I want Coach A to get another good laugh.

[-Blu]

I haven't posted much since the Georgia loss, because I was disappointed myself, I felt it was a game we were in a position to win, and a game we should have won.  With that said, most of the threads now have turned almost unbearable to read, you'd think we were a team 5-12 rather than 12-5 with the way people are acting on here.  It's really disturbing how ignorant our fan base is.  Am I the only person that remembers SWAC teams beating us at home a few years ago?  Mike was/is the best option we have at coach, he's done way more good for this program than harm, that's a fact.  Just about the whole front page is calling for Mike's head, and even after losing to now the #7 team in the country, the front page was filled with these threads.  And it's not just a few people doing this, it's seems to be a good portion of fans that feel this way, from reading these forums and listening to the idiots that call on the radio. 

At this point I just want Mike to do what he always does, and get a good laugh.  He laughed at you guys for letting him go, he went out and became a VERY good coach with an impressive resume, then came back, and you had to PAY the man WAAAY more than you would have ever had to if you just kept him in the first place.   This program has been a joke, We've been getting beat on the road by everybody before he got here, we had APR problems, guys constantly getting suspended, guys getting kicked out of school, heck we don't even have a practice facility yet, it's freakin embarrassing.  And now your mad at him, because he's trying to change the culture here, however it isn't changing as fast as you wanted.  I'm rooting so hard for Mike to get another good laugh at you guys.

And it's funny the way you guys talk, you talk as if Mike Anderson needs Arkansas, Mike is a well known coach with a good reputation, and has yet to see a losing season no matter what the situation was.  You let Mike go, he's going to have another job within a couple of weeks of him being released, and us on the other hand, let me be honest with you... nobody gives a crap about Arkansas, but people in Arkansas, especially in basketball.  No well established coach is coming here and dealing with all this, if it was a coach that wanted to, he'd already be here.  You going to get another Pelphrey type coach, or might get lucky and get a fired NBA coach for a couple of seasons, until he works his way back into the league.

So, whatever happens to Mike, he's going to get another laugh.  I just hope that laugh is after he has success here and shut up all you doubters, rather than going somewhere else and having success while we experiment North Texas's head coach because he had one good season.

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

I agree.

The Shocker's coach has got to show more long-term success or else he might just be Stan Heath.

[urkillnmesmalls]

I haven't posted much since the Georgia loss, because I was disappointed myself, I felt it was a game we were in a position to win, and a game we should have won.  With that said, most of the threads now have turned almost unbearable to read, you'd think we were a team 5-12 rather than 12-5 with the way people are acting on here.  It's really disturbing how ignorant our fan base is.  Am I the only person that remembers SWAC teams beating us at home a few years ago?  Mike was/is the best option we have at coach, he's done way more good for this program than harm, that's a fact.  Just about the whole front page is calling for Mike's head, and even after losing to now the #7 team in the country, the front page was filled with these threads.  And it's not just a few people doing this, it's seems to be a good portion of fans that feel this way, from reading these forums and listening to the idiots that call on the radio. 

At this point I just want Mike to do what he always does, and get a good laugh.  He laughed at you guys for letting him go, he went out and became a VERY good coach with an impressive resume, then came back, and you had to PAY the man WAAAY more than you would have ever had to if you just kept him in the first place.   This program has been a joke, We've been getting beat on the road by everybody before he got here, we had APR problems, guys constantly getting suspended, guys getting kicked out of school, heck we don't even have a practice facility yet, it's freakin embarrassing.  And now your mad at him, because he's trying to change the culture here, however it isn't changing as fast as you wanted.  I'm rooting so hard for Mike to get another good laugh at you guys.

And it's funny the way you guys talk, you talk as if Mike Anderson needs Arkansas, Mike is a well known coach with a good reputation, and has yet to see a losing season no matter what the situation was.  You let Mike go, he's going to have another job within a couple of weeks of him being released, and us on the other hand, let me be honest with you... nobody gives a crap about Arkansas, but people in Arkansas, especially in basketball.  No well established coach is coming here and dealing with all this, if it was a coach that wanted to, he'd already be here.  You going to get another Pelphrey type coach, or might get lucky and get a fired NBA coach for a couple of seasons, until he works his way back into the league.

So, whatever happens to Mike, he's going to get another laugh.  I just hope that laugh is after he has success here and shut up all you doubters, rather than going somewhere else and having success while we experiment North Texas's head coach because he had one good season.

In defense of Hog fans, since Nolan, we've seen the same thing with different faces.  I truly believe MA is going in the right direction.  Our talent has increased, we're competitive, and we have a lot of youth on the floor that is making some mistakes and needs to mature physically a bit. 

But...at some point, I think MA's system requires a true tough point guard.  It wouldn't hurt to have a pure shooter, a scorer, and a physical presence down low that commands the paint.  We either have those on the team and they haven't come out of their shell, or he's still in search of them on the recruiting trail. 

