Who has a better opinion of Nolan than they did 5 years ago?

[AstroHawg]

Whether Nolan deserved to be shown the door or not (I say he did), does anybody else on here have a better opinion of Nolan than they did 5 years ago?  All things considered (JFB).

[LJHOG]

not really, since I have all but forgotten Nolan.

[R300069]

I miss him so bad!!!  I will take a crazy racist winner over a boring Stan anyday.

He was the best.  The winningest winner we have ever had outside of track.  Flat out intimidated evry opponent.  Took no BS from players or big-headed recruits.  A man. A angry man with a big mouth at the wrong time, but a man, a leader of b-ballers.

Bet alot of people here wanted him gone back then, not me.  He really disliked Broyles more than the darksideroos.  More than all 50 of them!!

[hogpowr]

Nolan for AD, wouldn't that cook broyles goose!

[WPSRazorbacks]

not really, since I have all but forgotten Nolan.

I'm sorry.  You really are missing out. Those were the Glory Days!!

[Hamillionaire]

not really, since I have all but forgotten Nolan.

I'm sorry.  You really are missing out. Those were the Glory Days!!

Amen to that!

[Pork Salad Annie]

Only because that crazy ole coot Nolan does'nt try to dye his hair some bizarro color scheme like our juvenile head football coach.

[WoooPigSooie]

Nolan for AD, wouldn't that cook broyles goose!

There will be an African American POTUS before there is an African American AD at the UA.  That's another thread.

I can't say that I have a better opinion of Nolan, the "they can fire me now and gimme' my check speech" was cardinal, basically way out of line.  However, I understand Nolan's plight more now than I have in the past.

[10thPlanet]

If they iced Gus(go to the same Church) and the Springdale players(their own players), how hard would it be to believe they treated Nolan like crap? Nolan was a threat to Nutt and Broyles(Broyles is still coaching, he said so in Dallas), Nolan could win and proved it.

[Translator]

Nolan was a great coach. He just got a tad lazy/arrogant on the recruiting front after 95 season.

I think it was more apathy than anything else...I'm pretty sure I would have flipped out much sooner than he did (how many of us could stay sane on the Hill with the Dynasty that is in control?)

[enoughalready]

I was really fed up with Nolan at the end (recruiting had suffered terribly), but I sincerely hope that someday we can welcome him back and maybe even actually put a statue of him outside BWA.

[cal34]

Nolan was a great coach. He just got a tad lazy/arrogant on the recruiting front after 95 season.

I think it was more apathy than anything else...I'm pretty sure I would have flipped out much sooner than he did (how many of us could stay sane on the Hill with the Dynasty that is in control?)

I agree, Im sure it got to the point that he didnt care anymore. At least he didnt take no crap off them.

[WPSRazorbacks]

I was really fed up with Nolan at the end (recruiting had suffered terribly), but I sincerely hope that someday we can welcome him back and maybe even actually put a statue of him outside BWA.

His name should be on the court as well.

[TomasPistola]

I'll cut Nolan SOME slack. But he was responsible for what came outta his mouth, not JFB or anyone else. There was a better way to handle the situation. Would I love to have him and/or Mike anderson back? Without a doubt.

[HognotinMemphis]

What has happened to give anyone a different opinion of Nolan than the one they had 5 years ago? I've heard zero about him since his lawsuit was over. Are you suggesting that just with the passage of time that someone would suddenly change their mind about what Nolan did and did not do?

Last I knew, Nolan was getting paid handsomely to sit on his arse and watch his llamas. I'm glad he was fired and he deserved it.

[Hamillionaire]

Nolan was a great coach. He just got a tad lazy/arrogant on the recruiting front after 95 season.

I think it was more apathy than anything else...I'm pretty sure I would have flipped out much sooner than he did (how many of us could stay sane on the Hill with the Dynasty that is in control?)

Well I'll cut Nolan some slack. He didn't want to butt kiss AAU coaches in order to get in with their players. I can respect that but we saw the result of not doing that and thinking he could select and not recruit anymore. A few years of decent teams but not dominant any longer.

