ArkansasRazorbacks.com: Athletic Facilities Master Plan Unveiled

The University of Arkansas Athletic Facilities Master Plan, a long-term vision designed to shape the future of Razorback Athletics, was released on Tuesday by Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics Jeff Long

Also:

• ArkansasRazorbacks.com: Master Plan Presentation (PDF), Jeff Long Press Conference (Video)
• Chris Bahn: Facilities Master Plan To Include Basketball Facility, North End Zone Completion, Razorback AD Shows He’s Not Lacking For Long-Term Vision Or Confidence, Slideshow
• Matt Jones: UA facilities plan unveiled
• Robbie Neiswanger: Arkansas, Long ‘Dream Big’ With Master Plan, Long, Arkansas Unveil Facilities Master Plan

So why did this thing blow up big-time on Friday?  Mike Anderson should’ve just channelled his inner Coach Norman Dale from “Hoosiers” and said, “My team is on the floor.”  You know…the guys who want to play here and do things the right way?

It’s a romantic notion that’s on display during that scene.  When Dale tells one of his defiant players to “sit down” instead of replacing a teammate who has just fouled out, he’s doing exactly what those of us who value disciplined teams want him to do.

But it’s also pure nostalgia.  Norman Dale couldn’t be a college basketball coach today.  Instead of looking for better passing angles to get Jimmy Chitwood open, these days he would be trying to figure out the complex calculus that is the NCAA Academic Progress Rate.

The APR hit from Clarke not getting “graduation points” for Arkansas is the only reason we can come up with as to why Anderson didn’t immediately give Clarke his walking papers last week.  Is he a good player?  Sure.  Would he become a problem if you refused to grant his release?  Absolutely.  (And he did.)

The old saying that applies here is, “One bad apple will spoil the whole barrel.”  No matter how well a player has produced in the past, no coach in his right mind would ever want to force an unhappy player to remain on a team when it was obvious that he wanted to leave.

And there’s little doubt that Razorback fans believe Anderson wants to run a disciplined program.  His past actions as a coach and his history here under Coach Richardson show no sign that he would do it any other way.

Unfortunately, the APR doesn’t allow coaches and school administrators to think and act logically.  If logic costs the school valuable APR points, they’ll do whatever it takes to try to avoid that hit.  Even if those actions make no sense.

In today’s APR reality, a college basketball coach can no longer just simply say, “My team is on the floor.”

So Rotnei has to make a stink in the national media to finally get Anderson and Jeff Long to grant his release.  Both sides have been playing hardball since March and Clarke finally decided to pull out a bigger hitting stick.

Like it or not, that’s the way the game has to be played now.  And it’s a game that Norman Dale would no longer be familiar with.

Here at RBN, we’re regular listeners to The Morning Rush with Derek Ruscin and Tommy Craft on ESPN 96.3.  We like Derek and Tommy because their show focuses on the Hogs.  Sure…other topics are discussed.  But if you’re a serious Razorback fan in western Arkansas, they’ve got you covered on your drive into work.

We recently asked Derek if he would give us his insight and answer a few questions and he readily accepted.

RBN: With spring practice in the books, a lot of areas look solid.  But what’s your biggest concern going into the fall?  The offensive line?  Depth at cornerback?

Ruscin: I think my biggest concern is on the offensive line.  The good news there is that its not a total rebuilding job, just a partial one.  Corner is a concern as well because we are all waiting for Darius Winston to become that elite corner we have been promised and, so far, he has not delivered the goods.  But without an offensive line, you can’t run the ball.  And if you can’t run the ball in the SEC, you can’t compete for division championships.

Scanning the other 11 SEC depth charts, there’s not a lot of big-time quarterbacks to be found.  Could a guy like Tyler Wilson — who’s never started a college game — turn out to be the best quarterback in the SEC next season?

He has all the tools to do that.  I really like his poise…that is the best part of his game that nobody talks about.  He got thrown into the fire at Auburn last year and did not flinch.  I wonder about the development of Brantley at Florida and what will happen with Garcia at South Carolina, but Tyler Wilson could very well be the best quarterback in the SEC next year.

What’s your best Razorback Football press box story?  Anybody ever cheer out loud or break into a ‘Hog Call’ up there?  Anybody ever get escorted out?