I think he has two years to get into the NCAA, provided we're seeing recruiting continue at a high level and we're competitive.  At the end of the 2016 season, if we're just seeing the same thing with different faces...then the UA will have to move on, regardless of how MA may laugh or not.  I'll wish him success if that happens, but I sincerely hope it never does. 

[checkraiser88]

So the man getting paid 2.2 million should be laughing at the fan base? I swear some of you guys want us to win so badly that you have trouble dealing with reality. We are an average team right now, that probably won't change next year either. I don't see the DIRECTION that this Anderson coached team is going. I remember after a few games last season players like Young and Powell were torn to shreds by a majority of this board. A mass majority even went on to say that this years squad would be MA's best because it would be more team oriented without Powell and Young. The truth is we could of used both of them this year! They were the star players and they would be on this team as well. There's talent on this team but it's not a balanced team. There's not enough consistent scoring, there's not a true pg, there's no star players. That my friend is on the COACH! He's the one recruiting these guys.

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

Sorry, I should have been clear.  I don't agree with laughing at the fan base.  I meant Blu's points about people jumping ship too soon are correct.

No coach is above the program.

[urkillnmesmalls]

So the man getting paid 2.2 million should be laughing at the fan base? I swear some of you guys want us to win so badly that you have trouble dealing with reality. We are an average team right now, that probably won't change next year either. I don't see the DIRECTION that this Anderson coached team is going. I remember after a few games last season players like Young and Powell were torn to shreds by a majority of this board. A mass majority even went on to say that this years squad would be MA's best because it would be more team oriented without Powell and Young. The truth is we could of used both of them this year! They were the star players and they would be on this team as well. There's talent on this team but it's not a balanced team. There's not enough consistent scoring, there's not a true pg, there's no star players. That my friend is on the COACH! He's the one recruiting these guys.

I agree.  But for his system...and I'll use Portis as the example, it takes the right player.  He's not going to go get a club footed stiff that may be a true center that will block out and rebound, because he can't run.  It won't happen.  He's going to get athletes, and as fans we have to hope that he stumbles onto a few like Day, Mayberry, Big O, Stewart, Corliss, Thurman, and Beck, who are not only athletes, but gritty competitors and truly basketball players.  Sprinkle in some role players...and you have something good happen. 

I think what frustrates fans is...we're watching what he's going to do.  There's not going to be a change to fundamental basketball, offensive sets, and less helter skelter trapping defense.  He's going to try to force turnovers, outrun the opposition, use a motion offense, and ignore what a lot of us grew up viewing as basic practices for successful basketball.  So for every amazing Qualls dunk to win a home game against KY, we may see a silly turnover or poor shot to lose one on the road. 

Hope is not a strategy.  We need a PG, some physical players, and toughness.  That's what the team lacks, and if MA isn't able to add those components or develop them, then why can't he be called out?  Isn't that his job?  Shouldn't we expect the NCAA tournament at least every few years at the very minimum?  Year 3...and it's not looking good for this year.     

[-Blu]

So the man getting paid 2.2 million should be laughing at the fan base? I swear some of you guys want us to win so badly that you have trouble dealing with reality.

Not the fan base, just the haters/doubters those that have started the let's fire Anderson campaign.  And why shouldn't he laugh at them?  All he does is prove people wrong, and be successful, no matter what they say.  He was let go and it was implied he wasn't good enough to be the coach here the first time around, the program goes to shambles and he has success at 2 different programs, and the program has to pay him VERY handsomely to even entertain coming back.  That would be the equivalent of us dating a hot girl in high school, and she dumps you because she thinks she's too good for you then, then you become very successful, have a hot girlfriend, and she gives you a call wanting you back, and asking do you remember the good times you had.  I honestly can't think of any other program that a situation like this has happened to.  And we have fans with the audacity to call for him to be fired after 2 1/2 years, when he's had nothing but had winning seasons, it's comical to me.

[mountainhog]

I agree.

The Shocker's coach has got to show more long-term success or else he might just be Stan Heath.

This is Marshall's 7th  year at Wichita state, and this year will be his 5th straight year of 25 wins.   It took him till his 3rd year to turn it around, so I don't think hes no stan Heath!  What's your idea of long term success? I'm pretty sure he turned Winthrop around too.

[Smithian]

I haven't posted much since the Georgia loss, because I was disappointed myself, I felt it was a game we were in a position to win, and a game we should have won.  With that said, most of the threads now have turned almost unbearable to read, you'd think we were a team 5-12 rather than 12-5 with the way people are acting on here.  It's really disturbing how ignorant our fan base is.  Am I the only person that remembers SWAC teams beating us at home a few years ago?  Mike was/is the best option we have at coach, he's done way more good for this program than harm, that's a fact.  Just about the whole front page is calling for Mike's head, and even after losing to now the #7 team in the country, the front page was filled with these threads.  And it's not just a few people doing this, it's seems to be a good portion of fans that feel this way, from reading these forums and listening to the idiots that call on the radio. 

