Nutt hasn’t lost touch in talking up Hogs; how Gazzola praised Pittman years ago
Houston Nutt doesn’t know Sam Pittman at all, but he got a ringing endorsement years ago and it’s something he remembers well about the new Arkansas coach.
It came from the late Pat Gazzola, the owner of The Catfish Hole, several years ago when Pittman was an assistant under Bret Bielema.
“He couldn’t say enough about coach Pittman,” Nutt said Wednesday afternoon to Derek Ruscin and Zach Arns (Ruscin & Zach) on ESPN Arkansas.
Nutt, now working with the CBS Sports Network as a college football analyst, has heard about Pittman and had nothing but praise.
“When I listen to him talk he just embraces it,” Nutt said about Pittman’s genuine love for the state and the team. “That comes through.”
It’s something that’s been missing over a string of coaches that have basically run the football program into the ground.
Nutt was 75-49 (60.5 percent) over a decade with two SEC Championship Game appearances. Since then, the Hogs have gone 71-79 (47.3 percent) that includes a two-year run of 21-5.
Don’t bring the excuse it would have continued if there hadn’t been a motorcycle in the ditch near Elkins because it wasn’t. Bobby Petrino never sustained success anywhere he has landed and the talent level (especially on defense) was running low in a hurry.
Nutt didn’t talk about any of that, but nobody since then has truly embraced the unique situation that is Razorback football (and it is whether you believe it or not).
“When you go corner to corner in this state, go into a restaurant and somewhere in there is a Razorback,” Nutt said. “I remember growing up in Little Rock and coming across channel 7 KATV and they start calling the Hogs.
“It gives you the chills when you’re 7 or 8 years old. That’s big when you have a state that gets behind your team.”
Things have changed over the last 50 years. Mostly the number of wins.
Arkansas has tried it several different ways over 12 seasons since Nutt departed Fayetteville but there hasn’t been much consistency.
Petrino was all offense and not much defense at a time when he won over 10 games two seasons in a row and still finished third in the SEC West. He never could win the games you had to win to get to Atlanta.
Don’t ask me what the other guys were trying to do because it appeared they didn’t really have a clue. None really understood Arkansas and tried to re-create successful programs elsewhere … which has never worked.
Even Frank Broyles discovered that. His first season he tried running the offense that was the hot item at the time (the Delaware Wing-T) but gave up at the halfway point of the season and went back to what he knew.
Broyles even dabbled with the Wishbone and won one game that counted (1974 over USC in Little Rock) before committing to the Veer and reaching the Cotton Bowl.
Nutt won with a dropback passer in Clint Stoerner, a scrambler in Matt Jones and a running attack with Darren McFadden and Felix Jones. It was crazy to do anything but run D-Mac and Felix, in my opinion unless you wanted to try a pass to let them catch their breath.
Nutt knew how to win at Arkansas and Broyles was the only one with more wins.
And he offered some encouraging words for fans.
“It can turn in a minute,” he said.
Which is what fans are hoping happens.
Nutt’s almost perfect impression of Lou Holtz on Matt Jones’ finally graduating
Arkansas coach Houston Nutt was on Ruscin & Zach on Wednesday afternoon and talked about Lou Holtz meeting him at midfield and asking when quarterback Matt Jones as finally going to graduate.
Musselman: ‘It’s nonsense’ for basketball to not have uniform rules for all levels
Arkansas coach Eric Musselman had a good point Wednesday afternoon.
“College basketball keeps doing the same thing,” he he told Phil Elson, Matt Jenkins and Matt Travis (Halftime) on ESPN Arkansas. “So now, all of a sudden, the NBA and the G-League have become in some people’s eyes as competition for college basketball.”
With the announcement of the G-League Special League it allows players to make the leap straight to the professional level without getting lost in the shuffle of trying to play in the NBA.
“Obviously the money is astronomical with some of the salaries they’re getting,” Musselman said. “My thought process is we need to sell our game to all the great high school players. We have to be adaptable
“We need more rules like the NBA because that’s where these players want to get to.”