When Arkansas plays lesser opponents (UTEP, UL-Monroe, etc.) they credential some of the newspapers from smaller towns in Arkansas.  I watched a guy bring his wife into the press box last year with a “Go Hogs” button on his shirt.  (I’m presuming he got in on one of these small town paper credentials.)  He got away with it until he posed for a picture with Chuck Barrett and then the media relations staff threw him out of the press box.

Ha ha…good stuff.  Switching gears to basketball, your thoughts on the coaching search, how Jeff Long approached things, and how great it is to have Mike Anderson back where he belongs?

I liked the way that Jeff Long did not let very many leaks out during the process.  With today’s media that is not easy.  There are some people that have thrown a lot of heat at Jeff Long but you have to get him all the credit in the world for locking up elite coaches in the big three sports on campus for the rest of this decade.

It is great to have Bud Walton Arena feel warm and inviting again.  I think fans will notice how much it feels like our arena again when the season starts because Arkansas has a coach that’s playing “our style” of basketball in that building again.

ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has the Hogs in his early projections for the 2012 NCAA Tournament field.  If four or five of the incoming freshmen make it to campus, should fans expect the Hogs to make the NCAA Tourney in Anderson’s first season?

That’s probably a little too high expectations.  I worry about the conditioning for a team in its first year with Mike Anderson’s system.  I think the NCAA tournament should be expected every year after this one, but I don’t know if they will get there in year one.

All right…the softball questions are over: Catfish Cove or Ralph’s Pink Flamingo BBQ?  Who you got???

Ralph’s by far.  It is the best BBQ I have ever eaten in this state.  Catfish Cove is great but it’s just too pricey for me.  Too rich for my blood.

Wow…okay…now we’re getting hungry for some brisket.  Last question…we really miss having The Morning Rush on a local affiliate here in Northwest Arkansas.  Any chance you and Tommy will be on the (static-free) airwaves again soon on The Hill?

I would encourage people to flood the radio stations with emails and calls to bring our show up there.  If large amounts of people would call and write 92.1 The Ticket and/or 1190 The Fan and let them know you want Razorback discussions on the radio in the morning, that will probably have the most influence of all.

We’re writing our email to Dan Storrs right now.  Hey Derek…thanks again for your time.  We really appreciate it.

Thanks for asking me to do this.

Walking on Sunshine also contributed to this post.

As you would expect, Long’s demeanor yesterday was stoic.  This was the first time in his tenure at Arkansas that he held a news conference that wasn’t intended to be upbeat.  There were no new facility drawings to show off.  There was no catchy slogan and slick marketing to mask price increases.

The hiring process in the upcoming days and weeks will certainly be stressful on Long and his staff.  In order to get us out of this decade of malaise, choosing the right person to lead the basketball program will be critical.

Less obvious to see, though, will be the commitment shown to the program by Long in the months and years ahead.  Presiding over powerhouse football and baseball programs under great coaches is awesome.  But so is showing proud Razorback basketball fans that he cares about what they care about, too.

ESPN analyst Jay Bilas recently commented about successful basketball programs on The Bottom Line radio show with Dave Barr:

“It’s a perfect system of non-accountability for administrators to just fire a coach,” Bilas said.  “Having a good athletic program is way more than coaches.  It’s administration and an athletic department.  You’ve got to have both working in concert.”

In short, Hog basketball fans’ future commitment will depend on Long’s future commitment.

Blaming television for reduced attendance needs to stop.  Screwing season ticket holders by giving away bulk game tickets needs to stop.  Assembling a home schedule chocked full of weak non-conference teams needs to stop.  Overcharging for nosebleed seats to those lousy games needs to stop.

There are other things to add to this list.  But stopping those is a start.

Then start telling fans about the players on their basketball team and why more should come out to cheer for them.  To that end, start giving the media more access to watch some practices and actually grant interviews off the podium.

Start renovating the concourses at Bud Walton to show that the program’s storied history is important to you.  And start honoring those past players and their accomplishments during halftime instead of bringing in the circus every game.

And then start raising money to build that indoor practice facility.  And start finding more ways to increase the recruiting budget.

There are other things to add to this list.  But starting those is a start.

The good news is that it appears an academic foundation has been built over the last few years to allow this resurgence to take place.  Long, the academic support staff and Coach Pelphrey deserve much credit for that.