At this point I just want Mike to do what he always does, and get a good laugh.  He laughed at you guys for letting him go, he went out and became a VERY good coach with an impressive resume, then came back, and you had to PAY the man WAAAY more than you would have ever had to if you just kept him in the first place.   This program has been a joke, We've been getting beat on the road by everybody before he got here, we had APR problems, guys constantly getting suspended, guys getting kicked out of school, heck we don't even have a practice facility yet, it's freakin embarrassing.  And now your mad at him, because he's trying to change the culture here, however it isn't changing as fast as you wanted.  I'm rooting so hard for Mike to get another good laugh at you guys.

And it's funny the way you guys talk, you talk as if Mike Anderson needs Arkansas, Mike is a well known coach with a good reputation, and has yet to see a losing season no matter what the situation was.  You let Mike go, he's going to have another job within a couple of weeks of him being released, and us on the other hand, let me be honest with you... nobody gives a crap about Arkansas, but people in Arkansas, especially in basketball.  No well established coach is coming here and dealing with all this, if it was a coach that wanted to, he'd already be here.  You going to get another Pelphrey type coach, or might get lucky and get a fired NBA coach for a couple of seasons, until he works his way back into the league.

So, whatever happens to Mike, he's going to get another laugh.  I just hope that laugh is after he has success here and shut up all you doubters, rather than going somewhere else and having success while we experiment North Texas's head coach because he had one good season.

There is a lot wrong with this post, but I'll stick to a couple points.

1. You come off as a Mike Anderson fan more than a Razorback fan. You're in the same boat as the doubters. The optimists and pessimists are cheering for the same team. Arkansas basketball is bigger than one coach.

2. If you think Arkansas is so irrelevant then why are you a student at this school? Have some damn pride in your school and state. We have a whole hell of a lot to be proud of these days, on and off the athletic fields. What a loser mentality. That attitude is toxic.

3. If Anderson was half the arrogant jerk you're post makes him sound like I would be ready for him leave. Thankfully you're inserting a lot of your views into him. I don't think he us laughing at the fans nor do I think he would laugh if fired. No clue where you get that idea.

I know you're angry about the program but tearing down the program and other fans to defend a coach in a rough stretch accomplishes nothing.

[-Blu]

There is a lot wrong with this post, but I'll stick to a couple points.

1. You come off as a Mike Anderson fan more than a Razorback fan. You're in the same boat as the doubters. The optimists and pessimists are cheering for the same team. Arkansas basketball is bigger than one coach.

2. If you think Arkansas is so irrelevant then why are you a student at this school? Have some damn pride in your school and state. We have a whole hell of a lot to be proud of these days, on and off the athletic fields. What a loser mentality. That attitude is toxic.

3. If Anderson was half the arrogant jerk you're post makes him sound like I would be ready for him leave. Thankfully you're inserting a lot of your views into him. I don't think he us laughing at the fans nor do I think he would laugh if fired. No clue where you get that idea.

I know you're angry about the program but tearing down the program and other fans to defend a coach in a rough stretch accomplishes nothing.

1. I am a Mike Anderson fan and Razorback fan.  You can't find a post from me where I'm not supporting the team.  If anything I show support too much and too optimistic when things look down.

2. I went to Henderson, didn't go to UofA.  And if I did, what does the basketball team being irrelevant the last 10 years have to do with a decision to go there?  My major was business management, and UofA actually has a great business program, so.... not sure what your getting at there.   And I don't think it's much of an argument that Arkansas is irrelevant in basketball right now, that doesn't mean you don't have pride in your state, if your stating a fact.

3. I would hope Anderson has some swagger about him, and like to prove doubters wrong.  That's a loser mentality not to have confidence in yourself and believe you can do things that nobody else may think you can do.  Mike should be thinking he's such a great coach that he can turn this season around and win a National Championship, and shut everyone that ever said he couldn't up.  That's actually the problem we have with our players right now on the road that we've been asking for, they need to get a toughness and swagger about themselves and have in their mind they ain't losing to anybody on any court.

4. Your getting upset at me for defending the current coach and team that's 12-5, with 14 games left, yet you can look on the front page and see several threads that are challenging his coaching intelligence, calling for him to be fired, criticizing every substitution he's ever made, criticizing his recruiting, his assistant coaches, his interviews, his play style, what he ate for breakfast etc., yet I'm the one tearing the program down.... gotcha.  Cool Story bro.

[fineswine]

I agree.

The Shocker's coach has got to show more long-term success or else he might just be Stan Heath.

Foolish.  Check the Winthrop stats.  Who the heck is Winthrop and where have they been since he left?

[tomw]

12-5 = wins over northeast southern western state universities...road record under Anderson  2-25... impressive right???  street ball is  very beatable (a&m, Georgia for starters)  a mediocre coach that wont change his style to offset the opposition,= very mediocre team....again...there have been excuses and excuses....time for excuses is over..time for results...of which is lousy basketball

[Chuck Porker]

Otherwise we would be 0-26 on the road
Think about that fact

[tomw]

wonders was mike laughing during the droughts of not scoring..enough minutes of no score to equal an entire half of a game???
people say mike can never be fired....they are wrong..he can be fired like every other coach

[Sivad]

The person laughing at Arkansas the most should be his agent, the infamous Jimmy Sexton, who conned Arkansas into paying $2.2 Million a year for this nostalgic garbage.

