RazorBits: Filling Time
June 17, 2008 at 6:05am by TipsterHog
Filed under Arkansas Razorbacks, Football, NFL
RBN tidbits from around the web.
– A lot of local sportswriters are filling their column inches at the moment talking about how to pass the time between now and fall football practice. Robbie Neiswanger over at The Morning News gives Hog fans a few dates to remember between now and August 4th. And the original Mr. Sunshine warms up a little stale football news for us.
– And speaking of stale, this report is a few days old but I didn’t see it blogged anywhere. According to the Cowboys Blog, it sounds like a package is being added to the playbook that includes both Felix Jones and Marion Barber in the backfield at the same time:
Felix’s primary offensive role as a rookie will be a change-of-pace back. But the Cowboys also plan to put him on the field with Barber on occasion.
Barber and Felix lined up in the backfield together several times during today’s workout. Barber lined up in front of the offset I with Felix starting at tailback and motioning out wide.
[...] Felix didn’t put up big receiving numbers at Arkansas, which had a poor passing game. But the Cowboys’ scouts and coaches saw a back with good hands and route-running ability who could blossom as a receiver in the pros.
Hmmm…throwing the ball to Felix…why didn’t we think of that? Three years…38 games…39 receptions. Based on those numbers, a more accurate description would be ‘piss poor passing game.’
– Felix also made it to Canton, Ohio last Friday. No…they weren’t inducting him into the Pro Football Hall of Fame just yet. He was one of 18 Cowboys’ rookies who toured the facility.
– Finally, sportscaster Mike Irwin used his ‘blog’ yesterday to flame a “recruting guru” over comments made about recent Razorback decommit Darius Winston. But since Irwin doesn’t mention Dudley Dawson by name, I guess it’s not really a personal attack, is it?
I love the photo you selected. It teases the imagination with all of the plays and formations a real coach would have used in the last three years DMac, Felix, and Hillis on the same team.
It’s sad to think of all of the wonderful opportunities missed in the last 10 years, last 30 years. I dare say, Bobby is likely to make up for lost time in that catagory. He doesn’t strike me as a guy who misses many opportunities on the football field.
Gus and Mitch would have been wasted under even the very best circumstances. We owe them a great debt.
It is a shame that Mitch, Gus, and Damien couldn’t be a part of this offense but oh well we are moving forward and I can’t wait for football. After tonight no more Lakers and the Dodgers are wack this year, so I am looking forward to the season. As for Darius Winston, he is 18 years old and Michigan is just what he likes today, I would suggest to him to play out his senior year and then make a decision and it would probably help if he reviewed all of these schools depth chart before he commits, that said the SEC is as good as gets.
Mitch probably wishes that he could be apart of this offense as well. I wish Gus success but I think our current offense is a step past what even he is capable of and yes it would be nice to have Damien. I don’t see where we owe them a great debt.
I’m bothered that Darius Winston has de-committed. Overall I’m a little concerned with recruiting. The list of commits looks similar to what it looked like under Nutt. Overall I am still a Houston Nutt fan but he fell short in the recruiting area over the past few years. I hope to see an upswing in that department.
Carolina Hog, we have to give Petrino sometime and this whole new regime change time as well. I think once the recruits start seeing the difference in the program they will come around. I am sure Darius has his reasons for de-committing but I wouldn’t worry about it until February 09, he probably just once to see what other programs have to offer so I can’t fault the young man for that. Petrino’s first class was good and we haven’t see one game, just imagine after a season.
Good grief, how long are folks gonna cry about Mustain and the rest of the NW AR runaways? THEY ARE GONE…..MOVE ON ALREADY!
Mustain was overrated – sure he was good in HS, but he and Casey’s stats were almost identical. Heck, if Mustain is so great, why is he second string at USC? I don’t think he can succeed at USC….it was a bonehead move to go to the glamourground; if he was smart he would have gone to a school that didn’t have a long line of star QBs waiting in the wings…
And now I’ll move on…
I don’t think it will take much longer for our tainted past to be more than a bad memory. Once Bobby takes on Texas and Florida we will know we are in the new era.
My only point was that Gus and Mitch were a catalyst, good, bad, or indifferent, that exposed problems on the Hill that were then corrected. Personally, I appreciate all that they had to endure so that we could move on to a new era.
win is a win, we will just have to agree to disagree. I won’t let go of the Gus, Mitch and Damian story. Your comparison of Mitch to Casey is flawed just as you would say my comparison is flawed.
I’d argue the bonehead move was believing Nutt.
It basically took those folks leaving for us to rid ourselves of the cancer so for that reason I am happy. Otherwise, I wish they were still here and wish them well where ever they are unless they are playing Arkansas.
Would Bobby love to have Mitch right now? I’m thinking YES. Damian, too.
BlindHog wins the prize for the day!