There are also some talented players on campus and (hopefully) coming in that could help turn things around on the court.  Paired up with the right coach, there’s no doubt that success is quickly attainable.

But Razorback fans want more than just quick success.  We want our basketball program back.

So yes, of course, we will all be following this coaching search closely.  But we’ll be watching what happens afterwards, too.

“I think from our standpoint, last year was last year, the year before was the year before, so I’m dealing with right now and where we are today,” Pelphrey said.  “I appreciate how hard these guys work.  I know what we’re doing.  I know some of the things that are making us better all around.  I think we’re doing the right things to get that done.”

“That is what gives me optimism for the next seven, eight games and the SEC Tournament.”

Besides begging the question of, ‘What does any of that really mean?’…the real question is, ‘What is it about that perspective that is supposed to give us fans any optimism?’

I know…great recruiting class.  I’ve heard that.  Makes me think deep thoughts like, “Last year was last year, the year before was the year before.”  In other words…’Just wait until next year!’  Haven’t we been hearing this recruiting story for a while now?

But this story is different you say?  How?  Really?  That’s what you’re going with?

I know…it’s all the improvement we’re seeing in the performance of the team on the floor.  It’s visible in how the team is getting progressively better as we get deeper into the season.  The growth we are seeing in the floor leadership.  The on-floor hustle and effort. Improvements in offensive and defensive execution.  The obvious improvements in basketball IQ that give hope to better days.  The pleasure we’re getting from seeing the results of all the hard work these guys are putting in and how the young Hogs just keep getting better all around.

The fact that the coaching staff and team is doing the right things that are making Razorback basketball better just oozes out of this bunch in ways that can’t be denied by any casual, much less astute, observer.

Truthfully, if any of you are seeing any of this wonderful activity out on the floor fill me in.  It’s totally evading me.

As to next year’s recruits, if you can’t coach ‘em up, it won’t do much good to have them around.  But you know, this whole deal is really not about John Pelphrey.

It’s obvious he is in over his head when it comes to developing a basketball program.  He may be great for suspending people and holding study hall and talking about “overachievers.”  And spouting quotes that I’m certain he’s taking from some obscure passage in Alice and Wonderland.*  But he’s not proving to be useful if we’re going to bring Razorback basketball back to anywhere approaching it’s former state.

——

As for Jeff Long, that’s another story.  Yes, he’s been off doing his ‘football school’ thing, which we all appreciate.  It was nice that Bobby Petrino conveniently appeared and gave him an excellent jump start.

But now Jeff Long is actually going to have to demonstrate some leadership that doesn’t include one of the best coaches in America falling into his lap.  He’s going to have to be honest with the fans.  His stewardship of Razorback basketball is currently not taking advantage of a potential revenue stream that was once many millions of dollars annually richer that it is today.  He hasn’t offered up any vision or direction for the basketball program that gives anyone any idea about his perspective on things.

At this point, given the way the program is seemingly being managed (i.e. back-burnered), why would any good coach consider going to Arkansas?  On the face of things, the athletic administration isn’t doing an awful lot to indicate that they either care or have a grasp on the situation.

So far all Jeff Long has done is add annoying ribbon boards and vanity sideline seats while letting the the concourses grow yellow and stale, hike concession prices to rival 5-star dining, and made the notion of season ticket renewals become a novelty idea.

And, he seems to think the Arkansas fans that have grown with this program since the sawdust floors of Barnhill and the arrival of Martin Terry — the proud fans and contributors who helped build the ‘Basketball Palace of Mid-America’ and watched the program rise to become National Champions — can be corporate-talked into thinking all of this is what we should expect and deserve.

As far as I’m concerned, the story on John Pelphrey has already been written.  It’s time for this story to turn to Jeff Long.  Has he got what it takes to fix this?

I’m not sure he does.

*  “But I don’t want to go among mad people,” Alice remarked.
“Oh, you can’t help that,” said the Cat: “we’re all mad here.  I’m mad.  You’re mad.”
“How do you know I’m mad?” said Alice.
“You must be,” said the Cat, “or you wouldn’t have come here.”

– Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Chapter 6

The “Answer the Call” initiative, featuring the cleverly named Razorback Seat Value Program (RSVP), was previewed in the recent athletic department annual report and detailed in full at a media event on Wednesday.