[donbro]

I haven't posted much since the Georgia loss, because I was disappointed myself, I felt it was a game we were in a position to win, and a game we should have won.  With that said, most of the threads now have turned almost unbearable to read, you'd think we were a team 5-12 rather than 12-5 with the way people are acting on here.  It's really disturbing how ignorant our fan base is.  Am I the only person that remembers SWAC teams beating us at home a few years ago?  Mike was/is the best option we have at coach, he's done way more good for this program than harm, that's a fact.  Just about the whole front page is calling for Mike's head, and even after losing to now the #7 team in the country, the front page was filled with these threads.  And it's not just a few people doing this, it's seems to be a good portion of fans that feel this way, from reading these forums and listening to the idiots that call on the radio. 

At this point I just want Mike to do what he always does, and get a good laugh.  He laughed at you guys for letting him go, he went out and became a VERY good coach with an impressive resume, then came back, and you had to PAY the man WAAAY more than you would have ever had to if you just kept him in the first place.   This program has been a joke, We've been getting beat on the road by everybody before he got here, we had APR problems, guys constantly getting suspended, guys getting kicked out of school, heck we don't even have a practice facility yet, it's freakin embarrassing.  And now your mad at him, because he's trying to change the culture here, however it isn't changing as fast as you wanted.  I'm rooting so hard for Mike to get another good laugh at you guys.

And it's funny the way you guys talk, you talk as if Mike Anderson needs Arkansas, Mike is a well known coach with a good reputation, and has yet to see a losing season no matter what the situation was.  You let Mike go, he's going to have another job within a couple of weeks of him being released, and us on the other hand, let me be honest with you... nobody gives a crap about Arkansas, but people in Arkansas, especially in basketball.  No well established coach is coming here and dealing with all this, if it was a coach that wanted to, he'd already be here.  You going to get another Pelphrey type coach, or might get lucky and get a fired NBA coach for a couple of seasons, until he works his way back into the league.

So, whatever happens to Mike, he's going to get another laugh.  I just hope that laugh is after he has success here and shut up all you doubters, rather than going somewhere else and having success while we experiment North Texas's head coach because he had one good season.

At least someone on this message board has some sense.  We'll said

[donbro]

12-5 = wins over northeast southern western state universities...road record under Anderson  2-25... impressive right???  street ball is  very beatable (a&m, Georgia for starters)  a mediocre coach that wont change his style to offset the opposition,= very mediocre team....again...there have been excuses and excuses....time for excuses is over..time for results...of which is lousy basketball

You should coach the team I hear you are the best recruiter in your bedroom

[slobberinhog]

0-28 on the road if not for Rob Chubb and Auburn. Laugh at that CMA.

[maxhog5]

Blu, I sincerely doubt Mike Anderson is doing much laughing right now.  First of all, I am not calling for Anderson's firing, but I am much closer now than I was prior to Saturday.  The performance at Georgia was unacceptable and whether it is right or wrong, the coach is always responsible for the performance of his team.  Arkansas did nothing well at Georgia.  Unacceptable.  Offensively this team is a mess.  I do cut Anderson some slack as I know he was handicapped by the APR situation, but in three years, he has not managed to recruit a guard who can consistently knock down shots or make an entry pass to put another player in scoring position.  There must be accountability for this.  That said, I believe any coach should be given at least four years and people can continue losing their minds all they want, but Anderson isn't going anywhere this year and I deplore people seizing on every little thing to criticize.  For instance the time out over them getting hammered on the boards, Anderson did exactly what was needed at the time, chew some rear ends off.  I commented this to my son at that time that was exactly what needed done, no x's or o's just a tail chewing.  Here is hoping for continued improvement and somehow solving the problems we saw Saturday. 

[Hoggish1]

I think what frustrates fans is...we're watching what he's going to do.  There's not going to be a change to fundamental basketball, offensive sets, and less helter skelter trapping defense.  He's going to try to force turnovers, outrun the opposition, use a motion offense, and ignore what a lot of us grew up viewing as basic practices for successful basketball.  So for every amazing Qualls dunk to win a home game against KY, we may see a silly turnover or poor shot to lose one on the road. 

Hope is not a strategy.  We need a PG, some physical players, and toughness.  That's what the team lacks, and if MA isn't able to add those components or develop them, then why can't he be called out?  Isn't that his job?  Shouldn't we expect the NCAA tournament at least every few years at the very minimum?  Year 3...and it's not looking good for this year.     

It should be clear that the SEC has two components — road games and home games.  If we play on the road with the same philosophy that we do at home, we will lose all but one or two games and that is not what MA needs to move forward.

