Kenneth Dixon

[factchecker]

Why are people on other message boards citing Mr. Dixon as an example of Coach Bielema misevaluating (overlooking) homegrown talent?

Kenneth Dixon was a recruit in the 2012 class.

http://espn.go.com/college-sports/football/recruiting/player/_/id/122708/kenneth-dixon
http://247sports.com/player/kenneth-dixon-12439

Bielema was coaching Wisconsin at the time.

Dixon was overlooked by Petrino's staff.  He was told that he was too slow.  Similar to how Spaight wasn't offered.  He was thought to be too small for the SEC. Spaight was set to go to SAU before he decided to go to Coffeyville:

http://athlonsports.com/martrell-spaight-followed-heart-arkansas-and-rewarded

and

http://www.sbnation.com/2013/2/6/3956264/alabama-recruiting-altee-tenpenny-signing-day-profile

"Spaight, a senior at North Little Rock High when Tenpenny was a sophomore, didn't think he'd ever play for any major college program, especially Arkansas. He didn't have the grades. Former Arkansas head coach Bobby Petrino didn't show him any love – not in high school, and not when he attended Coffeyville (Kan.) Community College to raise both his grades and his profile. So when a program the caliber of Kansas State offered him a scholarship, he jumped at the opportunity and committed on Dec. 10.

However, after Bielema and Bobby Allen visited his North Little Rock home, he changed. "I could tell he was a great coach and I could see him doing big things at the University of Arkansas."

Don't get me wrong.  Bielema makes plenty of mistakes.  There are bound to be hits and misses. However, as my username implies, I hate falsehoods.

I would fix the mistakes on the respective sites but I refuse to pay for lazy reporting.  RD provides higher quality recruiting information than any other service and brings it here free.


Add:  John L coached the 2012 season but the 2012 recruiting class was Petrino.  He wrecked his Harley in April, a full month after signing day.

[onebadrubi]

People tell on themselves daily. Just laugh at their stupidity and move on

[Atlhogfan1]

Pay boards?  They draw in the gullible. 

[factchecker]

People tell on themselves daily. Just laugh at their stupidity and move on

I agree.  I want to note this isn't a Petrino vs. Bielema debate.  Petrino is an offensive genius.  I also don't believe his recruiting was a bad as some lead it to be.

That 2012 class had some legit players:

J-Will
Hatcher
Taiwan Johnson
Philon
Deatrich Wise
Sprinkle
Winston
Jared Collins

In that group alone is a future NFL running back and a current NFL defensive lineman.  Not to mention the rest are currently impact players for us.  Sprinkle had to be the steal of that class.

[Uncommon]

Petrino's 2011 staff did a good job evaluating in-state talent.

Dixon was a miss on Petrino and staff in 2012 along with Zac Brooks who went to Clemson.  Also, Jemar Clark out of McCrory was a borderline offensive line prospect we could've offered.  Had good size and nice feet.  Really could've helped our offensive line depth considering Cordale Boyd and Jeremy Ward, our only 2 OL signees in that class, didn't contribute while they were here and even were both moved to DT.  Could've been a DeMarcus Love or Ray Dominguez type of player for us.

Bielema's staff did a fantastic job evaluating 2013 in-state talent.

The 2014 crop had some players we didn't offer that could play.  One that had potential but didn't do the right things as far as going to camps and classwork was Springdale's DeAndre Murray who originally signed with Tulsa but didn't qualify and is now a redshirt freshman at Pittsburg State.  If he camped and got his grades in order, he could've gotten our coaches attention.  Could've helped with RB depth.

Zack Wary was interesting.  We offered but it was a greyshirt offer.  Looking back, maybe could've helped to have had him.  Maybe wouldn't have had to play Dre so early.

Jabe Burgess was good but we went with Peavey instead.

Jarvis Cooper out of West Memphis as our fullback would've been amazing.  He's getting significant playing time at Memphis as a RB.

