Nice write up from Dennis Dodd

[ricepig]

I was thinking that with business in the region growing like it is, I could see a metro area in NW Ark of over a million people and not just retirees in Belavista, but youg people with kids.  With that population growth comes new high schools, great facilities and coaches.  UA will benefit from that in its own back yard.

Lots of $ already in NW Arkansas and a lot more to come.

It's a very attractive place to visit and recruits to the U of A will be impressed with everything about the Fayetteville and the region!

I'm not discounting(haha) that the area is attracting lots of people to work for the discounter, or associated businesses. There was a tweet the other day that Centerton had gone from 490 to over 11,000 in population since 1990, so I could see continued double digit growth. Will it be a recruiting hotbed, lots of factors still to be determined. Truthfully, we haven't gotten a lot a kids from Rogers/Bentonville over the years, most have been from Fayetteville and Springdale.

[moses_007]

What a terrific article here about the program Bielema is building in Fayetteville.  The entire world is starting to take notice about what's going on in the hill.

http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/writer/dennis-dodd/25248768/unique-animals-razorbacks-gaining-mental-physical-edges-under-bielema

[HF#1]

Legit writing right there.

[Hawgey-Davidson]

Little late to the party. But appreciate your enthusiasam.

[bphi11ips]

What happened to "we can't out Alabama Alabama?"

[ALLVOL]

What happened to "we can't out Alabama Alabama?"

I've asked my friends that are Hog fans that exact question. I remember telling them he could and I thought he would. Funny how now everyone loves the guy. I stated that I thought Coach B was better than Bobby P and was laughed at by Hog fans. Now you can't find any of the "we can't out Alabama, Alabama" folks anywhere.

[jjdlc]

What happened to "we can't out Alabama Alabama?"

Lane Kiffin.

[BearsBisonsBoars]

Lane Kiffin.

We out LSU'd LSU last year and they frequently out Alabama Alabama.

So, no.
It's about what we're doing. Not about Kiffin.

[jjdlc]

We out LSU'd LSU last year and they frequently out Alabama Alabama.

So, no.
It's about what we're doing. Not about Kiffin.

It was a joke, lighten up.  I was very much in the group that thought we could be more physical if we went about it the right way, which we are.

That said, Kiffin is taking some of the starch out of Bama as well.

[NuttinItUp]

Dang, there are a lot of people in the comments section down below the article making fun of Bielema's weight. Has he really gained that much?

[zane]

Is it season yet?

[usf15cc]

Great read makes me ready for football season.

[MultipleScoreGasms]

Dang, there are a lot of people in the comments section down below the article making fun of Bielema's weight. Has he really gained that much?

Well, in that picture he does appear to have jawls.  He can always flash a picture of Jenn, and tell the nerds in their mom's basement to suck it.

[BearsBisonsBoars]

It was a joke, lighten up.  I was very much in the group that thought we could be more physical if we went about it the right way, which we are.

That said, Kiffin is taking some of the starch out of Bama as well.

Many apologies. But you have to admit, there are some here who will do anything they can, and find any excuse to discount the progress being made by the team.

I mistakenly believed you were one of their number and did not spot the joke.


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poe%27s_law

[Theolesnort]

Little late to the party. But appreciate your enthusiasam.

Yeah, I've been harping about this for two years and now some, not all are catching on. We still have fans that think Bielema can never win consistently with this style but he takes another step or two forward this season and even more will come around. Me? I love slap you in the face break your nose and make you take water kind of football but maybe I am a oddball old fashion type of guy. If you watched the freaks come out when the lights come on thingy, notice where the emphasis is in the weight room. Lower body, hips, thighs and and legs. It is not that the upper body is not worked upon but the explosiveness comes from the lower body. As for the dlines, go back and replay the last four or five games and notice just how hard is is to move Arkansas's defensive line or get any type of movement off the line. It is just going to get better and better from here on in. Same for the oline, they will be hard for any immovable object to resist. This past Spring at the main scrimmage that is what I picked up on. I knew the oline was good and mature but what stood out to me was a bunch of no name defensive linemen that could take on blocks and not give ground. I got excited about the coming season. Love it and like it or not, real man American football or as I like to call it Bully Ball is coming this Fall and I can't wait.

[Hollywood_HOGan45]

Dang, there are a lot of people in the comments section down below the article making fun of Bielema's weight. Has he really gained that much?

It appeared to me he has since the end of the season. He looked pretty good near the end of last year but looks like he has put on some weight.

I could care less if he was as big as Mark Mangino, just go beat people up in 2015.

[BearsBisonsBoars]

It appeared to me he has since the end of the season. He looked pretty good near the end of last year but looks like he has put on some weight.

I could care less if he was as big as Mark Mangino, just go beat people up in 2015.

Seems like he mentioned this in 2013, that he'd seen himself on TV and realized it wasn't a good look, so he was working to lose the weight. I guess between then and now, he found it again.