He needs to alter his game on the road:

1.  Play a little slower and pick his spots to trap and run.

2.  Play fewer players so the team can get in a rhythm against teams that are wanting to slow us down, anyway.

3.  Develop a couple of reliable plays in the half court and take the shots down to 5 seconds, at least.

4.  Block out on D to get rebounds and limit 2nd chance points.

5.  Play with toughness.

I think these are reasonable points to ask for against teams on the road.  It's clear what we have now is not working — on the road.  We need to beat the UGAs of this league.  We should have done it anyway but we let them hang around.  Average teams that hang around on the road are going to beat superior teams who don't do 1-5 above.

[hoglady]

Still a little early to bail on this team.
We've played 3 OT games in a row.
We've fought, clawed and scratched our way to 1 win out of the 3.
It's a wonder we were even in the Georgia game with the long droughts without a basket in the 2nd half - most think we should have won - we were lucky to even be close. But the effort kept us in it.
As long as this team is fighting for wins and competing - I'll keep the faith.

[elksnort]

It should be clear that the SEC has two components — road games and home games.  If we play on the road with the same philosophy that we do at home, we will lose all but one or two games and that is not what MA needs to move forward.

He needs to alter his game on the road:

1.  Play a little slower and pick his spots to trap and run.

2.  Play fewer players so the team can get in a rhythm against teams that are wanting to slow us down, anyway.

3.  Develop a couple of reliable plays in the half court and take the shots down to 5 seconds, at least.

4.  Block out on D to get rebounds and limit 2nd chance points.

5.  Play with toughness.

I think these are reasonable points to ask for against teams on the road.  It's clear what we have now is not working — on the road.  We need to beat the UGAs of this league.  We should have done it anyway but we let them hang around.  Average teams that hang around on the road are going to beat superior teams who don't do 1-5 above.

Excellent post. Although I believe we are lacking a player or two, there is enough talent on this team NOW to have defeated UGA the other day by 7-8 points in regulation.

Yes, we could stand to have some personnel improvement, but we could also stand to have some coaching improvement.

Can Mike not improve?

[HawgAdvocate]

At least someone on this message board has some sense.  We'll said

We'll said indeed.

[-Blu]

The person laughing at Arkansas the most should be his agent, the infamous Jimmy Sexton, who conned Arkansas into paying $2.2 Million a year for this nostalgic garbage.

How did he con someone?  Did he fax them the wrong resume?  Did he lie about his accomplishments?  Did he lie about his character?  Did he cheat to have the success at his previous stops before Arkansas?

Some of you guys live in imaginary land, you think there's just a bunch of elite level coaches salivating at the opportunity to come to Arkansas to coach basketball, it's not....  The last big name coach before Mike Anderson that thought about taking this job, quit within 24 hours, he came on campus, looked at the situation, then bailed.  Some fans like to conveniently forget this information, and think in their head there's a long line of suitors. 

Mike Anderson was and still is the best coach Arkansas could get, and even to get him we had to open that pocket book, because he was in a good situation where he was at.  If there was another coach with a better resume, that would have took the same amount or less than what they offered Mike I guarantee you that person would be here, because there's still a lot of people that don't like that Nolan/Mike connection and your starting to see a lot of those people come out now.

And you guys want to talk about conning, Mike could say the same thing about having to wait so long to get a practice facility.  It's been reported several times he was promised to get a practice facility upon coming here.  He came here in 2011, isn't not going to be until mid 2015 that he gets something every other basketball team in our conference has already had.  So, you want to talk about recruiting and road games, just having a practice facility will help in both of those areas. 

[-Blu]

12-5 = wins over northeast southern western state universities...road record under Anderson  2-25... impressive right???  street ball is  very beatable (a&m, Georgia for starters)  a mediocre coach that wont change his style to offset the opposition,= very mediocre team....again...there have been excuses and excuses....time for excuses is over..time for results...of which is lousy basketball

That 12-5 record with 61 RPI that includes 3 wins over RPI top 50 teams, and tied for best in the conference with Florida.  You conveniently left that part out, but cool story.

[code red]

You say he is the man for the job....OK.  Then, where is the improvement??  I would say we should have seen some.  At least and improvement in winning % on the road.  A significant one.  Where is it??

[code red]

It should be clear that the SEC has two components — road games and home games.  If we play on the road with the same philosophy that we do at home, we will lose all but one or two games and that is not what MA needs to move forward.

He needs to alter his game on the road:

1.  Play a little slower and pick his spots to trap and run.

2.  Play fewer players so the team can get in a rhythm against teams that are wanting to slow us down, anyway.

3.  Develop a couple of reliable plays in the half court and take the shots down to 5 seconds, at least.

4.  Block out on D to get rebounds and limit 2nd chance points.

5.  Play with toughness.

I think these are reasonable points to ask for against teams on the road.  It's clear what we have now is not working — on the road.  We need to beat the UGAs of this league.  We should have done it anyway but we let them hang around.  Average teams that hang around on the road are going to beat superior teams who don't do 1-5 above.

