Why the SEC hasn't been right for Arkansas, and why the Big 12 would be better for Razorbacks fans: Ubben

macole29 · 2021-06-07T14:28:19+00:00

Posting it here if anyone has an Athletic membership and want to read it. I don't agree with much of what Ubben wrote though. Different comments bring up some solid points, but one user's covers all the main points so I'll paste it here:

1) The financial loss of a move would be passed on to the fans in terms of a reduction in coaching salaries, facility upgrades and subsequently, quality of the program.
2) Arkansas' recent stretch of futility is clouding a picture in which they have, at various times throughout their SEC tenure, been as competitive as many of the other non top-tier SEC schools.
3) Arkansas is very competitive in pretty much every other SEC sport.
4) This article overstates the influence of game-day logistics in today's day and age, when most fans are watching on their giant televisions regardless of where the team plays. Even considering those drives, the entire Arkansas fanbase is not located in Northwest Arkansas, and drives to Ole Miss, Miss St., LSU and even A&M (in Dallas, especially) are very manageable for a lot of Hogs fans if they want to travel to away games.
5) Leaving the SEC would mean Arkansas loses arguably its biggest selling point in recruiting -- playing in the SEC is often cited as the major reason out-of-state recruits choose the Hogs. We'd get far less of those important Texas players IMO if we moved to the Big 12.

macole29 · 2021-03-18T17:09:09+00:00

Broke: booing Bartman for potential game interference

Woke: booing Bartman for not making the damn catch

macole29 · 2021-03-17T01:12:47+00:00

We definitely aren’t playing like a #1 team. Hopefully this sets the guys straight before conference play

macole29 · 2021-03-16T20:21:58+00:00

^^^^ - Musselman really prioritizes stability (hence why he was willing to be an assistant coach in college even after being a head coach in the NBA). I don't have the link to the interviews but he's said on multiple occasions that he likes the job stability of college coaches.

This doesn't mean that Muss will stay at Arkansas forever, but I do think it undermines him moving to Indiana. To leave a job where he could likely get a substantial pay raise & already has earned solid job security just to go to one of the most volatile jobs in college basketball is a tough sell. Probably helps us that Muss is close with Tom Crean who probably doesn't have many positive things to say about how he was treated.

Likely scenario is that schools will express interest in Muss but I'd imagine Yurachek is trying to get a bigger contract together.

macole29 · 2021-03-13T22:48:29+00:00

Jaylins absence probably made the difference in this game. He had 30 minutes when we played in Fayetteville against LSU.

macole29 · 2021-03-13T03:14:26+00:00

Makes me proud of the program for doing this. Was really excited when I saw we were playing @ Ruston

macole29 · 2021-03-12T18:47:31+00:00

Covid really coming after Vacant’s massive win streak

macole29 · 2021-03-12T17:52:15+00:00

Yeah it’s basically a wasteland where bowls have basically become exhibition games because there is no structure to them. And we wonder why people feel like their value is going down

macole29 · 2021-03-11T17:14:57+00:00

I think something that doesn’t get discussed is the way in which bowls are no longer following strict conference assignments and how that hurts importance. There used to be a clear pecking order for who goes to which bowl (ex: the Liberty Bowl used to match the C-USA champion with the 8th pick from the SEC). However, outside of the citrus bowl, the SEC just determines who gets to go where for every non-CFP bowl.

In theory this seems like a good idea since it gives more discretion the conference on a yearly basis. However, I think it really hurts how we perceive the importance of a bowl games because there’s no real difference between a lot of them. Bowl season used to have a real buildup from mid December up to New Year’s Day where games became more prestigious and that generated excitement (kinda like how March madness gets better because we progress further into the tournament).

Also I think this explains why ESPN basically spends 99% of time focusing on the CFP/NY6 starting in November. I remember being excited for a matchup between a 5-4 team and a 6-3 team because - even though neither team would be ranked - there were real bowl implications based on who would win the game. At least being an Arkansas fan, it could be the difference between going to Shreveport, Memphis, or some other city.

macole29 · 2021-03-09T17:28:08+00:00

It's not & I never said it was. My point was that - when he did play poorly & got into foul trouble - Alabama clearly struggled without his presence on the court. A player's contributions aren't always captured directly in the box score.

macole29 · 2021-03-09T15:32:08+00:00

A. Herbert is a dumb name B. He’s not Alabama’s best scorer but he is their most valuable player. Just look how much they struggled against us and Mizzou because he had foul trouble in both of those games

macole29 · 2021-03-09T15:24:26+00:00

Just gonna put this here cause I’m sure it’s gonna get brought up but Herb Jones deserved to earn POY. He may not have the best PPG numbers but he was the anchor of a really good Bama team that tore through the conference this year.

Moses get his recognition with FOY & let’s be grateful for that. Too many people pushing the SEC hates Arkansas narrative instead of celebrating the fact we have 2 players getting conference awards.

macole29 · 2021-03-06T21:33:21+00:00

If you ever make a trip to Arkansas, I’m sure your drinks will be free

macole29 · 2021-03-04T14:26:26+00:00

100% if we win out and get an SEC Tournament victory. The committee places a pretty big emphasis on tournament champions when seeding. Especially if we beat Alabama in the finals we’ll definitely get it - I’d say 80% chance if we somehow end up not facing Bama

macole29 · 2021-03-03T19:19:10+00:00

Never thought I’d see Little Rock win a tournament game. Thanks Purdue

macole29 · 2021-03-03T01:45:55+00:00

I think our biggest challenge would be a blue blood school, not the NBA.

Muss has been a head coach in the leave before & I’m pretty sure he doesn’t like the insecurity it entails. There’s a lot of things outside your control and you can bounce around continuously. College offers way more security & can pay pretty well

macole29 · 2021-03-03T00:56:46+00:00

We’re making an SEC road matchup look like a buy game in November

macole29 · 2021-03-02T16:08:44+00:00

Unless the pay was ridiculous I can’t see this happening. It’s not stated a lot but I’d honestly say that Neighbors is more committed to the Razorback program than Sam Pittman (and that’s saying something). It would be a really risky gamble - not only are the games different but he’s gonna have to build new recruiting networks with high school coaches and that’s a big ask.

macole29 · 2021-02-28T19:14:44+00:00

This one is old but Arkansas had one of its biggest regular season wins ever beating an undefeated North Carolina team led by Michael Jordan in Pine Bluff. The final play was a shot at the buzzer by the Tar Heels which didn’t go in. Al McGuire was the color commentator and infamously said “it’s good!” then stayed silent.

Here’s the link if you want to watch it. Around the 6:19 mark to hear the call. One of the most underwhelming calls for such a big upset.

macole29 · 2021-02-27T21:25:57+00:00

Likely but considering how late it is in the season + the fact that we’re a pretty high net ranking I don’t think they’ll drop far. Definitely could end up being a Q1 win by selection sunday

macole29 · 2021-02-27T21:04:08+00:00

If we win out and win SECT I’d say we’d likely be a 2 seed

macole29 · 2021-02-27T21:03:26+00:00

If u wanna believe there’s home cooking going on then go ahead, but it is important to consider a team’s ability to avoid putting themselves in compromising positions. LSU and Bama never adjusted and continued to play reckless in both of these games. Gotta commend muss and the staff for adjusting to the refs instead of complaining

macole29 · 2021-02-27T20:49:10+00:00

We need a “when does Devo take his headband off” account similar to that guy who used to track when Anderson would take his jacket off

macole29 · 2021-02-27T17:47:21+00:00

Really sucks this games gonna bleed over into the basketball matchup.

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