I know he never recruited Ronnie but if you look at what might have been as far as guys that he was recruiting, we could have been awesome. Just missed on Okafor. Had a commit from Igaduila (sp?). That guy who followed MA to UAB (can't remember his name cuz he didn't really pan out). Who knows he may have worked out for Nolan? Add JJ Sullinger to that and some role players and I'd say you've got a pretty sweet lineup. Oh, well, if if's and butt's were candy and nuts...

[brandon]

Nolan definitely did some things wrong but he was obviously right about Nutt being treated a lot better than he was and for what?  Nutt hasn't won anything here.  Did he overreact?  Yes, but I have a lot more sympathy for him considered what I know now about Nutt and Broyles. 

[OKC]

Nolan was burned out. I would imagine FB didn't give him any help. Even he probably expected to get fired after his speech. However, nobody, i mean nobody could get the most out his players like he could. The players loved to play for him and would have done anything for him. I miss the 90's Nolan!!

[uarugby]

I miss the early Nolan not the Nolan that reared his head in his last few years. I know we lost an NBA player a year early partially because he couldn't stand Nolan anymore. It was really sad to see this as I attended every game possible under his tenure. I cheered for him as loud as anyone but his time was up when he started seeing people as after him. Stan may or may not be the best fit for our program, however, we've been so accustomed to Nolan's style that the new style is almost a jump back to the days of Eddie. Almost, but not quite. Stan has a good philosophy on the game however it seems that he chooses on athletic ability rather than on basketball ability. My main argument on this would be Irvin's ball handling and decision making vs McCurdy's passing and decision making skills. Having a player who is supposed to be your main ball handler and is responsible for leading the team in turnovers is not a good coaching decision. This to me is where he lacks in his coaching ability. Go Hogs, we'll still improve!

[lilredheadedlady]

I miss him so bad!!!  I will take a crazy racist winner over a boring Stan anyday.

He was the best.  The winningest winner we have ever had outside of track.  Flat out intimidated evry opponent.  Took no BS from players or big-headed recruits.  A man. A angry man with a big mouth at the wrong time, but a man, a leader of b-ballers.

Bet alot of people here wanted him gone back then, not me.  He really disliked Broyles more than the darksideroos.  More than all 50 of them!!

Well, I don't think he should've been fired the way he was.  I think that he and JFB hadn't gotten along well for a long time and JFB was just waiting for the opportunity to can Nolan.

And sure, Nolan had some down years.  But he had some good ones, too.  And when I say good ones, I don't mean "almost" seasons.  I mean that the man could win!  I wish we had Nolan back, grumpy temper and all.

[Big Papa Satan]

I miss the early 90's Nolan.

I'm glad the early 2000's Nolan was fired. 

[idochog]

He was right about JFB, doesnt mean his actions in the end were proper.  And yes, he did deserve to be fired.

[HogFaninGA]

It is very clear to me that Nolan was a victim of racism and there is clearly a double standard by JFB on how he handles white coaches (HDN) and how he handles black coaches (Nolan).  JFB admitted that he used derogatory terms when he referred to black people in the Nolan trial.  If HDN was a black coach, his butt would of been gone a long time ago (he would of never been hired in the first place with HDN's resume).

[code3hawg]

I will say I do miss Nolan or atleast his style of play, but if Heath of any other coach was winning and winning big right now, all of this sweet stuff about Nolan wouldnt even be said.

[ally_mcsqueal]

Nolan was burned out. I would imagine FB didn't give him any help. Even he probably expected to get fired after his speech. However, nobody, i mean nobody could get the most out his players like he could. The players loved to play for him and would have done anything for him. I miss the 90's Nolan!!

Nolan had the same problem I'm afraid Frank's gonna have.  He didn't know when to call it quits.  The guy was clearly burned out and could have (and should have) gone out in style after the 2000 SEC championship.  He would have gone out with a big sendoff.  We would've named something after him.  He would have gotten his statue in BWA.  Everybody would've been happy.  He would've gotten the sendoff and the "thank you" he deserved.