Are their any of those floppy hats left?
completely unrelated i know, but espn is doing a titletown competition and it would be great for recruiting, the city etc. if fayetteville was one of the nominees, plus we have a bunch of nc, so everyone go let espn know why fayetteville is title town http://myespn.go.com/s/conversations/show/story/3336134
Another unrelated input… I heard (the tail end) on 103.7 the Buzz yesterday an interview with AD Long. He mentioned that some games could possibly be offered on pay-per-view as early as this year. Have you guys heard anything more concrete? I mean, I only caught the tail end of the interview. I think it would be a great idea for the fans, not to mention some major revenue for the university.
Hey ward_hog….nothing more concrete on the pay-per-view than what you probably heard on the Buzz. Much of the same being bantered about in NW Arkansas. When a game sells out…especially early…why not consider it when it’s guaranteed not to hurt the gate?
I think the general sentiment is that Long will be more forward-thinking when it comes to things like pay-per-view than Coach Broyles was. All alternate sources of revenue will be investigated and considered.
Personally, I was always against the idea of pay-per-view for Hog games in the past, but recently, I’ve somewhat had a change of heart. I think it would be a good idea as long as it’s limited to maybe 2 games. Anything more than that wilwill start to resemble taxes. We all know that enough is enough. Also, if people see that several of the games each year will be aired on pay-per-view, most will just be glued to the T.V., rather than actually go to a game. Why pay high gas prices, when you can sit in the comfort of your own home for the price of what you would pay for a ticket anyway? That doesn’t do much for supporting these kids in my book. Think about it.
Another tidbit I thought I’d throw in: As highy rated as Darius Winston was in the beginning, I thought it was great that Arkansas was the first school to offer the kid a scholarship. As time went on though, it appeared he was even more highly rated when the new ratings came out by Scout and Rivals.com. I knew then he was already courting around 22 offers, with more offers still on the table. It’s really not that suprising that a kid recieving this much attention, would announce he’s going to shop around a little, before making a decision. I don’t believe it’s good news, but I don’t believe it’s nessesarily bad news either. Who’s to say Winston always wanted to be a Hog anyway, right? Maybe Michigan was always his favorite. Reguardless of what his decision is, I hope this young man make’s the right choice for himself, and not one somebody else think’s he need’s to make.
Count me in as not in favor for pay-per-view. I thought that it was a dumb move to start charging for the radio feed a few years back on HogWired. We have Razorback fans all over the place and I’m guessing that most of them won’t pay to listen (or watch) but they might if it were free. So, are we better off with them listening sometimes and maybe staying plugged-in vs. not. I live close enough that one of the local radio stations carries the football games so I listen to the away games and attend the Fayetteville games. I’m just not willing to pay for that type of service.
Also, I’d be curious as to how much revenue is generated from the pay-per-view. I’m guessing that the overhead isn’t probably worth it but I may be wrong.
Finally, if nothing else, do you think pay-per-view helps or hurts recruiting? I don’t believe it helps… therefore, in my opinion, if it isn’t helping it’s likely to hurt.
Just my thoughts!
I have to agree Owasso. Putting fans in the stands should be our #1 goal. I don’t believe that’s going to happen if were giving them more of an exscuse to stay home.
I assume you mean disagree then? I’m ok with that but the folks that are LIKELY to go probably can already listen via the radio so I don’t buy the argument that you are going to hurt the attendance.
Thanks ‘Anonymous’ for the reply. As far as hurting attendance, my opinion is that it wouldn’t. In the event of sounding like Mr. Obvious, the Hogs are all we have here in the state as far as a major sports program. Do you honestly think that if they’re sold out for a game that there’s not any more fans wanting to watch? People will still fill the seats. Those that choose to stay home to watch a game would free up a ticket for someone that can/wants to go. Pay-per-view is never going to take away the atmosphere of gameday. But will allow those that can’t make it to the games the chance to be part of it. I was stationed in Germany for many years and I would have loved to pay a small fee to watch our beloved Hogs.
Who knows… maybe Coach Petrino will turn this program into such a POWERHOUSE that CBS will want to broadcast all Hog games. Until then, I would like to watch every game and I am willing to pay to see it.
That is the one issue no one has mentioned. With Mr. HomeDepot as our number one enemy it may take a little extra to get on CBS and ESPN. Pay per view may be our only alternative for games that should have made TV.
I think pay per view is a great idea. I’m in Dallas where there is a huge Hog fan base and it can be difficult (as well as costly) to attend all the home games. I make it to 2-3 games per year but would love to watch the ones I can’t make. i can only speak for myself, but having pay per view would not deter me from going to the 2-3 games I do make. Going to Hog games with my family has become a tradition that i am not willing to give up to watch on tv.
can’t wait til the A&M series in dallas next year!