Rather than explaining to Arkansas fans why they should be happy finishing higher than 8th in the SEC, Arkansas Athletic Director Jeff Long has been busy during his time on The Hill focusing on finding more money for the athletic programs.

Whether it’s been through the consolidation of the men’s and women’s athletic departments, revamping the old Arkansas Razorbacks Sports Network, changing leadership at the Razorback Foundation, or adding ribbon boards to Bud Walton Arena and Razorback Stadium — the common denominator has been bringing in more cash to fund the athletic programs.

While some Razorback fans may complain about the seat license increases, the question on the table is, “Do you really want to dance?”

To bring the question into clearer focus — “Do Razorback fans want to have a ‘big-time’ football program?”

In order to have a nationally competitive football program, you must have both broad and strong financial support.  Under Frank Broyles, the approach was based on a few huge donors with a broad number of very small donors within the Razorback Foundation.

What do I mean by “broad and small” as compared to “broad and strong?”  Well…$150 for a 50-yard line seat license at Arkansas versus $1,300 for a 50-yard line seat license at Alabama is a pretty good example.  Even Vandy charged more than the Hogs.

Besides bringing in less money to the program, the low, low price for maintaining seat location meant that Foundation members willing to pony (or should that be hog?) up more donation money could not be rewarded with better seat locations.  Why bother giving more if you don’t get anything for it?

The new RSVP program is just the beginning to finding out the real willingness on the part of Hog fans to give to the program.

To really bring the question into crystal clear focus — “Do Razorback fans want to keep Bobby Petrino?”

It’s pretty simple.  Bobby Petrino is going to coach somewhere that gives him the chance to not only win the National Championship once, but to win it multiple times.  If Arkansas can be that place, we can keep him.  If Arkansas fans are not going to provide the ongoing support to make that possible, we are going to lose him.

We’ve seen what buying coaches on the cheap (and not being able to afford sending them away) has done to the Razorback basketball program.

Sorry to be the one to bring the news, but players play for coaches, not schools.  If a school can afford to have the kind of coach that attracts quality student athletes, then they can afford everything else the player is looking for, as well.

If the school doesn’t have all the other stuff (locker room, training room, educational opportunities and facilities, practice facilities, stadium) that a player is looking for, then it probably won’t have a coach that outstanding student athletes want to play for anyway.

To coin another country sayin’, “It’s time to fish or cut bait.”  How the Arkansas fans respond to this initial phase of a fundraising initiative that will go on for years to come will be critical to the future of the program.

It’s been over five weeks since the selection committee announced the field for the NCAA Tournament.  The Hogs, of course, were not invited to any of the post-season tournaments for the second year in a row.

The Razorbacks collapsed down the stretch, losing seven out of their last eight games.  That losing skid was eerily similar to last year when they lost 11 of 12 to end the season.

Those types of finishes are not what most would call “signs of improvement.”  Much to the contrary, they are indicators that real problems exist in the leadership and management of the men’s basketball program and to pretend otherwise is just foolhardy.

Having seen these signs, Athletic Director Jeff Long and Head Coach John Pelphrey quickly moved into action and began making changes to get the Razorback basketball program back on track.

First, it was announced that assistant Isaac Brown would be reassigned.  One of the ways to improve a program is to upgrade your coaching staff.  And, apparently, Isaac Brown was standing in the way of getting us back to national prominence.

Second, Jeff Long released a statement  in support of Coach Pelphrey.  Of course, it didn’t actually provide any details as to why he felt so strongly that Pelphrey was the man destined to bring Hog basketball back from the dead.  But actually, we think that’s a sophisticated PR move — being vague is better.  As any good entertainer will say, “Always leave them wanting more.”

Third was to bring in top notch recruits.  It’s always important to keep that proverbial cupboard stocked with talent ready to fill in the gaps as you build the program back “the right way.”  So far, Coach Pelphrey has done that by not landing Ricardo Ratliffe, a 6-9 power forward heavily recruited to replace Michael Washington.

Instead, it looks like Pelphrey is planning to go with a smaller lineup to better run his “40 Minutes of Pel” style that Razorback fans have “groaned” accustomed to watching since he took the job.