He was never going to be AD because the man has no tact.  You can't go around insulting the people you want to give you money.  I don't care if you're black, white, green, blue, or purple.  He demonstrated repeatedly over his tenure that he had a problem with using common sense before he opened his mouth in a way that's find if your a winning coach, but would be disaster for an AD.

I hate that it went down that way.  That's partly why it would've been nice if Nutt had exited stage right after this year when he could've quit while he was ahead.  At this point, whenever he leaves, he's gonna look like a heel.  Last week would never have happened.  If we suck next year (remember, we went 4-7 with the same crew 2 years ago...never underestimate the power of bad coaching), he's gonna get canned AND he won't be hirable.  It will absolutely prove that Gus Malzahn was the only reason we did so well this year.

[1stwordswerewoopig]

I feel the exact same way about Nolan now as I did then.

He took us to an elite level.  For that we should all be EXTREMELY grateful.

However, his anger (none of us will ever know if it was misplaced) and lack of success on the recruiting trail combined to lead to his downfall.

The poor recruiting led to underachieving teams which led to more anger which led to more tirades.

Give me Nolan the hungry recruiter without the tirades today and I'll take him.

Tirades and lack luster recruiting included, see ya coach...and by the way, thanks for the memories.

[kgr]

Nolan opened mouth and inserted foot ON TV.  That being said, he had lost the fire in his belly and his teams weren't that good when he was canned, also a good reason to be dismissed.  He also couldn't take race out of the equation.  He was ejected from a game.  When he called the official a prejudiced, white, mf, he got his third technical (it was in the SWC against SMU).  Now as it was a basketball official which on the food chain level is right there with child abusers, in my not so humble opinion, he probably was an mf.  He was also white.  But why say prejudiced and why say white?  Just call the ref the mj which he was.

Also, it appears he was right about several things:

J. Frank = White haired devil
HDN = double standard

What really p.o.ed Nolan is he wanted to be the AD and knew it wasn't going to happen.

[btaylor2404]

I miss him so bad!!!  I will take a crazy racist winner over a boring Stan anyday.

He was the best.  The winningest winner we have ever had outside of track.  Flat out intimidated evry opponent.  Took no BS from players or big-headed recruits.  A man. A angry man with a big mouth at the wrong time, but a man, a leader of b-ballers.

Bet alot of people here wanted him gone back then, not me.  He really disliked Broyles more than the darksideroos.  More than all 50 of them!!

I completely agree with you, I think he deserved to be fired for what he said those last few weeks, but I sure hated to see it happen.  I know he got bored with recuriting, but still he was 100X better than what we have today.

[CPL HOG]

Dont have a better opinion of him I though he was treated bad in the first place. I have talked to Nolan several times and he is a great guy. Frank treated him wrong he should still be here.

[razor1]

Whether Nolan deserved to be shown the door or not (I say he did), does anybody else on here have a better opinion of Nolan than they did 5 years ago?  All things considered (JFB).

not me

[BartIV]

Nolan created the Razorbacks. Teams used to come to Arkansas scared and with cameras in hand to take pictures of a perfect team. Nolan brought the Razorback program back to life in the 90's and he deserved some respect. Think what Razorbacks sports would have been like without Nolan in the 90's. The Football teams were pathetic in the early-mid 90's and Nolan had us in the sweet sixteen or better during that time.
One more question, Nolan won the SEC championship in his last years, in fact, didn't the Razorbacks play 4 games in 4 days and win. First time in history. When was this? and how long after that was he fired? Just for winning that, he should have been given another 10 years.
Bring back Nolan!!!!

[presley11]

If everytime you walk into BWA, and remember what it used to be like; the atmosphere, all seats filled, etc.. and you don't miss Nolan, you are just kidding yourself.  40 minutes of hell is his trademark and we ran it to the hilt.  What would you call our offense and defense these days?  Nothing against SH, but he is not Nolan and never will be.  I miss Nolan because of what he did for Arkansas basketball and to not give him his proper due is a shame.  I think now a lot more people understand why he called JFB, the "White Haired Devil".  Think about a job you had where you didn't like your boss and he/she treated you unfairly, how would you handle the situation? 