[factchecker]

That was a miss on Petrino and staff in 2012 along with Zac Brooks who went to Clemson.  Also, Jemar Clark out of McCrory was a borderline offensive line prospect we could've offered.  Had good size and nice feet.  Really could've helped our offensive line depth considering Cordale Boyd and Jeremy Ward, our only 2 OL signees in that class, didn't contribute while they were here and even were both moved to DT.  Could've been a DeMarcus Love or Ray Dominguez type of player for us.

What was the deal on Ward.  Did he injure his back?  I still see him on the sideline but never in full gear.

[HoGs1031]

That was a miss on Petrino and staff in 2012 along with Zac Brooks who went to Clemson.  Also, Jemar Clark out of McCrory was a borderline offensive line prospect we could've offered.  Had good size and nice feet.  Really could've helped our offensive line depth considering Cordale Boyd and Jeremy Ward, our only 2 OL signees in that class, didn't contribute while they were here and even were both moved to DT.  Could've been a DeMarcus Love or Ray Dominguez type of player for us.

Zac Brooks was from South Carolina and moved here his Jr year I believe. So we didn't miss on him he was always wanting to go back to SC.

[IronHog]

BP missed on Dixon but in his defense Dixon was a late bloomer.


Dixon really blew up the second half of his senior year physically as I recall....

[Uncommon]

Zac Brooks was from South Carolina and moved here his Jr year I believe. So we didn't miss on him he was always wanting to go back to SC.

Didn't know that.  Thanks for the tidbit.

[ricepig]

Zac Brooks was from South Carolina and moved here his Jr year I believe. So we didn't miss on him he was always wanting to go back to SC.

Zac moved from Osceola to Jonesboro between his 9th and 10th grade years, lol. He was originally from Florida I believe.

[Uncommon]

What was the deal on Ward?  Did he injure his back?

Yes. 

[HoGs1031]

Zac moved from Osceola to Jonesboro between his 9th and 10th grade years, lol. He was originally from Florida I believe.

Thanks for the clear up. I knew he moved from the East Coast. I thought it was SC. Too many recruiting cycles everything in the past blends together. lol

[ricepig]

Thanks for the clear up. I knew he moved from the East Coast. I thought it was SC. Too many recruiting cycles everything in the past blends together. lol

No problem, I was 50/50 on his ability. It was hard to tell if he was a RB or WR, more an athlete.

[opineonswine]

I agree.  I want to note this isn't a Petrino vs. Bielema debate.  Petrino is an offensive genius.  I also don't believe his recruiting was a bad as some lead it to be.

That 2012 class had some legit players:

J-Will
Hatcher
Taiwan Johnson
Philon
Deatrich Wise
Sprinkle
Winston
Jared Collins

In that group alone is a future NFL running back and a current NFL defensive lineman.  Not to mention the rest are currently impact players for us.  Sprinkle had to be the steal of that class.

Petrino is a HORRIBLE recruiter.

[HoGs1031]

Ya he was on of the few instate kids that I was ok with leaving. Granted I want all in-state kids to be hogs.

[IronHog]

Petrino is a HORRIBLE recruiter.

He was an elite left OT and a linebacker away from doing it all.



BB can't get either of those.....either.

[opineonswine]

He was an elite left OT and a linebacker away from doing it all.



BB can't get either of those.....either.

Revisionist history.  He left the defensive side of the cupboard in horrible shape.  No one with his offensive (no pun intended) personality can recruit these days.  No one wants to be around him.  But I know some of you think he was the second coming.  Turns out he was a curse to the Arkansas program.  But that is water under the bridge.  Moving on.....

[Sir Oinksalot]

....who is doing that? If anyone rags on Coach do what SO does - call them a poohead
in a nice way and turn yo back around.....

[redeye]

BP missed on Dixon but in his defense Dixon was a late bloomer.


Dixon really blew up the second half of his senior year physically as I recall....

I remember some around here almost crying because we didn't offer Dixon and they were right.

Zac Brooks was never a possibility to my recollection.  Think he was zeroed in on Clemson all along.

There was also a DE from NWA, I believe, who Petrino passed on and I believe he ended up having a nice career at Oklahoma State.  I can't remember his name, though.