The final step was sharing with fans how the Razorback basketball program will return to prominence.  Coach Pelphrey recently did just that at the Razorback Club in El Dorado.  Speaking with fans, Pelphrey promised, “I will get you home.”  He compared building a winning basketball program to flying cross-country on a plane.  Uh…okay.

Now, if all those “changes” don’t get you excited and ready to renew your season tickets, then I don’t know what will.

You may be wondering why post an article on the basketball program so long after the season has ended.  Well, to be truthful, I intended to write a season wrap-up earlier.  But I wanted to wait and see how Pelphrey and Long were going to respond to another disappointing season.

Now here we are into late April with an assistant vacancy to fill…a post player to replace…and an explanation still due to fans on the plan to get Razorback basketball out of the ditch.

Unfortunately, I don’t think that explanation is coming.  Jeff Long is too busy doing his best Nero impression while the Razorback basketball program burns.

“Contrary to a local television station report over the weekend that I was ‘seriously considering’ transferring, I wanted to make clear to the Razorback fans that I will return to play basketball for the University of Arkansas next season.”

Afterwards, of course, the folks at KNWA felt the need to defend their honor for breaking the “strongly considering” story, stating that their reporting was based on “fact.”  They have alleged that the University has “spun” the message.

This is crazy stuff.  Even the RazorBloggers know that comments made out of frustration after the embarrassing end to a game or season shouldn’t be reported, well-sourced or not.  If every time a solid source brought me news that Peyton Hillis said something about transferring while in a state of frustration, I would have worn myself out writing blog posts.

While the majority of the media that follow Razorback sports seem to do so with a fair bit of journalistic integrity, there are some that need to give a bit more consideration to what they are doing.  TV stations aligning with message boards and reporters viewing Twitter as personal commentary rather than as media commentary are areas that need to be examined.

I do get it.  We have bright new ribbon boards while the National Championship pictures in the concourse of Bud Walton have faded to the point of embarrassment.  There is a frustration among the fans and the media that Jeff Long is being totally tone deaf regarding the state of the basketball program.

Unfortunately, a 48 hour plus news cycle about supposed comments made by a frustrated basketball player only serves to distract from the real issues surrounding the basketball program.  Reporting on smoke does little to tell the story of the fire.

The program is doing a terrible job of communicating to the fans about what’s going on, what the really important things being managed are, and painting any type of hope for the future.  Silence is not golden.  Even when John Pelphrey says something…he says little.

Besides the record-setting six game losing streak at the end of the season, the Hogs have a PR disaster going on and don’t even seem to know what to do about it other than issuing statements and upping Bobby Petrino’s visibility level.

Jeff Long is rapidly developing a huge credibility gap regarding Razorback basketball.  There’s a concern among the fan base that the combination of Jeff Long and John Pelphrey constitutes a real life example of the blind leading the blind.

John Pelphrey can’t answer the question of what type of identity he wants for his basketball program in any type of concise fashion.  Can Jeff Long tell us his expectations for the program next year or into the future without quickly bringing up the subject of money?  Is this program going to be better next year or not?  If so, how?  Why?

This is the time for some serious, in-depth, reflective, and forward-looking journalism on the subject of Razorback basketball.  “You don’t need a weatherman to tell which way the wind blows.”

In announcing ticket prices for the 2010-11 season, no increase was announced for Razorback basketball games.  But wait…that’s good news, right?  Well…yes…and no.  In this tough economy, certainly no one wants to see prices go up.

But everyone knows the real reason for the pricing stability: there was no way most Hog fans were going to pay more than they do currently to attend a Razorback basketball game.  Especially when they’re hardly getting their money’s worth today.

It’s called deflation.  An economist would define that term as “a decrease in the general price level of goods and services.”  In the case of Razorback basketball, the word has several different meanings.

Deflation…as in…the air leaking out of the basketball.  Under Stan Heath and John Pelphrey, the Razorback program has completely lost its identity on the court.  What once was a pressing, trapping, fast-paced style — Hawg Ball — has devolved over the years into a jumbled mess.

What fans see today on offense (that is, when there’s an attempt to actually run an offense) is typically an NBA-style where one player tries to make a one-on-one move while everyone else clears out and watches.  That player either scores, passes to someone to bail himself out, or turns the ball over.

