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Rogers’ de-commitment from Razorbacks part of shuffling we’ll see this year

Andy Hodges
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Rogers’ de-commitment from Razorbacks part of shuffling we’ll see this year

In a season that offers no handbook on how to handle, three-star Little Rock Parkview quarterback Landon Rogers re-opened his recruiting after committing to Arkansas in April.

Considering the unprecedented surge of committed players during this time of college football coaches having to figure out new ways of evaluating and landing pledges there will be others.

Rogers tweeted his decision early Saturday afternoon:

Rogers had offers from Kansas and Houston in addition to multiple FBS schools.

And this doesn’t mean he won’t be coming to Fayetteville.

“I want to make sure I’m making the right decision,” is the key line from his announcement.

Apparently somebody has talked him into taking another look, but the Razorbacks won’t be starting from scratch.

He had over 2,200 total yards of offense, throwing for 1,661 yards, 19 touchdowns and only two interceptions while competing 54.4 percent of his throws. He also averaged 6.3 yards per carry on the ground, getting 584 yards and scoring 10 times.

The Hogs also have a commitment from San Antonio Cornerstone Christian quarterback Lucas Coley, who is also a three-star recruit, ranked 18th as a dual-threat by the 247Sports.com composite ranking system that had Rogers at No. 32.

According to the recruiting lists out there, Arkansas still has 12 commits for the 2021 class.

But this will be a different year.

Everybody is going to lose some pledges. It’s going to be part of the process this recruiting season.

Of course the flip side to that is the Hogs and Sam Pittman are probably going to pick up some folks, which they already have done.

There will be more.

Norvell on Wolfpack’s experience being a positive through ‘virtual’ offseason

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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Nevada coach Jay Norvell told Derek Ruscin and Zach Arns (Ruscin & Zach) Thursday afternoon on ESPN Arkansas his team’s experience has made things a little easier with learning, installing new things virtually.

Hogs flip Georgia linebacker from Nebraska as 13th commitment for 2021

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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Hogs flip Georgia linebacker from Nebraska as 13th commitment for 2021

Arkansas picked up a commitment Thursday evening from Georgia three-star linebacker Christopher Paul who had pledged to Nebraska until a few weeks ago.

Paul made the announcement via Twitter:

At a position short on numbers the past few years, Sam Pittman and defensive coordinator Barry Odom are working to change that.

The Razorbacks added three linebackers from high school and a graduate transfer in Levi Draper from Oklahoma with two years of eligibility left.

The three high school linebackers are Kelin Burrie (6-0, 205) from Harvy, Louisiana, Helen Cox, Atlanta Woodward Academy’s Jacorrei Turner (6-2, 205) and J.T. Towers (6-2, 205) from Joe T. Robinson.

? HALFTIME POD presented by Jeff’s Club House ? 7/2/2020

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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? HALFTIME POD presented by Jeff’s Club House ? 7/2/2020

Musselman on new assistant coach, roster, schedule, even haircuts (no, seriously)

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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Razorback coach Eric Musselman talked at a Zoom press conference late Thursday afternoon about new assistant coach David Patrick and other topics down to even his haircut (that’s near the end).

Musselman hires Riverside head coach as Hogs’ associate head coach

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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Musselman hires Riverside head coach as Hogs’ associate head coach

FAYETTEVILLE — California-Riverside head coach David Patrick was named associate head coach at Arkansas, according to a press release from coach Eric Musselman on Wednesday afternoon.

Patrick was a finalist for two national coach of the year awards this past season.

“He will fit seamlessly into our basketball family,” Musselman said in the release. “His basketball knowledge is excellent and he is someone I have great comfort discussing all the intricacies that go with building a winning program.”

Musselman and Patrick previously worked together at LSU, helping the Tigers reach the 2015 NCAA Tournament. Patrick was also responsible for the recruitment of 2016 number one overall NBA Draft pick Ben Simmons, while at LSU.