I don't particularly care from an aesthetics standpoint, but I do hope he's keeping an eye on his health.  :razorback:

[HappyHogFan]

What happened to "we can't out Alabama Alabama?"

We won't ever out talent Alabama. But that's the great thing about a power offense, you don't have to. Of course we need to have the best talent we can get to be the most successful, but we're not entirely dependent on it.

[lefty08]

Seems like he mentioned this in 2013, that he'd seen himself on TV and realized it wasn't a good look, so he was working to lose the weight. I guess between then and now, he found it again.

I don't particularly care from an aesthetics standpoint, but I do hope he's keeping an eye on his health.  :razorback:

Opposing sec fans say that about him all the time. It's really all they can say about him. Makes me smile that all they can do when faced with a fact about him is say "oh yeah, but he fat!"  it truly is hilarious

[Munich swine]

 ... Good luck, brother. You can't get tough in a week."

That is the best part.

[jgphillips3]

Let's be fair.  Trying to figure out how you could line up and play Alabama (pre-Kiffin) style football with lower ranked talent and win with any consistency seemed a tall order.  It takes a guy like Bielema who is such a "moneyball" guy to craft a plan to both increase the quality of our players and craft our scheme and program in innovative ways to overcome raw talent deficits.  He has a brilliant plan that in my mind borrows elements from Tom Osborne Nebraska in the 90's in addition to many others.  Taking only good kids with high football IQ and "uncommon-ness" who are almost as talented as Bama, if just slightly below, developing those players and building a true team is exactly how we will out Bama, Bama.  If not this year, I think by 2017 we will be cranking and be  truly competitive every year.

[Hawgzinbowlz]

Let's be fair.  Trying to figure out how you could line up and play Alabama (pre-Kiffin) style football with lower ranked talent and win with any consistency seemed a tall order.  It takes a guy like Bielema who is such a "moneyball" guy to craft a plan to both increase the quality of our players and craft our scheme and program in innovative ways to overcome raw talent deficits.  He has a brilliant plan that in my mind borrows elements from Tom Osborne Nebraska in the 90's in addition to many others.  Taking only good kids with high football IQ and "uncommon-ness" who are almost as talented as Bama, if just slightly below, developing those players and building a true team is exactly how we will out Bama, Bama.  If not this year, I think by 2017 we will be cranking and be  truly competitive every year.

Having talented players that mature in our program, develop physically and are off the learning curve could certainly make a more stable team than one having a high rate of turnover, year after year.
CBB is building a stable team environment that will get to the point of reloading instead of rebuilding...and it's coming faster than I imagined.

" GO HOGS "

[NuttinItUp]

Opposing sec fans say that about him all the time. It's really all they can say about him. Makes me smile that all they can do when faced with a fact about him is say "oh yeah, but he fat!"  it truly is hilarious

I guess when I do a side-by-side comparison from an old picture and a recent one, I can tell the difference.



Like everyone is saying though, it doesn't affect his coaching ability.....and his wife is plenty hot. So, it really doesn't matter.

[BearsBisonsBoars]

I guess when I do a side-by-side comparison from an old picture and a recent one, I can tell the difference.



Like everyone is saying though, it doesn't affect his coaching ability.....and his wife is plenty hot. So, it really doesn't matter.

Geeze, I guess I didn't realize the gain either until now. I'm just worried about a heart attack or something. Coaching is a tad stressful, after all.

[010HogFan]

I guess when I do a side-by-side comparison from an old picture and a recent one, I can tell the difference.



Like everyone is saying though, it doesn't affect his coaching ability.....and his wife is plenty hot. So, it really doesn't matter.

That's a picture of him at a very young age at Wisconsin. He was never that slim here.

[NuttinItUp]

That's a picture of him at a very young age at Wisconsin. He was never that slim here.

Yes, I said it was an old picture. It was from a news story in December 2012 from when he was hired as our coach.


Edit: Here are some slimmer versions of him after he became our coach:

[Tusks]

I love CBB, he's awesome.  My favorite part of the article.

Bielema was a linebackers coach at Iowa in 2000 when he noticed on film a wild and crazy guy waving a towel on the Kansas State sideline."I am a super freak, into analytical numbers," Bielema said. "To me everything is Moneyball. I'm convinced this guy is giving signals to the field based on how many times he flaps the towel."

Bielema then broke down film for two days trying to figure out what Towel Guy was signaling.

"After two days, I'm convinced this guy is just a moron," he said.

[NuttinItUp]

I love CBB, he's awesome.  My favorite part of the article.

Bielema was a linebackers coach at Iowa in 2000 when he noticed on film a wild and crazy guy waving a towel on the Kansas State sideline."I am a super freak, into analytical numbers," Bielema said. "To me everything is Moneyball. I'm convinced this guy is giving signals to the field based on how many times he flaps the towel."

Bielema then broke down film for two days trying to figure out what Towel Guy was signaling.

"After two days, I'm convinced this guy is just a moron," he said.

...and now that towel guy is our recruiting coordinator! (E.K. Franks)