What fans see today on defense…well, overall, we really don’t see much defense from the Hogs anymore.  Certainly not anything close to the standards of defense that the teams of the 1990′s established.

Poor conditioning (especially by past standards) and bad defensive execution have typically translated into a good scoring day for the opposing team.  Certainly there’s rarely an attempt to press or trap in the backcourt even when the full compliment of players has been available to the coach.

Deflation…as in…the overall value of the program.  Since Arkansas last won the SEC West in 1995, Mississippi State has won or tied for the division six times.  Ole Miss and LSU…four times.  Alabama and Auburn have won the West outright at least once, as well.

Because of the 1994 National Championship, Hog fans have wanted to believe their team was one of the marquee programs of the SEC.  Fifteen years of not even winning a division title says otherwise.

Deflation…as in…the disappointment and apathy of much of the fan base.  The confidence that Bobby Petrino and Dave Van Horn have given fans in football and baseball, respectively, hasn’t materialized for the basketball program since Nolan Richardson was fired.

In the eight seasons of Stan Heath and John Pelphrey, rarely has an offseason held the promise of a preseason top 25 ranking or realistic NCAA tournament chances.  And when it did, those hopes were hastily dashed by early losses to subpar teams.

This is the “State of the Hogs” in basketball and Athletic Director Jeff Long knows it all too well.  His ability to break this deflationary spiral and turn around a revenue generating sport may well define his tenure on The Hill.

In the meantime, Hog fans are left to decide whether the level of play on the court is worth paying the price of admission.  Even when that price remains unchanged.

After giving accolades for the accomplishments of the Razorback spring sports teams (gymnastics, golf, outdoor track, baseball), Long was asked about sites such as Twitter and Facebook:

“We can’t overlook it.  [People] are looking for that direct connect between us — administrators, coaches, student athletes.

“They don’t want it filtered through the media outlets…some people.  That’s what social media gives them the opportunity to do.

“We need to do more with it.  We’re going to do more with it.  It’s where things are headed and we need to be a part of that for our fan base.”

Long even revealed for the first time that he has his own Twitter account and plans to start using it in the future.

Perhaps coincidentally, one of the first Razorback head coaches to begin updating Twitter started on Friday evening.  Swimming coach Jeff Poppell (@jeffpoppell) made his first few ‘tweets’ about three Razorback swimmers who will soon be competing in the World Championships in Rome.

Will Petrino or Pelphrey be following soon?  Only time will tell, but Long recognized the growing importance that social media sites like Twitter are playing in the recruitment of future student athletes.  Communicating with these new tools, Long said, was “second nature to them (young people).”

You can see the entire video web chat with Long here on RazorVision.  And you can, of course, follow us ‘blogging the Hogs’ through @RazorBloggers on Twitter or by becoming a ‘fan’ of our page on Facebook.

Nate Allen’s Hog Calls article on Sunday took more than a few shots a Athletic Director Jeff Long’s stewardship of the Razorback athletic programs. As the always cynical observer of Arkansas athletics, my view tends to be that stories like these are planted and carefully placed.

Are Nate’s criticisms fair?

It is interesting that he leads off discussing the demise of the Arkansas Gazette. Yes, it is true that the Gannett folks from ‘up North’ bought the paper and proceeded in a vain attempt to make it into the Arkansas version of USA Today. Preceding that, however, was the failure of the Gazette to respond to the competition of the upstart Arkansas Democrat. The Gazette was beaten on the playing field – perhaps lost by technical knock-out for failing to come out of its corner to start a round would be a better description – long before the boys from up North came along.

Razorback fans expect their sports programs to be competitive at the highest level nationally. The simple truth is that neither basketball nor football has been consistently competitive at the national level for quite some time. That alone was enough to drive the need for change in the athletic department.

I don’t like it anymore than most people, but the one of the primary keys to being competitive at the national level is money. For Jeff Long to be able to accomplish what the fans want, he has to focus primarily on bringing more money into the athletic department. He is doing exactly what I expected.

Yes, the Texas A & M tickets are too expensive for most of us. Yes, those courtside seats are more suited to the Hollywood ‘see and be seen’ crowd than to Fayetteville, Arkansas. Some of the people sitting in those seats are poor when it comes to past due invoices, but rich when it comes to the Razorbacks.