Talking like that may cause some folks to faint. Men’s college basketball has always been a little different with two halves while nearly everything else has four quarters like women’s basketball and high school.
Women’s college basketball even lets you take the ball at half court after a dead ball late in halves.
“When I go watch coach (Mike) Neighbors’ team play they have four quarters, the NBA has four quarters,” Musselman said. “Why does college basketball not have four quarters? I wish all of us could get as close as possible.”
Part of the problem is high school basketball nationwide that has a knack for making it up a little different from state to state.
“Even the high schools are reluctant to change,” he said. “The more uniform we can be the easier it is to attract fans and not confuse them. We should all have the same rules.”
There is a disconnect within the overall sport of basketball which requires almost a complete set of rules books every time you go to a different level.
“It’s crazy,” Musselman said. “The people that are making the rules are not talking to people that have played both rules. You can’t go talk to a college coach that’s been coaching at an institution for 25 years and ask him about advancing the ball.
“I can already tell you what they’re going to say. You need to go to talk the coaches who have coached under both umbrellas. Go ask coach Neighbors what he likes best. Go talk to coaches who have coached both college and the NBA.”
Getting the ball at midcourt late in games would completely change what a lot of coaches have done with strategy and they don’t like change.
“It gives the offense a better chance to score,” Musselman said. “The defense now has to guard closer to the rim and there’s more strategy than inbounding the ball with four seconds to go and then going the length of the floor.
“It really just turns into luck as opposed to being able to get your team in a huddle, diagram something with two or three different options. It’s nonsense we don’t have a uniform set of rules.”
Hopefully he won’t hold his breath waiting on that.
ESPN’s insider on Kjerstad being high on draft boards, including Phil’s Pirates
Heston Kjerstad is high on Phil Elson’s beloved Pittsburgh Pirates’ draft spot at No. 7 and ESPN insider Kiley McDaniel said on Halftime Wednesday afternoon they have him on their radar.
Are regional matchups like Hogs-Memphis becoming more likely now?
There aren’t a lot of benefits for college athletics right now with far more questions than answers but the economic hit may force schools like Arkansas and others to start scheduling by geography.
My view is there would be more fan interest in playing schools like Memphis or even the community college in Jonesboro than bringing in the likes of Nevada or Charleston Wherever.
It’s not just my opinion, but CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander had the same thoughts Wednesday morning with Tye Richardson and Tommy Craft (The Morning Rush) on ESPN Arkansas.
“We will see (geographic rivalries) well established a year or two from now,” Norlander said. “The financial impact of all this will be realized in ’21, ’22 and ’23. When it comes to who you can play, geography might end up having a real impact on that.”
The guess here is the current coronavirus crisis is going to change a lot of college athletics and that might not be all that bad.
With Penny Hardaway and Eric Musselman having a cordial relationship, it really doesn’t make sense to NOT play in that sport. Exactly why the Razorbacks don’t play Memphis every year in basketball and football has been a head-scratcher.
It won’t be surprising to see that happen.
“Given what Penny has said since he’s taken the gig he just doesn’t seem like a coach who’s scared of that kind of stuff and not worried about any previous politics with that,” Norlander said.
The coaches can get the ball rolling, but it’s going to take Hunter Yurachek to just lay out the numbers and increased fan interest for the games to actually happen.
“This applies to college football as much as college basketball,” Norlander said. “It is such a good thing for the health and interest of the sport when you have natural geographic rivals that aren’t in the same conference that are willing to play each other — ideally — annually, but short of that at least frequently.
“For Memphis and Arkansas there’s almost no reason not to do it.”
He’s got a point there that some have wondered about for awhile. If nothing else, the Hogs have struggled mightily against lesser teams the last few years in football.
Musselman is upgrading the schedule in basketball by taking his team to neutral-site matchups, leaving a chance for home matchups that could boost some of that attendance that falls a bit in November and December.
Even going to Memphis for a game every other year would probably create a hot ticket for a road game in an NBA facility in a downtown where Razorback fans usually find a way to have a good time.
