Tye & Tommy on Covid-19’s impact on expectations, Morris’ coaching, plus Ken Hatfield!
Hatfield on playing golf during shutdown, looking back at ’64 Texas game
Former Hogs coach Ken Hatfield vividly recalls how the 81-yard punt return against Texas in 1964 developed perfectly in a huge win in perfect season with Tye Richardson, Tommy Craft and Clay Henry (The Morning Rush) on ESPN Arkansas Monday morning.
Rangers’ Hicks on broadcasting major league baseball during health crisis
ON HALFTIME: Texas Rangers broadcaster Matt Hicks told Phil Elson, Matt Jenkins and Matt Travis on ESPN Arkansas Monday about how different things are for broadcast teams this year.
Former Razorback Head Coach Ken Hatfield joins The Morning Rush
Former Razorback defensive back, and the winningest head coach in Razorback History, Ken Hatfield talks with Tye, Tommy, and Clay on a variety of topics, including his golf game and his time with Arkansas. Check it out now!
How ‘good players can’t overcome bad coaching’ sums up last few years
“Good players can’t overcome bad coaching.”
— Bill Belichick, New England Patriots
New England coach Bill Belichick has said it on a few occasions and Arkansas football probably wasn’t on his mind but maybe no better statement applies around the current mess.
It certainly is what has gone on with the Hogs the last eight years in a shocking run of bad coaches.
The talent level is not that bad. It certainly hasn’t been 4-20 quality. The Razorbacks’ level of talent of what is (and has been) on campus the last eight years should have won more than 37% of the games played.
People now talk about the talent level on this team guaranteeing more futility and nothing could be farther from the truth, in my opinion. No, that’s not to even imply they are ready to challenge for the SEC West title but they aren’t that bad.
This team has had little leadership from the top down for those eight years. Even John L. Smith wasn’t going to win 11 games with the talent he inherited but it was good enough they should have won at least seven.
Even Blundering Bert should have won considerably more than what he accomplished. He managed to lose games the thought had to cross your mind at least once he was trying to lose.
If Chad Morris did anything positive it was keeping the redshirt on so many of the better players he acquired. It’s easy to point fingers at the most recent coach but Morris was completely lost from day one.
The staff now at Fayetteville would have put the Hogs in bowl games the last two seasons with the players on the roster. Not exactly a top-tier bowl but they would have at least won half the games.
Yes, coaching makes that big of a difference. Don’t believe it? Out of the eight coaches the Hogs had the last 30 years that left and had any level of success were Ken Hatfield, Houston Nutt and Bobby Petrino … all had limited success.
Morris was the worst because he was the least qualified to ever have the job in the first place.
Don’t start thinking players will go out and play up to 100% of their ability every game. That’s not necessarily a knock on their effort. Coaching is preparation and if players don’t believe (or understand) what they are supposed to being doing they think too much.
The result of over-thinking things results in players being a step or two behind at a level where a half-step will cost you wins.
We heard for two years from players and some assistant coaches about the previous staff’s inability to grasp anything. Some players told me their high school teams were better organized. Assistants told close confidants it was obvious the direction from the top was chaotic, at best.
The result was the players were hesitant. The quarterback position was such a revolving door none of them played to a fraction of their ability. Very seldom has it worked out well with no consistency there.
I’ve seen it with Hall of Fame coaches. The only time Tom Landry won championships was with Roger Staubach winning games, often ignoring the plays Landry sent in.
Too many people misunderstand the X’s and O’s conversation. Some like the old line, “it’s not the X’s and O’s but about the Jimmy’s and Joe’s,” which is accurate but not exactly in the context most people think.
If you don’t put ol’ Jimmy and Joe into the right X and O the result is going to be a disaster.
And the Hogs have been all of that — and maybe a bit more — over the last eight seasons.
Coaching is the reason why, not the talent level.
Neighbors on finishing ‘Ozark,’ plus how rough Mena was in ’80’s
Arkansas women’s coach Mike Neighbors worked at the airport in Mena when there were some interesting places in town plus he finished the “Ozark” television series.
He was with Derek Ruscin and Zach Arns (Ruscin & Zach) on ESPN Arkansas last week.
Sooners start year of juggling schedules getting opener moved forward
Oklahoma has gotten approval from the NCAA to move its season-opening game against Bobby Petrino’s Missouri State team up to Aug. 29 in a year where schedules will be fluid.
Nobody really even knows how many games Power 5 conferences are going to try and squeeze in but going through all this to have the Big 12 go to conference games only seems to be a waste of everybody’s time.
It could be a clue. Maybe it’s not.
While some people like to look at the knee-jerk reactions in the Big 10 and Pac 12 have gotten everybody looking at 10-game seasons, it might be a little premature. The Pac 12 has tried for the last century to do everything the Big 10 does.