[DeltaBoy]

I love Nolan He won a NC and stood up to Frank.  Frank manipulated the situation so he could embarrass Nolan and Fire him since he could not control him!

[kgr]

Nolan created the Razorbacks. Teams used to come to Arkansas scared and with cameras in hand to take pictures of a perfect team. Nolan brought the Razorback program back to life in the 90's and he deserved some respect. Think what Razorbacks sports would have been like without Nolan in the 90's. The Football teams were pathetic in the early-mid 90's and Nolan had us in the sweet sixteen or better during that time.
One more question, Nolan won the SEC championship in his last years, in fact, didn't the Razorbacks play 4 games in 4 days and win. First time in history. When was this? and how long after that was he fired? Just for winning that, he should have been given another 10 years.
Bring back Nolan!!!!

Sorry, you have your history wrong.  Coach Rose was winning in the SWC before his asst. Waller took over (he was lousy).  Lanny Van E. brought them to another level and was a good coach.  Sutton brought the hogs to the always on the national forefront level.  Nolan took it the next step, and deserves credit for everything he accomplished.

[dirtydoghog]

Nolan was a great coach. He just got a tad lazy/arrogant on the recruiting front after 95 season.

I think it was more apathy than anything else...I'm pretty sure I would have flipped out much sooner than he did (how many of us could stay sane on the Hill with the Dynasty that is in control?)

Well I'll cut Nolan some slack. He didn't want to butt kiss AAU coaches in order to get in with their players. I can respect that but we saw the result of not doing that and thinking he could select and not recruit anymore. A few years of decent teams but not dominant any longer.

I know he never recruited Ronnie but if you look at what might have been as far as guys that he was recruiting, we could have been awesome. Just missed on Okafor. Had a commit from Igaduila (sp?). That guy who followed MA to UAB (can't remember his name cuz he didn't really pan out). Who knows he may have worked out for Nolan? Add JJ Sullinger to that and some role players and I'd say you've got a pretty sweet lineup. Oh, well, if if's and butt's were candy and nuts...

I cut the man no slack and am glad he was fired!  I loved the man, but he got so full of himself in the end that he killed our program.  Here are my reasons as they relate to your post.
   1.  Nolan refused to call or walk the 35 steps to Fayetteville to recruit the best players produced in our state since Joe Johnson.
   2.  Nolan did not get the commitment from Okafor because he choose not to take the final inhome visit to see Okafor.  Okafor admitted that Uconn just seemed that much interested and that is why he signed with them.  Just flat out lazy on Nolan's part.
   3.  Nolan took any change of Mike Anderson being our coach down with him that day.  So he is upset, keep your mouth shut and step down and allow the U of A to hire him.  Mike had no chance after Nolan said the things he did. 
   4.  The way he treated his players in the end......it wasn't the players fault he signed them and they stunk.....that was his and he treated them like crap.  To this day I watch Pargo play in the NBA and wonder why Nolan called him out for taking our last shots in a couple of games.  "Hey Nolan, he took the shots because he was the only shooter you had on the team!!" 

[BartIV]

Doesn't Frank Broyles have a big head to and seems to be destroying the program. I guess that means he needs to go too.

[BartIV]

and look where we are now, lost to a pathetic 11-7 (1-4) SEC team. Things have really picke up for the program since Nolan left.

[HognotinMemphis]

Aside from the things Nolan said and did off the court, look at his record from '96 until he was fired near the end of the '02 season.

Especially his record from '98-'99 through '01-'02 seasons. He was horrible in that time frame. That was 4 to 6 years of a program going straight down hill. He'd obviously quit for whatever reasons - burned out (tired and/or bored) getting back at Broyles, insanity, etc.