[Peter Porker]

Why are people on other message boards citing Mr. Dixon as an example of Coach Bielema misevaluating (overlooking) homegrown talent?

Kenneth Dixon was a recruit in the 2012 class.

http://espn.go.com/college-sports/football/recruiting/player/_/id/122708/kenneth-dixon
http://247sports.com/player/kenneth-dixon-12439

Bielema was coaching Wisconsin at the time.

Dixon was overlooked by Petrino's staff.  He was told that he was too slow.  Similar to how Spaight wasn't offered.  He was thought to be too small for the SEC. Spaight was set to go to SAU before he decided to go to Coffeyville:

http://athlonsports.com/martrell-spaight-followed-heart-arkansas-and-rewarded

and

http://www.sbnation.com/2013/2/6/3956264/alabama-recruiting-altee-tenpenny-signing-day-profile


Don't get me wrong.  Bielema makes plenty of mistakes.  There are bound to be hits and misses. However, as my username implies, I hate falsehoods.

I would fix the mistakes on the respective sites but I refuse to pay for lazy reporting.  RD provides higher quality recruiting information than any other service and brings it here free.


Add:  John L coached the 2012 season but the 2012 recruiting class was Petrino.  He wrecked his Harley in April, a full month after signing day.

Which board?

[factchecker]

Which board?

No comment.  I haven't read 247 since filipinohog/ag and his many alters were allowed to run amuck.

add: Otis does a good job but I can't stand alters. 

[Nosboar Accubond]

Zac Brooks was from South Carolina and moved here his Jr year I believe. So we didn't miss on him he was always wanting to go back to SC.

Zac wanted to play RB and Clemson offered him that, we wanted him at a diff position. Played a big role. Does he play much at Clemson?

[Uncommon]

Zac wanted to play RB and Clemson offered him that, we wanted him at a diff position. Played a big role. Does he play much at Clemson?

Played in 14 games this season with 347 All Purpose Yards (234 rushing, 113 receiving) and 5 touchdowns (3 rushing, 2 receiving).

[shshark00]

I don't get this constant complaint. It's not like Dixon went to Bama or Oregon or LSU and blew it up. Did Petrino miss on his evaluation? Yup. Did every other coach in a Power 5 conference miss on their evaluation? Yup. Dixon is a poor example for any coach missing an evaluation, because they ALL missed it.

[IronHog]

I remember some around here almost crying because we didn't offer Dixon and they were right.

Zac Brooks was never a possibility to my recollection.  Think he was zeroed in on Clemson all along.

There was also a DE from NWA, I believe, who Petrino passed on and I believe he ended up having a nice career at Oklahoma State.  I can't remember his name, though.

Didn't Ark and a few other big schools roll in on Dixon late and he wasn't interested?


I was very aware of Dixon because he was from Strong.  He played a lot of QB in HS.

[jry04]

I think Dixon is a solid back, but can we really say we missed on him? We had Knile Davis, Alex Collins, and JWill during the times Dixon was in school. Dixon failed to run for 100 yards on every power 5 school they faced the last 2 seasons.

Just this year, in mutual opponents, Dixon ran for 81 yards on 17 carries and 0 TDs in a OT loss against Kansas State. Then ran for 39 yards 0 TDs on 19 carries against a 5-7 UTEP team.

Ran for 42 yards on 16 carries against OU last season. 14 carries on 29 yards against Auburn. 13 carries on 63 yards against Illinois. I get that a lot of it has to do with their line, but most good running backs find a way to break a few good runs off and have solid games at least a few good teams they play. He struggled to get going against most of the quality competition, so can we really say we missed on him compared to what we had? Collins is rated higher than him, and JWill would have been had he stayed healthy. Maybe we don't get 1 of those 2 if we have Dixon, but Dixon probably doesn't play much if any at Arkansas if everything was the same with just the addition of Dixon.

[MissippHog]

I agree.  I want to note this isn't a Petrino vs. Bielema debate.  Petrino is an offensive genius.  I also don't believe his recruiting was a bad as some lead it to be.