Here is Patrick’s comment that was also included in the release:

“I am honored to be reuniting with Coach Musselman at the University of Arkansas,” Patrick said. “I am incredibly grateful for my time as head coach at UC Riverside and want to sincerely thank every single person that I had the pleasure of working with during my time there. I especially want to thank (Director of Intercollegiate Athletics) Tamica Smith Jones and the administration at UC Riverside for giving me the opportunity of serving as their head coach, as well as our student-athletes, for without you, I would not be in this position. The chance to help lead the historic Arkansas program, be close to home, and return to SEC basketball was one that my family and I could not turn down. We cannot wait to get down to Fayetteville and I cannot wait to get to work to continue pushing the Razorback program forward.”

Prior to the season being cut short due to COVID-19, the Highlanders received invitations to play in the College Insider Tournament (CIT) and the College Basketball Invitational (CBI) postseason tournaments.

A Melbourne, Australia, native and current assistant coach for the Australian Men’s National Basketball Team, Patrick helped lead the Australia Boomers to a fourth-place finish in the 2019 FIBA World Championships.

In 2019 Patrick also helped guide the Boomers to a historic 98-94 win over Team USA for the first time in history.

Patrick coached NBA champions and Australian National Team guards Patty Mills and Matthew Dellavedova during their collegiate careers at Saint Mary’s College (Calif.) Patrick’s reputation as a savvy and experienced recruiter is attributed to his ability to attract top talent.

At LSU, he was integral in landing the nation’s number five and number three-ranked recruiting classes of 2013 and 2015, respectively.

Patrick posted a 27-38 record at UC-Riverside, the best two-year start in school history. He inherited a program that won just nine games the season prior to his arrival and quickly turned the program around.

The Highlanders won 17 games last season, which tied the most wins in Division I program history. The Highlanders led the Big West Conference and ranked eighth nationally in scoring defense (60.6 ppg).

The squad additionally led the Big West in 3-point field goal attempts (722) while ranking second in the league in defensive rebounding (27.03 avg.), field goal percentage defense (.404), rebound margin (+5.5), 3-point field goals made (7.9 per game/254 total) and total rebounds (35.78 per game/1,145 total).

In his first season at UC-Riverside, the Highlanders broke several program records including 279 three-point shots made, culminating in a Big West-best .379 three-point shooting percentage (ranked 28th nationally).

Prior to his time at UC Riverside, Patrick made an immediate impact in his two seasons as assistant head coach at TCU, playing a significant role in the second-largest turnaround in program history.

The 2016-17 Horned Frogs went 24-15, good for a 12-game improvement over the previous year. The final win of the season came in the championship game of the NIT (National Invitation Tournament), an 88-56 victory over Georgia Tech that gave TCU its first ever postseason championship.

The 24 wins were also the second-most in school history. The following season (2017-18), TCU went 21-12 and qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 20 years, earning a number six seed.

Patrick spent four years at LSU, the final two as assistant head coach, helping the Tigers reach the 2014 NIT and 2015 NCAA Tournament.

He served as a scout for the Houston Rockets for two seasons (2010-12) and as an assistant coach for four years at Saint Mary’s (2006-10). During his tenure in Moraga, the Gaels had school record-setting seasons in 2008 and 2010.

Both teams finished with 28-win seasons and the 2010 squad made it to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. He began his coaching career at Nicholls State (2005-06).

Patrick was born in Bermuda and grew up in Australia. He played one season at Syracuse, with his team reaching the 1996 NCAA Championship game, and then was a point guard at UL Lafayette from 1997-2000.

He also played four years professionally in Australia, England and Spain.

Following a stint playing with the Australian Junior National Team, Patrick came to the United States in 1994. As a high schooler, he was selected as the Louisiana Player of the Year after leading Trafton Academy to the state quarterfinals.

That same year, he was named the district’s MVP, earned a First Team All-Parish selection, and was chosen to participate in the Louisiana State High School All-Star Game.

Patrick is married to the former Cassie Frank of Oberlin, La., and they have two daughters.