Maybe the SEC, Big 12 and ACC will follow along, but don’t count on it.
At this point, the normal pre-planning required for a school to host a game is a little different. Fans aren’t really much of a consideration although it should be up to each individual and how much risk they’re willing to take.
In Arkansas, even with a positive test regardless of your age or health the odds of survival after Saturday’s numbers are 99%.
For the athletes at the UA down to the pee wee level, the chance of dying or even getting seriously ill has so many zeroes on the right side of the decimal it’s literally negligible. Folks who are at-risk should stay away from as many people as possible.
The Sooners, though, aren’t quite ready to just throw the green light up high and tell fans to start making their travel plans.
“If the season is indeed permitted to start as scheduled, the benefit of extra time between games will help our teams manage any variety of possible circumstances that may occur,” Oklahoma athletics director Joe Castiglione said in a statement. “Our original schedule had an open date between the second and third games, so now we will have a span of five weeks to play three games.
“It provides us a more gradual approach to safely manage the conditions of these unprecedented times. We’re thankful to Missouri State for their cooperation during this process and to the NCAA for allowing both teams to start the season a week earlier.”
The Sooners won’t be playing a 10-game conference-only schedule. They already play the other nine schools in the conference.
It does give them some flexibility in the scheduling, though.
Which is probably going to be the first shuffle in what’s going to be a schedule that could change frequently.
Boyd’s numbers puts him on watch list Friday for Maxwell Award
FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas running back Rakeem Boyd added another preseason honor to his resume, as the senior has been named to the Maxwell Award watch list.
The award is presented annually to the college football player of the year and will be awarded for the 84th time at the conclusion of this season.
Boyd ran 184 times for 1,133 yards and eight touchdowns last season, leading the Razorbacks in rushing yards for the second consecutive season.
The Houston, Texas, native ranked fourth in the SEC and 27th nationally averaging 94.4 yards per game on the ground; in addition, Boyd’s 6.4 yards per carry ranked ninth in the conference. On just eight carries, he rushed for a career-best 185 yards against Western Kentucky, averaging 23.1 yards per attempt, including two touchdown runs of 76 and 86 yards with the latter being a season-long.
Boyd joined Clemson’s Travis Etienne and LSU’s Clyde Edwards-Helaire as the only backs in the country to record over 180 rushing yards and 23 yards per carry in a single game in 2019.
He accumulated five 100-plus yard rushing games last season against: Portland State (114), Colorado State (122), Kentucky (134), Mississippi State (114) and Western Kentucky (185), joining a club of just 16 running backs in school history to register at least eight career 100-yard games.
Boyd scored two touchdowns in a game three times in 2019 versus Colorado State, Kentucky and Western Kentucky. Boyd also caught 19 passes for 160 yards (8.4 ypc), accruing a season-high 55 receiving yards against Alabama.
He ran for 734 yards on 123 attempts (6.2 ypc) in his first year with the Razorbacks in 2018 and scored two touchdowns. Boyd earned the inaugural Darren McFadden Running Back of the Year award from the Little Rock Touchdown Club for his performance.
Last week Boyd was tabbed to the Doak Walker Award Watch List, given annually to the best running back in the country.
Earlier this week, senior kicker A.J. Reed earned Lou Groza Award Watch List honors as one of the nation’s best placekickers, while sophomore wide receiver and return man Treylon Burks picked up Paul Hornung Award Watch List recognition for being one of college football’s most versatile players.
The Maxwell Award has been awarded annually since 1937 and is named in honor of Robert “Tiny” Maxwell, a former standout at Swarthmore College, and a renowned sportswriter and football official.
Information from Razorback Sports Communications is included in this story.
ON HALFTIME: Torres glad to see baseball starting again, living life without fear
Aaron Torres of the Fox Sports Podcast is remaining careful but ready to start living life again in midst of pandemic, he told Phil Elson, Matt Jenkins and Matt Travis (Halftime) on ESPN Arkansas Friday afternoon.
Notre Dame has Hogs game in discussions for ACC’s 10-plus-one schedule
South Bend Tribune writer Eric Hansen said on The Morning Rush that a 10-game ACC schedule plus one non-conference game keeps Hogs in mix for game with Irish.
“They are happy to fall in line with what the ACC is doing,” Hansen told Tye Richardson and Tommy Craft (The Morning Rush) on ESPN Arkansas on Friday morning.
Right now, he said, the ACC is looking at a 10-game conference schedule plus one non-conference game to preserve traditional matchups.
Notre Dame’s sticking point is a 93-year rivalry with Navy and the Arkansas game. The Razorbacks at least have a fighting chance with that one because it would be a home game for the Irish while Navy is a road game.
Hansen said Irish coach Brian Kelly is more in favor of playing the Hogs, a game fans have been looking to for years.