Yes, where you sat in the stadium has always been based on donations. However, lifetime donations took precedence over current donations. I know – I tried to buy my way into good seats in Bud Walton long ago and had that clearly explained to me by the foundation. Keeping your same seating location has required a specified minimum donation amount for as long I can remember. I haven’t heard that either of these policies have changed. Will the amounts required increase? Yes. Just as they have in the past.

It would be great if somehow Jeff Long could balance the loyalty of the University to the fans with the loyalty of the fans at all level to the University. Unfortunately, he really doesn’t’ have time to make a gradual change in approach. The days for that expired in the latter years of Coach Broyles leadership. Playing ‘catch up’ isn’t easy on anyone.

Of course, loyal fans want a winner. A loyal university should strive to give the fans a winner. Maybe that is the change in approach that is upsetting some people. Rather than wishing we could have a nationally competitive program we are actually believing and acting as if we can have one instead of not being able to hire a top tier coach and settling for eighth.

Strong winds of change only blow after there has been a lull. Had the Gazette responded to the competition of the Democrat rather than being content in its past accomplishments it could have trounced the upstart. Had the Arkansas program had an orderly change in leadership long ago the traditions and relationships that Nate talks about would have had a much better chance of being preserved.

Leadership that stays too long tends to create a void beneath it. When the contenders to the top spot realize that the spot may never be vacated, they leave. I’ve seen that clearly in business and clearly in the Arkansas athletic department. Poor succession planning – overstaying your time – is actually the cause of the eventual loss of traditions, culture and ‘relationships.’ The changes brought in by the ‘new guy’ happen because there had to be a ‘new guy’ radical change to attempt to catch things up. If the ‘new guy’ reaches too far and fails, the organization either dies or tries desperately to recapture its past by returning leadership steeped in the old traditions and culture. I’ve seen that happen too.

Most of the actions Nate refers to are necessary because of the approach of the previous leadership, not the new.

While there is no doubt a wealthy group (the “old” financial base?) offended by Jeff Long’s unwillingness to take direct orders from them, many of those were also offended when Coach Broyles wouldn’t take orders from them. They, like all the fans, want a nationally competitive program. Even more than that, the offended wealthy group wants to be in control. When it comes down to it, their desire for control will trump their desire for winning. Most fans would prefer winning and could care less whether or not the wealthy group felt in control.

Jeff Long is trying to give us what we thought we wanted – a professionally run athletic department designed to compete at the national level. I’m for letting him do his job. Seems to me after a long period of stagnation we are finally moving. As Lou Holtz once said about moving the football, “I just hope it’s forward.”

If you remember the predictions we made last month, you know I pushed my fellow RazorBloggers out of the way, drank the entire pitcher of Hog Kool-Aid, and then boldly predicted nine wins for this season.

Certainly back in December of 2006, few if any Hog fans would have dared hope that we would one day be naming a coach of the caliber of Bobby Petrino to lead the Razorback football program.

And even fewer could have foreseen the fallout from an administration that had lost touch with its stakeholders:  the Arkansas Razorback fans.

While I don’t want to dwell on past events (they are all well documented on this site and others), the last 12-18 months on The Hill have to at least be recognized as an unprecedented period of change and upheaval.  I doubt we will ever witness anything like it again.

I think only SMU after the ‘death penalty‘ could lay claim to having more administration changes in such a short time frame.   The irony is that an out-of-control SMU administration lost their football program, while an out-of-control Razorback fan base helped to save their program by demanding change.

Which begs the question…how in the world did we manage to go through all of this without the fan base and program imploding?  Not to mention all of the other drama and events that swirled around the program like an F5 tornado:  email-gate, text-gate, banners, Darksiders, Huggers, FOI requests and more infighting than a family reunion of the Hatfields and McCoys.

Again, I ask, how in the heck did we manage to come out of that mess smelling like a rose?

While many may argue about my prediction for this season, I think most will agree that the future of Razorback football looks bright and Coach Petrino and Jeff Long are the reasons why.

For now, I just need someone to pinch me.  Because when I see Bobby Petrino and his team running out of the “A” at the game on Saturday, I know I won’t believe my eyes.  I’ll still think I’m dreaming.

Wake Forest coach Jim Grobe is going to be the next football coach at the University of Arkansas and is likely to be introduced on Thursday.