This does make sense to us as fans.  So, why haven't we seen it implemented.  Remember Ole Miss last year.  Same thing press late give up a bucket at the buzzer to beat us.  Florida.  We press the last 3 min of the first half and see a 7 point lead evaporate before the 1 min mark.  Part of being a great coach is the ability to take any player and win. 

[code red]

0-28 on the road if not for Rob Chubb and Auburn. Laugh at that CMA.

Is it really that bad?? 

[maxhog5]

You say he is the man for the job....OK.  Then, where is the improvement??  I would say we should have seen some.  At least and improvement in winning % on the road.  A significant one.  Where is it??

It's the lack of a practice facility.  Reason Anderson can't recruit, this team can't shoot, or win on the road.  Since Wichita State has been mentioned, how are they undefeated and able to recruit Vanvleet without one? 

[maxhog5]

It's the lack of a practice facility.  Reason Anderson can't recruit, this team can't shoot, or win on the road.  Since Wichita State has been mentioned, how are they undefeated and able to recruit Vanvleet without one?

Actually I need to correct myself.  Apparently only guards care about practice facilities since Anderson has done well recruiting interior players. 

[bphi11ips]

. . . nobody gives a crap about Arkansas, but people in Arkansas, especially in basketball.  No well established coach is coming here and dealing with all this, if it was a coach that wanted to, he'd already be here.  You going to get another Pelphrey type coach, or might get lucky and get a fired NBA coach for a couple of seasons, until he works his way back into the league.

You lose all credibility when you say silly things like this.  Much like the football team, the basketball team ranks in the top 20 all-time programs.  Like all college teams, the coach appears to be the key.  Arkansas's basketball and football history since 1960 perfectly illustrates the importance of the head coach.

The Razorbacks have struggled to find coaches the equal of Frank Broyles, Lou Holtz, Eddie Sutton and Nolan Richardson.  So far those who have come and gone since have not been their equal.  Whether Mike Anderson is up to Nolan Richardson standards remains to be seen.

One thing is certain - Arkansas has a very well educated group of fans.  That comes from decades of intense interest.  Smithian suggested above you are a student.  I don't know if that is true.  I will tell you there are plenty of us here and elsewhere who share urkillnme's view.  We love and support Mike and understand "40 Minutes of Hell" basketball.  We also saw the pieces of it at its best - and it includes point guards, pure shooters and men in the post.  Those pieces are missing, by and large, from the current roster.  The question seems to be whether Mike Anderson thinks they are important or not. 

Granted, a few posters are calling for Mike's head, just like they did with Bielema.  Haters gonna hate.  Both coaches will have the opportunity to prove they are Broyles or Richardson rather than Crowe or Pelphrey.  But don't come on here and blast the program or the posters or the fans because some of us ask reasonable questions about the direction Anderson appears to be taking it.  The only discernible direction Anderson appears to be heading on the floor is in the direction of athletic swingmen and small forwards (6-10 or not, Portis is playing more and more like a small forward).  Some here who watched his Missouri teams say he has no interest in players required in the halfcourt.  I don't know if that's true or not.   

Many posters here insist that Mike's "system" does not require a point guard or low post players.  That may be some of the problem.  Other posters buy into this.  I don't believe it is an accurate reflection of what Mike is trying to build, especially if you look at Portis and Kingsley and the current recruiting class, which includes a point guard, a shooting guard and a power forward. 

A comparison to Nolan's third year and his recruiting class that season is interesting.  Here is a link to the roster for 1987-88:

http://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/arkansas/1988.html

Andrew Lang was a true center recruited to Eddie Sutton's half court system.  Otherwise, you see the making of Nolan's best teams from 1989 through 1995.  Mario Credit was an athletic center/power forward.  Ron Huery and Tim Scott were athletic hybrids.  Larry Marks and Stephan Moore were power forwards.  Allie Freeman was a point guard.  Cannon Whitby was the sharpshooter.  That team reminds me of Anderson's current team in one respect - other than Ron Huery, they lacked offensive firepower.  Help was on the way, though, with Mayberry, Day and Miller.  What you also see in the '88 roster and recruiting class is a reflection of Arkansas's traditional recruiting territory (and that goes for football as well).  Huery and Day were from Memphis.  Cannon Whitby was from Obion County in northwest Tennessee.  Now we know why John Calipari canceled the series with Memphis when he took over, saying Memphis had nothing to gain by playing Arkansas.  Mayberry was from Tulsa.  Miller was from Fort Worth. 

No one here can get in Mike Anderson's head and know what he is thinking.  We can look at how Nolan built the program, at the current roster and recruiting class, at the style of Anderson's UAB and Missouri teams and how they fared (pretty well if the NCAA tournament is the standard), and at what Mike himself has said and how his Arkansas teams have fared. 