“Why wouldn’t you?” Norlander said. “At this point Memphis and Arkansas are essentially on even footing. Playing each other would benefit both programs, the fan bases would be into it.
“Both coaches certainly seem to see the game in a lot of ways that would help it. It would be terrific.”
Quite possibly it could get both programs some solid early-season exposure on a broader scale.
“Is a Memphis-Arkansas game going to bring in wide national appeal?” Norlander said. “Not necessarily, but it’s not going to be a thing where only people in the region care.
“If you tell me Arkansas Memphis, we look up in two years from now and they’re playing a game, both of these teams have made the NCAA Tournament, both of these teams are bringing in five-star recruits and have really strong classes, yes that becomes a game on a given day.
“Say they play on the first Saturday in December and both teams are in the tournament, that becomes a game — almost certainly — that’s a top three game that day. It would be one of the top games that day.”
It’s something Norlander feels the sport needs.
“We need more coaches, athletic directors and their schools to be willing to do that.” he said. “It inherently helps the sport. Sometimes ego gets in the way. Missouri and Kansas are doing it in football and basketball. I would love to see it.”
That may be a big boost after this shutdown business as they start to sort things out. The guess here is expenses are going to be scrutinized more closely … at least for a few years.
Which may force some of these schools to do what they should have been doing for awhile.
Bud Light Seltzer Morning Rush Podcast — Players coming back, Matt Norlander and more!
Tye & Tommy on who they are excited for coming back, Matt Norlander of CBS Sports joins plus What’s Your Beef Wed!
Williams on making move from Southside to Pea Ridge, but having to wait
When Jeff Williams decided to make the move from Fort Smith Southside to Pea Ridge, he knew what he was getting into but it’s still frustrating not even being able to meet his new players.
“That’s the weird part,” he told Derek Ruscin and Zach Arns (Ruscin & Zach) on ESPN Arkansas Tuesday afternoon. “Everybody’s going through this. From West Memphis to Warren, Arkansas, to Northwest Arkansas to Central Arkansas …. everybody’s in the same situation.”
Williams coached Southside for 15 years. He’s coached in four state championship games and won one, downing Rogers in 2007. Leaving wasn’t an easy decision for the coach that’s followed two Hall of Famers in Scooter Register at El Dorado, then Barry Lunney at Southside.
“You could just watch Pea Ridge over the last couple of years, just how the community has grown and how successful the football program’s been,” he said. “I’ve been at Southside for over 15 years and had a lot of great times and great memories. It wasn’t an easy decision. There’s a lot of great people in Fort Smith that I’ve been a part of for a long time.”
But he’s going to have to wait awhile just to actually get to meet his players.
“We’re going to go up and meet the coaches and see what they’ve been doing then try to set up some Zoom meetings, get familiar with the kids and where we need to put them,” he said. “Hopefully we can get started pretty soon. I’m hearing rumors here and there but until somebody gives us something definite we’re just waiting.”
But he’s been getting a plan together since before he got the job in Pea Ridge.
“I had sat down with the Southside staff and kinda had a plan if we get ’em back in June what we need to do, if we get ’em back in July this is what we need to do, if we get ’em back August 1 this is what we need to do and if we don’t get ’em back until the middle of August this is what we need to do,” Williams said.
“You gotta have a plan. Coaches are big planners. I’m an organized guy and you get your yearly plan, then a monthly plan, then a weekly plan, then a daily plan.”
That is what coaches tend to do.
“We’re all big planners and it’s about to drive everybody crazy,”. The No. 1 thing is to be safe. The worst thing that could happen is come back too early and this epidemic spikes back up and we’re back to ground zero.”
Most of the talk has been about colleges and pro sports getting back to business as usual, but this is not something high school coaches have seen, either.
“It’s kinda been mind-boggling,” Williams said. “I never thought it would get to this.
“The best thing you can do is prepare. You just kinda roll your sleeves up and go to work when they let us loose.”