THE PATRICK FILE

Personal

• Hometown: Melbourne, Australia
• High School: Chapel Trafton (Baton Rouge, La.)
• Alma Mater: UL Lafayette (2000)

Playing Experience

• 1995-96: Syracuse – reached 1996 NCAA Final Four (national runner-up)
• 1996-2000: UL Lafayette (then known as Southwestern Louisiana) – sat out the 1996-97 season per NCAA transfer rules; reached the 2000 NCAA Tournament
• 2000-01: Canberra Cannons (Australia’s National Basketball League)
• 2001-03: Chester Jets (British Basketball League)
• 2003-05: Amics del Bàsquet Castelló (Spanish Basketball Federation)

Coaching Experience

• 2005-06: Nicholls State (Assistant Coach)
• 2006-10: Saint Mary’s (Calif.) (Assistant Coach) – 2008 & 2010 NCAA Tournaments (2010 Sweet 16); 2009 NIT
• 2010-12: Houston Rockets (Personnel Scout)
• 2012-14: LSU (Assistant Coach) – 2014 NIT
• 2014-16: LSU (Assistant Head Coach) – 2015 NCAA Tournament
• 2016-18: TCU (Assistant Head Coach) – 2018 NCAA Tournament; 2017 NIT Champion
• 2018-20: UC-Riverside (Head Coach) – 2020 Finalist for two national Coach of the Year awards
• 2019-Present: Australian National Team (Assistant Coach)
• 2020-Present: Arkansas (Associate Head Coach)

Information from Razorback Sports Communications is included in this story.

? HALFTIME POD presented by Jeff’s Club House ? 7/1/2020

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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? HALFTIME POD presented by Jeff’s Club House ? 7/1/2020

Kjerstad with Orioles’ general manager and area scout that followed him

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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Baltimore general manager Mike Elias along with former Razorback Heston Kjerstad and area scout Ken Guthrie press conference Wednesday morning.

Bud Light Seltzer Morning Rush Podcast — Reaction to Sam Pittman, new SEC head coaches

Tye Richardson
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Bud Light Seltzer Morning Rush Podcast — Reaction to Sam Pittman, new SEC head coaches

Tye & Tommy on what Sam Pittman had to say, plus which new SEC coach will be at his school the longest/shortest

Pittman’s offensive linemen getting bigger, Boyd thinks may be best group

Andy Hodges
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Pittman’s offensive linemen getting bigger, Boyd thinks may be best group

Well, Sam Pittman has said from the start he thought Arkansas needed more size in the offensive line and more speed.

Apparently mama’s cooking helps with the former.

“Their mamas must be pretty good at cooking,” Pittman said in a Zoom conference Tuesday afternoon. “It was quality weight. Right now I’m very pleased with the size of our offensive line. To me, bigger’s better as long as we can move, and that’s what we’re trying to get done right now.”

The fact it’s quality weight was the eye-catching part of that comment. What that could mean is the virtual training the players did with no spring practice worked about as well as it could have.

It may be awhile before anybody admits it, but it’s not that big of a reach to not be surprised to find out coaches were worried about them coming back fat and out of shape.

Pittman can’t watch the ongoing voluntary workouts or really dig into a lot of what happened (a silly rule that really makes absolutely zero sense). It doesn’t mean the coaches are struck deaf.

Running back Rakeem Boyd does get to see the offensive line and even works out with them somewhere away from the campus in their team-led workouts.

“That’s probably the most impressive group right now,” he said Tuesday afternoon.

Offensive tackle Myron Cunningham has gotten a lot of folks’ attention. Pittman said the senior was around 285 last season and now is tipping the scales at 319, he said. He needed it and NFL scouts have probably noticed.

“It’s hard to set the bull when you don’t have enough butt to set it with,” he said. “I had a nice conversation with him and I’m thinking he’s going to have a nice season. But he worked hard at gaining that weight and staying in shape.”

Listening to Boyd, Cunningham may not be the only one that changed.

“This is the best they’ve ever looked,” Boyd said. “They look in shape and they’ve communicated. We’ve got workouts and the whole group is together game-planning.”

His excitement was visible.

“As a running back when you see something like that you can’t do nothing but smile because you know what is gonna happen during the season,” he said. “Those guys are in shape.”

If that translates on the field it would be welcome news for Hog fans who have seen an offensive line decline since, well, Pittman left after the 2015 season.

“We’re in pretty good shape for where we’re at right now and at this point in time of the season,” he said. “We’ve got a much bigger football team than we had in mid to late March.”

? HALFTIME POD presented by Jeff’s Club House ? 6/30/2020

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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? HALFTIME POD presented by Jeff’s Club House ? 6/30/2020

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