While Houston Nutt and the football team are enjoying a very successful season highlighted by a SEC Championship game appearance and a Capital One Bowl trip, and Dave Van Horn continues to prepare his squad for what may be a run at the 2007 College World Series, Stan Heath and his Razorback basketball team sit in the middle…continuing to tread water.
Laden with eight upperclassmen, Coach Heath and the Hogs appear to be middle of the pack, at best, in the SEC again. And a program that was once a national power continues to swim in a sea of mediocrity.
Stan pulled us out of the ditch after Nolan left…no doubt about it. You have to give him credit for the rebuilding job he has done given the mess he inherited. He put us back on the road. But now some are asking, “the road to where?”
Assistant Dan Hipsher has helped Heath somewhat since joining the staff last year. And new assistant Glynn Cyprien, who has a good resume and comes highly recommended, should as well. But entering his fifth season at Arkansas, Heath is still learning the ropes, and there’s nothing like “on-the-job training” for a college head coach. Mike Anderson and his Missouri Tigers took us to school in the thumping they put on us in Columbia last month. And Bobby Knight and Texas Tech did the same last Saturday.
As much as I pull for our team and for Stan, this team will not be competitive for a SEC title, a Western Division title, or for that matter, a NCAA tournament birth. Is this acceptable for Arkansas basketball?
I hate to use the University of Texas as an example, but watching how they have reloaded after graduating their entire Elite Eight team (starting four talented freshmen and beating LSU last week), it makes you wonder what in the world we are doing.
After watching first-hand how Junction City’s James Anderson tore up the Holiday Hoops Tournament, the loss of him signing with Oklahoma State last month was critical. It was unnerving, to say the least, to watch him on the same floor as our two recruits from Springdale Har-Ber High. The Har-Ber players (one signed) are good. Anderson is great. The takeaway: we should not be settling for signing good players in a year where we only have one or two scholarships to offer.
The success of Nutt, Van Horn and their teams this season will mask it for a while, but eventually fans will demand excellence in Razorback basketball again. Until then, we’ll have to enjoy our relegated spot as third or fourth in the West, eighth or ninth in the SEC, and home court advantage for all the NIT games we can eat.
I agree with your "on the job training" view, but I keep waiting to see the results of some lessons learned. So far I'm seeing squat. Granted, I only get to watch the games that are nationally televised, but I'm not seeing anything that can be catagorized as coaching improvements. I watched in horror as TT ran off 18 straight last Saturday and Heath just sat there. I've never seen him get animated to the point of lighting somebody up, and I think that would have gotten a message across to the team that what was going on was not acceptable! Another thing… when does dribbling 35 feet from the goal at the top of the key while the big men are half-heartedly setting screens underneath the goal constitute an offense? Our guys are showing no improvement in their game or in the understanding of the game. The only guy that looks like he gives a crap is Beverly. The rest of them look like they could be playing in a YMCA rec league. I'm not sure what contribution Hipsher is making, if any, but these guys (coaches AND players) have been there long enough that we should see a progression being made. I don't see it yet.
Iowa – agreed on Beverly…he cares, you can tell from his enthusiasm and play on the court.
What do you think it's going to look like in two years when we graduate 8 players and Beverly goes pro?
We'll see tonight if it looks any better in Austin. I'm not expecting a completely different team to show up, but you never know. I'll be rootin' em on. Go Hogs.
It's a bit premature I think to make statements like:
"this team will not be competitive for a SEC title, a Western Division title, or for that matter, a NCAA tournament birth."
They have yet to play a conference game and sit at 8-2. It may not look good from where you sit, but it's way too early to write the season off.
I think I'll let the season play out a bit more before I throw it in the trash.
Butch, that's not like you. If I recall, you were ready to throw the football team under the bus before they ever played a game.
Butch – I'm basing my opinion not only on our play, but after watching all of the other SEC teams play at least once. Georgia is much improved (beat Gonzaga). Vandy is too (beat Georgia Tech). I just don't think we can win on the road, and I see a few losses at Bud.
Right now, I see five teams in the East better than us, and two in the West. I don't think the SEC is going to get 8 teams in the tourney.
If Texas and ORU beat us this week, it could implode. I hope not, but don't rule it out.
I thought we were suppose to have a true point guard this year and why haven't we worked on passing out of the double team because all the turn overs are just not going to cut it.