What's a fan to do with this last season?

[JIHawg]

We want to enjoy spring practice and dream of the possibilities like we most always have, but last season just nags at us and feels like unfinished business.  This is an attempt to just move on and cautiously look forward to another season, and another team with new players who don't deserve to have the past hung around their neck.

A little cursory study of history turns up something interesting-every major coach going back to Broyles had a major setback in his overall plan. 

Petrino is the most recent and obvious.  It's a moot point to wonder what he would done his next season.  Sometimes, the setback has been the end of it.

Nutt-The Gus season, 2006, was Nutt's setback.   Broyles, through Lindsey and the boys, made him hire Gus, hoping to assuage fans' discontent of Nutt's boring offense.  It could have been great but turned into  a disaster.  Nutt had the next Year to make things right, and failed.  Two years seems to be the maximum on setbacks.

Danny Ford-His third year, he took us to the SEC championship game, and things looked promising, until the next year, 1996, 4-7.  Danny was put on notice.  That was followed in 1997 by 4-7, and Danny was invited to leave town.  Again, the two year thing.

Ken Hatfield-Ken's setback was his fourth year,1987, although his record was a respectable 9-4.  He did the unforgivable.  He lost to Texas on the last play of the game in War Memorial.  Frank was poed.  He wanted Hatfield to fire some assistants, and got Orville Henry to write an article while Ken was out of town, in Hawaii for a game, suggesting so.  Kenny didn't fire any assistants.  He got real mad and won the next two SWC championships and went to the Cotton Bowls.  He then proceeded to head out of town when Clemson called.  He didn't even visit the campus, he was so mad at Frank.

Lou Holtz-Holtz won the 1978 Orange Bowl in possibly the Hog Nation's greatest victory ever, and seemed to go downhill from there.  He won 8-10 games most seasons until 1983, when he went 6-5.  He didn't ever take us to the Cotton Bowl in seven seasons.  Frank had finally had enough.  Lou didn't get 2 years.  He didn't even get 1 year.  He went on to win a NC at ND.

Frank Broyes-after a dismal first year in 1958 at 4-6, he went 9-2, 8-3, 8-3, and 9-2.  In 1963, Frank "lost his team" and went 5-5, his setback.  That team for whatever reason had bad chemistry and just fell apart.

After the season ended, the players all got together, no coaches invited, and had a "come to Jesus" meeting.  Some leaders emerged-Lindsey, Marshall, Hatfield, Jones, Hines, Roper, Burnett.  They made a commitment to each other-this would never happen again on their watch.  They began working out, the whole team, on their own without coaches.    They held each other accountable.  They became a year-round football team before that ever happened.  The result, of course, was 1964, and Frank's career was launched as one of the great ones.

Some interesting patterns, every coach had a setback season, and most were given another year.  Some righted the ship, and some didn't. 

This team is beginning to talk the talk about not repeating this last year of losing games in the second half.  It's too early to tell if it's all walk or all talk.  But at least the precedent is there.  One setback year doesn't have to be the end of the world.  So I plan to hope for the best, with a sense of caution, and drink the spring practice Kool Aid once again.  It's just more fun, and that's suppose to be why we do this.

[OneTuskOverTheLine™]

I agree. Hide and watch... It's gonna get good.

[lakecityhog]

Lou got fired because his Boss told him not to do political ads for Jesse Helms, but he did it anyway.

[hogcard1964]

Lou got fired because his Boss told him not to do political ads for Jesse Helms, but he did it anyway.

Yep

You could be one of the top two or three coaches in the country, but if you buck the system in Arkansas, you're gone. It's happened here twice.

[SRV]

I like Kool Aid. Why be down all summer?

[OneTuskOverTheLine™]

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