:48 am to Hawgeye
With the right athletic department/HC we could compete again.
Posted on 12/19/23 at 11:49 am to Hawgeye
To be good in Football every body in the athletic department has to be all in on being as ruthless as possible. See Lane and Ole MIss.
Hunter will never allow that to happen.
Hunter will never allow that to happen.
Posted on 12/19/23 at 11:50 am to beebefootballfan
quote:so get rid. Of Hunter?
To be good in Football every body in the athletic department has to be all in on being as ruthless as possible. See Lane and Ole MIss. Hunter will never allow that to happen.
Posted on 12/19/23 at 11:52 am to Hawgnsincebirth55
quote:
With the right athletic department/HC we could compete again.
If and when that ever happens, Arkansas football will be so far behind the Mississippi schools and Missouri, there is no coming back from it.
I would not count on that happening though. If Sam did not get fired after this season, where he botched the OC hire, has let multiple players leave the program without replacing them in the portal, has openly said he has no idea to make decisions in game...he may never leave.
As I said...just get comfortable and hope for 4-6 wins a season. Maybe make a bowl game every 2-3 years. Continue to lose to Ole Miss, State, Missouri, and aTm on a yearly basis.
Posted on 12/19/23 at 11:54 am to Hawgnsincebirth55
quote:
so get rid. Of Hunter?
If you're Hunter's boss, why would you get rid of him?
The athletic program under his guidance has won a record amount of SEC titles across all sports. Nearly every sport on campus is relevant nationally.
Posted on 12/19/23 at 11:56 am to Hawgeye
quote:I care about football so yes.
If you're Hunter's boss, why would you get rid of him?
quote:see above.
The athletic program under his guidance has won a record amount of SEC titles across all sports. Nearly every sport on campus is relevant nationally.
Posted on 12/19/23 at 11:58 am to Hawgnsincebirth55
quote:
so get rid. Of Hunter?
Do you want a do what it takes even if its dirty but we win Athletic department??
If the answer is yes then yes.
I am of the belief that any championship in sports other than the big 3 really doesn't matter. The average fan views the health of the athletic department by the big 3.
This post was edited on 12/19/23 at 1:20 pm
Posted on 12/19/23 at 12:23 pm to beebefootballfan
quote:
I am of the belief that any championship in sports other than the big 3 really doesn't matter. The average fan dictates the health of the athletic department by the big 3.
Outside the state of Arkansas you are correct.
Posted on 12/19/23 at 12:46 pm to Hawgeye
Other than a blip or two, we haven't been relevant in football since the 1960's, which I would guess is long before the vast majority of posters here were born. Most of us have accepted the mediocrity long ago. To me it is acceptable and understandable when we lose to superior talent, but I will never accept losing because we don't play hard, do stupid shite, and beat ourselves.
Everything would have to change with our football program in order to compete at the highest levels, to include our fanbase getting a clue. So it isn't going to happen. Many folks are happy being a basketball and baseball school and crowing about all our former glory and track national championships.
Everything would have to change with our football program in order to compete at the highest levels, to include our fanbase getting a clue. So it isn't going to happen. Many folks are happy being a basketball and baseball school and crowing about all our former glory and track national championships.
Posted on 12/19/23 at 12:51 pm to beebefootballfan
Arkansas has too much dysfunction to be decent in football.
Posted on 12/19/23 at 12:55 pm to beebefootballfan
quote:
To be good in Football every body in the athletic department has to be all in on being as ruthless as possible. See Lane and Ole MIss.
Pretty much this. We've got a bunch of used car salesmen trying to compete in a Glengarry Glen Ross world. We don't have the stones to do what it takes to win.
quote:
Most of us have accepted the mediocrity long ago.
I would love to be mediocre at this point. But we're not even that.
This post was edited on 12/19/23 at 12:57 pm
Posted on 12/19/23 at 12:57 pm to troyt37
The difference in the 60s, 70s and 80s to now is the level of coaching.
It helped that Frank Broyles cared about the program and cracked a whip that put pressure on these coaches.
Now no one cares.
It helped that Frank Broyles cared about the program and cracked a whip that put pressure on these coaches.
Now no one cares.
Posted on 12/19/23 at 1:15 pm to dchog
Smile, Bert, Chad, Sam...
Thats how you kill a major football program.
It's as simple as that. Go out and hire a guy who has won at every level he's ever been. I don't care if he's a lifelong FCS guy. Just go get a winner who is cutthroat as the day is long. That's the only way to overcome this.
That and get an AD who is one hell of a fundraiser. shite, go get one of the Walton grandkids and tell him you'll donate 10 acres of campus to a fuking bike trail. They'd do it for that!
Thats how you kill a major football program.
It's as simple as that. Go out and hire a guy who has won at every level he's ever been. I don't care if he's a lifelong FCS guy. Just go get a winner who is cutthroat as the day is long. That's the only way to overcome this.
That and get an AD who is one hell of a fundraiser. shite, go get one of the Walton grandkids and tell him you'll donate 10 acres of campus to a fuking bike trail. They'd do it for that!
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