That 2012 class had some legit players:

J-Will
Hatcher
Taiwan Johnson
Philon
Deatrich Wise
Sprinkle
Winston
Jared Collins

In that group alone is a future NFL running back and a current NFL defensive lineman.  Not to mention the rest are currently impact players for us.  Sprinkle had to be the steal of that class.

To be fair, Philon fell into his lap. 

[Biggus Piggus]

How do you know anyone on another message board is complaining about Bielema not getting Dixon, when you can't read their post?

[hei5manhog]

Petrino is a HORRIBLE recruiter.

It's amazing he ever gets anyone to play for him. I bet he's had some AWKWARD in-homes since he left here. Not only is he a psychopath on the field (which doesn't look like where I would want my kid spending 4-5 years) but the all the other baggage. He wasn't a top-flite recruiter before all of that. Can't imagine how difficult it is now.

[JaketheSnake]

Look at the 2010 class on 247.  What an awful class as a whole. We had some good players from that class, but the amount of misses was huge.

[Temprees]

I think Dixon is a solid back, but can we really say we missed on him? We had Knile Davis, Alex Collins, and JWill during the times Dixon was in school. Dixon failed to run for 100 yards on every power 5 school they faced the last 2 seasons.

Just this year, in mutual opponents, Dixon ran for 81 yards on 17 carries and 0 TDs in a OT loss against Kansas State. Then ran for 39 yards 0 TDs on 19 carries against a 5-7 UTEP team.

Ran for 42 yards on 16 carries against OU last season. 14 carries on 29 yards against Auburn. 13 carries on 63 yards against Illinois. I get that a lot of it has to do with their line, but most good running backs find a way to break a few good runs off and have solid games at least a few good teams they play. He struggled to get going against most of the quality competition, so can we really say we missed on him compared to what we had? Collins is rated higher than him, and JWill would have been had he stayed healthy. Maybe we don't get 1 of those 2 if we have Dixon, but Dixon probably doesn't play much if any at Arkansas if everything was the same with just the addition of Dixon.

First, Dixon and Collins were not in the same class. Dixon is a senior. Secondly, you can find games where Power 5 Conference backs had ineffective games running the ball.  Fournett, and our own Alex Collins had games this season were they didn't get many rushing yards.  Collins:  against Toledo was 20 carries for 54 yards; Alabama was 12 for 26, and was 19 for 53 against Miss State. 

Dixon is in top 5 on most of the draft boards for running backs.  I have seen were he is expected to be the third back taken.   We missed on Dixon. I would suggest that you check him out on YouTube.

[ricepig]

First, Dixon and Collins were not in the same class. Dixon is a senior. Secondly, you can find games where Power 5 Conference backs had ineffective games running the ball.  Fournett, and our own Alex Collins had games this season were they didn't get many rushing yards.  Collins:  against Toledo was 20 carries for 54 yards; Alabama was 12 for 26, and was 19 for 53 against Miss State. 

Dixon is in top 5 on most of the draft boards for running backs.  I have seen were he is expected to be the third back taken.   We missed on Dixon. I would suggest that you check him out on YouTube.

Kids are missed every season, both in offering and not offering. It's not an exact science, now is it?

[Vantage 8 dude]

He was an elite left OT and a linebacker away from doing it all.



BB can't get either of those.....either.

So you're saying that with the exception of not having elite players at two position we would have been in the mix? Sorry I'm not buying that. While we certainly might have been wanting for some additional top notch players, it wasn't just TWO areas that were lacking. Overall defense was short of talent/effective play. Overall QUALITY depth at LB has been a chronic problem for quite some time and the defensive secondary play has been erratic for most of the past few seasons as well.

[wildturkey8]

Look at the 2010 class on 247.  What an awful class as a whole. We had some good players from that class, but the amount of misses was huge.

That class was the weak link of the last 5 years.

[scruf]

Petrino was never going to have an elite LT due to his insistence at flipping the tackles. Really stupid idea that results in lots of sacks and penalties.

