Gus Played a Long Con

[Razorbackers]

GM played the long con this year. This was a decades worth of anger and frustration towards the University of Arkansas, it's fans, and the state that he probably feels embarrassed him back in the day by making him go to Tulsa to escape Nutt/Broyles, and forced him to give up riding the wave of his Springdale kids talents to an almost immediate head coaching position somewhere.

There's a lot of people on here who got it wrong, but they weren't getting bad information. They were being fed planted information by Gus and his agent. They started planting these seeds early. Apparently before the season even started. "Oh, I'm so tired of being on the hot seat for only winning 9 or 10 games" and "Man, Arkansas is like home to me." The folks bought it hook, line, and sinker. That information was purposefully given to influential people, and drifted down to us by the time the season started, rallying the boosters and fans who still view Gus like some sort of ex-girlfriend that got away instead of an ego-maniacal preacher that we were able to dodge.

Now, here's the part I don't know, at least not yet. Was Gus serious about his time at Auburn possibly being done? That was preseason, after all. This was before he went and beat Bama and won the west. Or did he already know that he wanted to leverage Arkansas' definite interest to get a raise and extension before the season started?

Probably the second one. Because Gus hates you. He's made that *very* clear now.

So Gus plants the seeds in the ears of certain people, and the rumors start to spread within the "inner circle" that Gus would come back to Arkansas. It probably made it's way all the way to Jeff Long's ear. He, mostly likely, laughed out loud. Gus was never coming to Arkansas, and he knew it. He knew that for that to happen, it would have to mean Auburn crashed and burned, and it would still take a very large amount of money. That probably made a lot of money people very angry.

In fact, imo it's looking more and more like Long wasn't fired over his insistence to not fire Bielema, but his insistence that trying to hire Malzahn away from Auburn would have been foolish. I don't know if it was Gus' intention to get Long fired, but we all heard the rumor that Long said he would "never coach for" Jeff Long. If he said that, his intention was most definitely to get Long fired.

His never intended to come to Arkansas. That is now blatantly obvious not just because he literally isn't coming, but because of the "dream job" line that was put in the ears of so many people in the middle of the season. That statement was put on here by more than one source. Not just one person, but multiple people heard that Gus said Arkansas was his "dream job" he "grew up a fan" and "wanted to come home". They reiterated all that in the middle of the season on purpose. They wanted to keep Arkansas money interested in Gus, even though he all of a sudden had a great team on his hands. Even though it should have been obvious that a guy isn't going to leave a place like Auburn for Arkansas. That "dream job" line played right into the fantasies that so many had about Gus AND it explains the stupid, stupid rumors of the PTB wanting someone with "Arkansas ties" for the job. They wanted someone who thought of this as a "dream job".

$50 million to coach at your "dream job" and he isn't coming.

This state's unhealthy obsession with Gus Malzahn finally came to a head this year. We fired our athletic director and coach (who was assuredly going to be fired anyway) in an insane hail mary to get him to come "home". To be fair, there were a lot of people on this board saying the same things I was saying. "He's never coming" and "we're being played" and "this is stupid".  But we were horribly outnumbered. Thank God it's finally over.

We didn't "get Sexton'd" as so many people are fond of saying. An agent floats names as possible candidates for jobs all the time. That's not what happened here. We got played by Gus in a coordinated plan going back to the summer. And now the program is drifting in the wind.

Malzahn finally got his revenge on Arkansas.

He hates you. He never loved you. Arkansas isn't home to him. Take his posters off your wall.

Get an AD and let's go get Norvell or Kiffin.

[NuttinItUp]

He did what every coach with a little success does this time of year: Tried to raise his salary.

(Actually, it was probably Sexton doing most of the dirty work...)

[HoggyCat]

As jack Nicholson said as the joker.....


He played this stinking city (fan base) like a harp from hell.

[BaconAteHer]

I think it's awesome making Auburn pay 7 mil a year for a guy a lot of their fans wanted fired a month ago. Heck some were even calling for his head after the game the other day.

If he doesn't deliver a NC in the next couple years the meltdown will be epic, and we Hog fans are going to be able to sit back, pop the popcorn, and love every minute.

The way I see it, we were saved from paying a crazy amount of money to a guy that doesn't really want to be here, while at the same time making a west rival pay crazy money for someone many don't even want. Win-win in my book.

[jackflash]

I think he kill his chance every to be HC of  the Razorbacks

[Razorbackers]

I think it's awesome making Auburn pay 7 mil a year for a guy a lot of their fans wanted fired a month ago. Heck some were even calling for his head after the game the other day.

If he doesn't deliver a NC in the next couple years the meltdown will be epic, and we Hog fans are going to be able to sit back, pop the popcorn, and love every minute.

The way I see it, we were saved from paying a crazy amount of money to a guy that doesn't really want to be here, while at the same time making a west rival pay crazy money for someone many don't even want. Win-win in my book.

Oh, I agree 100%. But I hate Gus, I never wanted Gus, and I don't think he'd succeed here as much as his fan base thinks he would.

Paying 50 million dollars for a coach that averages 4 losses a season as a HC and has never even won the SEC is absolutely insane, and it goes to show just how stupid the money people actually are.