It was time for him to quit but he wouldn't and then it festered, and Broyles handled it about as poorly as he is handling Nutt and the football program now. But Nolan definitely deserved to be fired and he alone determined how it happened. Nolan made it end in a messy way.

[BartIV]

Did Nolan Richardson have a losing season in his last years, I don't think so, but i could be wrong, I would have to look.
I imagine Nolan Richardson last seasons were about the same as Stan Heaths season, but Nolans teams were better too watch.

[foosaddict]

However, his anger (none of us will ever know if it was misplaced) and lack of success on the recruiting trail combined to lead to his downfall.

  I beg to differ...  Those in the know, know he had every right to do what he did...   For those who don't know...  What would you do if you knew your boss was a racist?   Anybody remember what happened when Nolan first came here and applied to join the Fayetteville Country Club?   Access denied!  Now you all know that Broyles had as much pull as anyone there and he should have done what it took to get Nolan accepted at the FCC.  Unfortunately it didn't happen, Nolan joined Paradise and a few years later when he was getting us to the final four all the time, the Country Club finally invited him to come and play with Whitey...  No surprise he turned 'em down.  Nolan, I was always proud of you for that...  It's no surprise that Nolan's zeal for coaching the Hogs seemed to dry up in later years...  I would lose interest in my job too, if I had to work for a bunch of out-dated, racist pigs(woops no pun intended... LMAO!)  I personally was sad to see that nice man leave on the terms he did...  They should have built a statue of him in front of Bud Walton but instead they treated him like he was a lesser man because of some freakin skin pigment!  Nolan, I personally want to thank you for winning a National Championship for us and creating a style of BB that was soooo entertaining to watch...  I found myself kinda rootin' for Mike Anderson's team this year and wasn't too surprised that he handed us a beatdown like he did...  Man I sure do miss 40 minutes of hell!   

  -3rd whitey on the left-

[HognotinMemphis]

Did Nolan Richardson have a losing season in his last years, I don't think so, but i could be wrong.

You're wrong.

[chillinhoggie]

 1.  Nolan refused to call or walk the 35 steps to Fayetteville to recruit the best players produced in our state since Joe Johnson

True, but considering what has happened with this whole Gus/Springdale/Mitch deal...... seems like a good move to me to avoid a potential mess..... Nolan never did like to recruit local kids all that much..... My guess is too much extra pressure added to play a local kid on top of the pressure to win.

[lilredheadedlady]

I love Nolan He won a NC and stood up to Frank.  Frank manipulated the situation so he could embarrass Nolan and Fire him since he could not control him!

Yep.  That's what I think, too.

[BrooklynRoss]

I thought he had lost his mind when he left, but when I finally understood exactly what Broyles said to/about him, I think I would have been infuriated as well. Now I really miss him and hog ball, but damn, I'm surprised any black athlete or coach wants to be anywhere near the hill, considering the environment.

[BartIV]

Nolan was 13-14 his last season. What would have it been had Joe Johnson stayed on board?

[MaconBacon]

Dont forget about all the nice people that used to burn crosses in his yard and shoot his horses. 

[hog caller]

i always liked nolan but he always had the finger pointing problem about predjucice. it's really a sdhame the way it turned out . i understand why he had to go . he was probably the one best coach we had in a long long time. his own hang up killed him.

[ozarkhog]

Nolan was fine until he called us all redneck @$$holes. He made it a general statement all the way back to his first few years.

Still, it hurts to watch missouri play and realize what we do not have.

[ozarkhog]

Don't know about the crosses, but the idiot who shot the horse shot several other horses and cows around the area.

[HogFaninGA]

Nolan was fine until he called us all redneck @$$holes. He made it a general statement all the way back to his first few years.

Still, it hurts to watch missouri play and realize what we do not have.

If you knew the crap he had to go through you wouldn't blame him.  He wasn't well recieved when he first got to the U of A.  He tried to get a membership in the Fayetteville Golf Club (I believe) and was turned down.  If Frank wanted to do something he could of, but didn't.  There are other instances also.