With all of that said, it looks from 30,000 feet like Mike may differ from Nolan in his overriding emphasis on speed and athleticism to the exclusion of all else.  If that is the case, then it is cause for many of us to doubt whether he can ever duplicate Nolan's success.  Nolan's best teams were fairly traditional in their makeup and style.  Did they employ a whithering press?  Yes.  Did they trap and run and play uptempo basketball?  Yes.  But they could also slug it out with Duke and North Carolina in the halfcourt, and that is why they won on the road and won conference championships and went to 3 Final Fours and won it all in 1994.

The question in everyone's mind at the moment is whether Mike Anderson not only can, but whether he is willing, to put together a well-rounded basketball team that can compete at the highest level.  Right now there are mixed signals on this question, and it is understandable why many fans are getting frustrated with 2-24. 

     

[code red]

Well the practice facility is coming so HOOORAH.

[chiti66]

I agree.  But for his system...and I'll use Portis as the example, it takes the right player.  He's not going to go get a club footed stiff that may be a true center that will block out and rebound, because he can't run.  It won't happen.  He's going to get athletes, and as fans we have to hope that he stumbles onto a few like Day, Mayberry, Big O, Stewart, Corliss, Thurman, and Beck, who are not only athletes, but gritty competitors and truly basketball players.  Sprinkle in some role players...and you have something good happen. 

I think what frustrates fans is...we're watching what he's going to do.  There's not going to be a change to fundamental basketball, offensive sets, and less helter skelter trapping defense.  He's going to try to force turnovers, outrun the opposition, use a motion offense, and ignore what a lot of us grew up viewing as basic practices for successful basketball.  So for every amazing Qualls dunk to win a home game against KY, we may see a silly turnover or poor shot to lose one on the road. 

Hope is not a strategy.  We need a PG, some physical players, and toughness.  That's what the team lacks, and if MA isn't able to add those components or develop them, then why can't he be called out?  Isn't that his job?  Shouldn't we expect the NCAA tournament at least every few years at the very minimum?  Year 3...and it's not looking good for this year.     

For the record, I wanted CMA to come back and claim his rightful position as Coach of our Hogs.  However, I didn't think it would happen and I was in full support of bringing in Marshall, as I have followed his career from Wintrop to Wichita State.  Saying all that....we shouldn't even be thinking of firing CMA!!!!  He will get it done, it's a painful process, but he will get it done.

GHG!

[nextlevel]

This is Marshall's 7th  year at Wichita state, and this year will be his 5th straight year of 25 wins.   It took him till his 3rd year to turn it around, so I don't think hes no stan Heath!  What's your idea of long term success? I'm pretty sure he turned Winthrop around too.

Marshall  isn't leaving Witchita St. He has been passed over so many times for "big programs" (Carolina twice) he is now turning them down as he is at a program he can achieve and maintain a respectable level of success.

[-Blu]

You lose all credibility when you say silly things like this.  Much like the football team, the basketball team ranks in the top 20 all-time programs.  Like all college teams, the coach appears to be the key.  Arkansas's basketball and football history since 1960 perfectly illustrates the importance of the head coach.

If you lose credibility for telling the truth, then your right I've lost all credibility.  You may not want to hear it but Arkansas in basketball is not a destination that elite coaches and recruits are looking at anymore.   And there is no argument to the fact that, if we could have got a coach with a better resume than Mike Anderson, for around the same price, we would have got that coach.

And as far as Arkansas a top 20 program, It's not even considered by experts as a top 25 destination for a coach at the moment.  I went and looked at some sites that rank the top destinations in college basketball, and Arkansas is not considered a top 25 program by any of them.  I guess all these experts credibility is in question as well?  Because none of them think Arkansas is a top 20 program right now as you stated.

Here's some links for ya.  I don't ever speak without having knowledge of something first.

http://www.azcentral.com/sports/colleges/free/20131216ranking-top-25-college-basketball-coaching-jobs.html

http://www.sportsonearth.com/article/64621444/

And I don't think there's nothing wrong with discussing the team and criticizing the coach and giving your input, I know on game day I'm right there with everybody discussing and giving my input, and getting upset with some of the rotations, calls, effort etc.  But, I'm talking to the people that's taken it to the next level on here.  I'm talking to the guys that started the threads calling for the coach to be fired, threads for his assistants to be fired, threads declaring hawg ball dead, threads that are discussing the next head coach, threads that are nitpicking every single thing the coach has ever done wrong.

[HawgAdvocate]

That 12-5 record with 61 RPI that includes 3 wins over RPI top 50 teams, and tied for best in the conference with Florida. You conveniently left that part out, but cool story.

That's a resume for a team at the bottom of the bubble, just as it was last season.

[nextlevel]

That's a resume for a team at the bottom of the bubble, just as it was last season.

Nice to see you posting heavily after a loss, per usual.

[HawgAdvocate]

Nice to see you posting heavily after a loss, per usual.

LOL you care far too much about the messenger and not enough about the message itself.

Besides, it's a holiday weekend. Free to post my thoughts. We win on a Tuesday night, I'm working on Wednesday through Friday.

[nextlevel]

LOL you care far too much about the messenger and not enough about the message itself.