The board of the Razorback Foundation met briefly via conference call Wednesday evening and approved a salary supplement for Grobe, who just completed his seventh season at Wake Forest.

Also:

Thursday Afternoon

• Tom Dienhart: Grobe: ‘Happy at Wake and with what we’re doing’

Thursday Late Morning

• Hogwired.com: Statement from Jeff Long Regarding Coaching Search
• ESPN.com: AD says Grobe staying at Wake, not headed to Arkansas
• The Morning News: Grobe Backs Out On Arkansas Job
• ArkansasSports360.com: Grobe Not Taking Arkansas Razorbacks Coaching Job

Thursday Early Morning

• Wally Hall: The waiting is over; UA finds its man in Grobe
• Nate Allen: Grobe to be hired as Hogs’ new coach
• Dudley Dawson: UA Commits React to Grobe Hire

Wednesday Night

• ESPN.com: Arkansas moves suggest hiring of Wake’s Grobe
• ArkansasSports360.com: Grobe Expected to Be Next Razorbacks Football Coach, Question Asked, Now Answered in Jim Grobe
• Winston-Salem Journal: Report: Grobe leaving WFU

Updated 12/6/07 6:05 p.m.

The new Athletic Director is just that — ‘new.’  The old Athletic Director announced to the world that Arkansas can’t expect to be competitive year in and year out at the highest level of the SEC.

If Butch Davis is as smart as I think he is…there’s no way he comes to Arkansas.  Besides there’s his health and the whole ‘prophet is not without honor except in his own hometown’ thing.  Plus he’s not going to want to have to constantly deal with his own personal benefactor on the Board of Trustees.

And I couldn’t see any good reason to hire either of the ‘Tommy boys.’  I think both of them are too boring.

Throughout all of this, these quotes have come to mind: *

I don’t know what they have to say,
it makes no difference anyway –
whatever it is, I’m against it!
No matter what it is or who commenced it,
I’m against it!

– Groucho Marx

If I told you what it takes
to reach the highest high,
You’d laugh and say ‘nothing’s that simple’
But you’ve been told many times before
Messiahs pointed to the door
And no one had the guts to leave the temple!

– Pete Townshend

“In my opinion, it will not cease, until a crisis shall have been reached, and passed.  A house divided against itself cannot stand.”

– Abraham Lincoln

Our coaching choices appear to be:  a) someone brave and fearless on the way up — which means success will cause them to move on, or failure will send them back to the minors; or b) someone who got knocked back to the minors over some stupid issue and is working their way back up.

Looking from the outside in, who in their right mind would want to be ‘next?’  We just ran off a coach that won 18 games over the past two years.  We don’t exactly have history on our side.  This place has all the markings of a snake pit.

This is not an easy hire.  We have way more going against us than for us.

* We’ll give away a RazorBloggers t-shirt for the best interpretation and application of these quotes.

Jeff Long, athletics director at the University of Pittsburgh, has been named director of men’s athletics at the University of Arkansas, effective Jan. 1, 2008.

[...] Long has spent the last four years at the helm of the Pitt athletics program, leading the Panthers to success on the fields of play, high achievement in the classroom and bold initiatives in the areas of facilities, development and student-welfare.

Also:

• Hogwired.com: Press Conference Transcript
• AP: Arkansas hires Pitt’s Long as next AD
• ArkansasSports360.com: UA’s White Names Long Athletic Director
• TodaysTHV.com: Press Conference Video

The Morning News

• Alex Abrams: Long Not Intimidated Replacing A Legend
• Ryan Malashock: Going Long
• Vernon Tarver: Short Process Brings Long To Arkansas
• Grant Hall: Long Impresses UA Coaches, Leaders
• Harry King: Long Is CEO Type

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

• Marty Cook: Hogs calling on Long
• Rob Keys: White on point for three-man team
• Bob Holt: Colleagues: Long good fit for UA, Long third among SEC ADs in pay
• Wally Hall: New AD needs chance to do things his way
• Rainer Sabin: Going Long
• Nate Allen: Equal doses of strength, prudence would aid Long’s transition
• Terry Wood: Broyles allows spotlight to shine on successor Long, Long’s management style to be open but firm

Updated 9/12/07 7:35 a.m.