[IronHog]

So you're saying that with the exception of not having elite players at two position we would have been in the mix? Sorry I'm not buying that. While we certainly might have been wanting for some additional top notch players, it wasn't just TWO areas that were lacking. Overall defense was short of talent/effective play. Overall QUALITY depth at LB has been a chronic problem for quite some time and the defensive secondary play has been erratic for most of the past few seasons as well.

Arkansas was as good as Auburn the year they won the NC.


Yea, a couple players woulda made the difference......and some ref help.

[IronHog]

I think Dixon is a solid back, but can we really say we missed on him? We had Knile Davis, Alex Collins, and JWill during the times Dixon was in school. Dixon failed to run for 100 yards on every power 5 school they faced the last 2 seasons.

Just this year, in mutual opponents, Dixon ran for 81 yards on 17 carries and 0 TDs in a OT loss against Kansas State. Then ran for 39 yards 0 TDs on 19 carries against a 5-7 UTEP team.

Ran for 42 yards on 16 carries against OU last season. 14 carries on 29 yards against Auburn. 13 carries on 63 yards against Illinois. I get that a lot of it has to do with their line, but most good running backs find a way to break a few good runs off and have solid games at least a few good teams they play. He struggled to get going against most of the quality competition, so can we really say we missed on him compared to what we had? Collins is rated higher than him, and JWill would have been had he stayed healthy. Maybe we don't get 1 of those 2 if we have Dixon, but Dixon probably doesn't play much if any at Arkansas if everything was the same with just the addition of Dixon.

Dixon is as good or better than any current Hog back.


He'd have played from day one.

[Peter Porker]

I think Dixon is a solid back, but can we really say we missed on him? We had Knile Davis, Alex Collins, and JWill during the times Dixon was in school. Dixon failed to run for 100 yards on every power 5 school they faced the last 2 seasons.

Just this year, in mutual opponents, Dixon ran for 81 yards on 17 carries and 0 TDs in a OT loss against Kansas State. Then ran for 39 yards 0 TDs on 19 carries against a 5-7 UTEP team.

Ran for 42 yards on 16 carries against OU last season. 14 carries on 29 yards against Auburn. 13 carries on 63 yards against Illinois. I get that a lot of it has to do with their line, but most good running backs find a way to break a few good runs off and have solid games at least a few good teams they play. He struggled to get going against most of the quality competition, so can we really say we missed on him compared to what we had? Collins is rated higher than him, and JWill would have been had he stayed healthy. Maybe we don't get 1 of those 2 if we have Dixon, but Dixon probably doesn't play much if any at Arkansas if everything was the same with just the addition of Dixon.

Dixon didn't have the OL Arkansas has had.a

[jry04]

Dixon is as good or better than any current Hog back.


He'd have played from day one.

Agree to disagree. He played a horrible schedule, but had 8 games without 100 yards last season, and 6 this season. I understand quality of offensive line matters, but that doesn't explain his 2.1 YPC average against 5-7 UTEP, or 2.7 against 4-8 Louisiana Lafayette. 8 carries for -4 yards against Southern Miss. I would have loved to have him in an Arkansas uniform, but to say he would have been as good as a healthy JWill or AC is a little unrealistic. Those two were considered well above Dixon going into this season, and AC only improved his stock.

[The NewEra]

Petrino is a HORRIBLE recruiter Person.

I corrected for you.

[jry04]

Dixon didn't have the OL Arkansas has had.a

I know he didn't, but LT was one of the best teams in that conference the last two years. They were the conference champ last year, and won 9 games this season. Their line wasn't as good as ours, but it was much better than the Dline of UTEP and ULL that gave him problems. Quality running backs from smaller schools are able to make plays on better competition all around the country. Dixon failed to do it in 5 chances over the last 2 years. He is a quality back, but if he is as good as AC and JWill, then he would have been able to do something against teams like Illinois and KST with his line.


Look at Tyler Ervin at San Jose State. That guy is a beast, and was very underrated. Their team went 5-7, but he ran for 160 yards on a superior Auburn team. Surely the talent gap in 5-7 SJSU and Auburn is equal or greater than that of LT and Kansas State, LT and UTEP, LT and ULL, LT and Illinois, etc...