Besides, it's a holiday weekend. Free to post my thoughts. We win on a Tuesday night, I'm working on Wednesday through Friday.

How convenient.

[Kevin]

It should be clear that the SEC has two components — road games and home games.  If we play on the road with the same philosophy that we do at home, we will lose all but one or two games and that is not what MA needs to move forward.

He needs to alter his game on the road:

1.  Play a little slower and pick his spots to trap and run.

2.  Play fewer players so the team can get in a rhythm against teams that are wanting to slow us down, anyway.

3.  Develop a couple of reliable plays in the half court and take the shots down to 5 seconds, at least.

4.  Block out on D to get rebounds and limit 2nd chance points.

5.  Play with toughness.

I think these are reasonable points to ask for against teams on the road.  It's clear what we have now is not working — on the road.  We need to beat the UGAs of this league.  We should have done it anyway but we let them hang around.  Average teams that hang around on the road are going to beat superior teams who don't do 1-5 above.

normally i would agree about slowing down on the road. this team cannot play any type of half court game. they don't shoot it well enough or are able to break down a set defense.

i think this team needs to go nascar. play faster, trap more,(especially half court). he needs to do what he said, pick them up getting off the bus. shoot quicker and try to track down misses, before the defense is set.

with what this team lack, they cannot play half court

[HawgAdvocate]

I asked him the same thing, he said the reason he doesn't post after wins is because he's at every home game.  I don't know what that has to do with posting, considering you can post after you get home from the game, or even do like some and post from your phone during half-time or timeouts, if you see something interesting.   I guess he wanted to make himself feel important and let us know that he goes to all the home games. 

Hi Blu! Have you visited my post-UK game thread yet? I'm serving punch & pie to all those who post there.

You can only ignore the facts for so long. Who posts from the arena? That's lame.

http://www.hogville.net/yabbse/index.php?topic=559432.msg8739054#msg8739054

[nextlevel]

I asked him the same thing, he said the reason he doesn't post after wins is because he's at every home game.  I don't know what that has to do with posting, considering you can post after you get home from the game, or even do like some and post from your phone during half-time or timeouts, if you see something interesting.   I guess he wanted to make himself feel important and let us know that he goes to all the home games. 

This place gets awfully quite after a win.

Full retard after a loss.

It isn't just him.

[HawgAdvocate]

This place gets awfully quite after a win.

Full retard after a loss.

It isn't just him.

This place was not quite after beating UK. It's just that prior to the UK win, we hadn't had a win worth discussing since Clemson. Everyone assumes we destroy Savannah State, Texas-San Antonio, etc. What do we learn from those games?

And I haven't even called for MA to be fired. I don't want him to be fired. I want him to do better.

[Hawg Red]

This place gets awfully quite after a win.

Full retard after a loss.

It isn't just him.

This place was pretty amped up after the Kentucky game. Negative feelings always illicit more of a response. That's just human nature.

[HawgAdvocate]

Great! so that means win or lose on Wednesday, we don't get to hear from you?  That's awesome!  Also, quick question.... You told me that you go to all home games, if you work Wednesday through Friday, what do you do on the home games that are played on Wednesdays and Thursdays?  Sounds like somebody is lying somewhere.

I don't work after 5 goofus. Glad to know you're creeping into my personal life.

This is a forum for Razorback Basketball. Not a troll forum for you to harass.

[nextlevel]

This place was pretty amped up after the Kentucky game. Negative feelings always illicit more of a response. That's just human nature.

After the game, yes.

Traffic slowed way down when it came to discussing the upcoming game.

Seems no one wants to discuss the upcoming game this week, just dwell on an over time loss to UGA instead.

[HawgAdvocate]

Seems no one wants to discuss the upcoming game this week, just dwell on an over time loss to UGA instead.

Seeing as how it's on the road, I think you understand why.

[-Blu]

This place was pretty amped up after the Kentucky game. Negative feelings always illicit more of a response. That's just human nature.

Yep your right, and believe we called for this place to get crazy after A&M loss, but it just got dumb after the Georgia loss.  I've honestly never seen it like this.

I just hope somehow, someway we can beat Tennessee at Tennessee, it would really offset everything that has happened so far.  It's a long shot at best, but man that would really turn things around.

[nextlevel]

Seeing as how it's on the road, I think you understand why.

Of course.

Some can't pass up the opportunity to take about road games, Mike's Salary, rebounds, or the "true PG" and lack there of...

[-Blu]

I don't work after 5 goofus. Glad to know you're creeping into my personal life.

This is a forum for Razorback Basketball. Not a troll forum for you to harass.

LOL what, somebody else please tell me they caught this guy, this is hilarious.  You just told nextlevel the only reason your posting so much now is because it's a holiday weekend, and the reason you didn't post during the wins was because you work Wednesday through Saturday, although you told me the reason you don't post during the wins is because your at every home game.  Now I'm trying to creep into your personal life, because I called you out on your lies.  Nice save.