I get everyone has bad games, lines have bad games, etc. However, for as much talk about Dixon being equal or better to our RBs, he sure failed to dominate his conference like AC dominated the SEC.

[hoggusamoungus]

We'll never know how he would have panned out but I doubt the W-L record would have been any better with him on the hill.   Geez, we went 15-11 the last two years with a guy who is the second all-time leading rusher in school history and one of only three SEC backs to have 1,000 yards in their first three years.  I can't see Dixon matching those numbers or moving the W-L needle.

[jry04]

We'll never know how he would have panned out but I doubt the W-L record would have been any better with him on the hill.   Geez, we went 15-11 the last two years with a guy who is the second all-time leading rusher in school history and one of only three SEC backs to have 1,000 yards in their first three years.  I can't see Dixon matching those numbers or moving the W-L needle.

Exactly. I see fans on social media saying we are missing out on Crockett like we missed out on Dixon. Dixon is a fine player, but we sent our last starting RB to the NFL, and will send AC and JWill there too, with AC currently being graded higher, and JWill being graded higher prior to his injury. Dixon likely wouldn't have made a difference.

[IronHog]

We'll never know how he would have panned out but I doubt the W-L record would have been any better with him on the hill.   Geez, we went 15-11 the last two years with a guy who is the second all-time leading rusher in school history and one of only three SEC backs to have 1,000 yards in their first three years.  I can't see Dixon matching those numbers or moving the W-L needle.

Collins got carries that should have gone other places his first two to get those stats IMO


Mostly to Dixon and Korliss Marshall

[hoggusamoungus]

Collins got carries that should have gone other places his first two to get those stats IMO


Mostly to Dixon and Korliss Marshall

He got carries that should have gone other places his first two years?  Guess you forgot about the 361 (150 and 211) carries JWill had those years.

[factchecker]

Collins got carries that should have gone other places his first two to get those stats IMO


Mostly to Dixon and Korliss Marshall

Dixon might have done well here but Petrino didn't think so.  Marshall sealed his own fate.  Kid had all the talent in the world but couldn't get the off-field stuff sorted out.  I don't think he had one carry this past season at Eastern Illinois.  Collins was the man the past three years.  You don't have to be Arkansas-bred to be loved here in Arkansas.

[hei5manhog]

Dixon might have done well here but Petrino didn't think so.  Marshall sealed his own fate.  Kid had all the talent in the world but couldn't get the off-field stuff sorted out.  I don't think he had one carry this past season at Eastern Illinois.  Collins was the man the past three years.  You don't have to be Arkansas-bred to be loved here in Arkansas.

Is that true? I assumed he had to sit out a year...what's the deal? He's obviously talented enough to play...more off field stuff?
Edit:
http://www.eiupanthers.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=4644&path=football
says he took a redshirt year

[factchecker]

How do you know anyone on another message board is complaining about Bielema not getting Dixon, when you can't read their post?

EVERY pay board has a free board or a partial free board.  They allow you to read non-member information but you have to pay to post.  Some are more active than others but there is usually some information there.  247 used to be the best site to get information.  I appreciate the work that Otis does and Natasha did a great job taking in-game and practice pictures.  It's hard to go there now due to the constant bickering from a few posters.  Every thread derails into a cat-fight.  Not to mention the abortion that is catch the wave, filipino-hog/ag.... one in the same.

You don't have to believe that someone said Dixon was a miss by Bielema. Trust me, our fanbase has its share of the uninformed who love to demonstrate vulgar displays of ignorance.

[factchecker]

Is that true? I assumed he had to sit out a year...what's the deal? He's obviously talented enough to play...more off field stuff?
Edit:
http://www.eiupanthers.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=4644&path=football
says he took a redshirt year

Thanks for that information.  I would check ESPN for his stats throughout the year and I wondered why he never got a carry.  You normally don't have to redshirt when you go down from FBS to FCS.  Maybe someone close to the situation can keep us updated.  I'm glad that he is playing for a staff with Arkansas connections.  The head coach is a former Razorback, Kim Dameron.

[RazorPiggie]

Can we move this to general sports?