[nolt]

You know what's kinda weird to me is how coaches are typically referred to by last name only (OP says 'let's go get Norvell of Kiffin' for example) but everyone calls Malzan 'Gus.'

Is it because it's shorter, or because of some other more personal reason? I think I've even referred to him as 'Gus' in my limited posted, but it's not because we're friends, or because I'm his fan.

Anyways if I could write country music songs (and sing haha) I would write a ballad of how Malzan broke all of your hearts and hurt your butts.

Edit: and I would most def call him 'Gus' in the song.

[HoggyCat]

It's not that I'm as at GUS, I never thought he was coming to begin with. What pisses me off is how the PTB let this crap drag out. Firing Bielema and all they have as a backup to the Playa is some up & comers?? History repeats itSelf again.

[Razorbackers]

You know what's kinda weird to me is how coaches are typically referred to by last name only (OP says 'let's go get Norvell of Kiffin' for example) but everyone calls Malzan 'Gus.'

Is it because it's shorter, or because of some other more personal reason? I think I've even referred to him as 'Gus' in my limited posted, but it's not because we're friends, or because I'm his fan.

Anyways if I could write country music songs (and sing haha) I would write a ballad of how Malzan broke all of your hearts and hurt your butts.

Edit: and I would most def call him 'Gus' in the song.

I used to call his Guster but it never caught on.

[Hoggie17]

He did what every coach with a little success does this time of year: Tried to raise his salary.

(Actually, it was probably Sexton doing most of the dirty work...)

Nothing wrong with a coach doing everything he can to raise his salary.  Had we offered him a deal he could not turn down he would have been our new HC.

I have moved on, looking at next man up, anyone but Chad Morris.

[IMABIELEMA]

Jeebus OP,  you are one pathetic loser.  This was 100% Sexton getting Gus a fat raise.  Every good coach does this.  Just like Saban to Texas a few years back.  It's like some of you are 18 years old and have never been around big boy football.

[Boss Hog in the Arkansas]

Gus didn't con us, Sexton did and still is. From what I understand, Sexton is also Norvells agent. Norvell is using Arkansas to get 2 of his clients what they want. A raise for Malzahn and a better job/raise for Norvell

[nolt]

What is the play called if it's a direct snap to Sexton and he fakes it to Malzan but then play action passes it to Norvell?

[NuttinItUp]

Saw this posted on a Georgia board.

"Title: Operation Gus is complete.

Thanks to cooperation between Georgia and Alabama the mission has been accomplished. Throw the 2 regular season games, Auburn gets left out of the playoff while both Georgia and Bama get in and Auburn is forced to overpay for Gus. A good time was had by all."

[Boss Hog in the Arkansas]

What is the play called if it's a direct snap to Sexton and he fakes it to Malzan but then play action passes it to Norvell?

Giving it to em hoggystyle

[JayHog]

It'll feel good when the day comes that he gets fired... and that day will come.

[okrazorback]

I think it's awesome making Auburn pay 7 mil a year for a guy a lot of their fans wanted fired a month ago. Heck some were even calling for his head after the game the other day.

If he doesn't deliver a NC in the next couple years the meltdown will be epic, and we Hog fans are going to be able to sit back, pop the popcorn, and love every minute.

The way I see it, we were saved from paying a crazy amount of money to a guy that doesn't really want to be here, while at the same time making a west rival pay crazy money for someone many don't even want. Win-win in my book.

And by saying we are back to a good 5 or 6 win team unless we get A BETTER coach than the ones you have all been talking about. Go after Petrino.

[Razorbackers]

It's amazing to me that the gushuggers are still out and defending him.

[root_hawg]

$50 million to coach Arkansas or
$50 million to coach Auburn ...

which one you taking?

Auburn ... easier to recruit and better name recognition. 

[ur]

He could have used Tenn or any other program looking for a coach to play against Aub.
If he really wanted to get out of the aub kitchen and wanted to come home, he would have never mentioned anything to aub.
Frick him forever and yes I was a Gus fan. Bring on the next HC that wants to be here.

[Omahabound]

Jeebus OP,  you are one pathetic loser.  This was 100% Sexton getting Gus a fat raise.  Every good coach does this.  Just like Saban to Texas a few years back.  It's like some of you are 18 years old and have never been around big boy football.

This is hilarious...a 50yo man calling an 18yo one pathetic loser!!! Whats pathetic is you calling someone pathetic! The guy just made a decent post and you call him pathetic..classic

[RazorNick]

He caught Alabama on a down year (for them) and the many injuries their defense had. Things will be back to normal next year and he will be wishing he had came here. The joke will ultimately be on him.

[Hoggie17]

It's amazing to me that the gushuggers are still out and defending him.

Just because Gus is a good coach does not mean people who recognize that is a Gus Hugger.  Nick Saban is a good coach, I am not a nickhugger.  We had no chance of getting Nick or I would been pulling for him.  I think Norvell would be a good fit for Arkansas but I am not Norvell Hugger.

[Granny fan]

Please do not EVER mention this man's name on this board again.  He burned every bridge he ever had with Arkansas.

[HognotinMemphis]

I think he kill his chance every to be HC of  the Razorbacks

Lol. Word: He does not care...because he is the head coach at Auburn, a far superior program to that of Arkansas',  for $7 million per year for next 7 years.

[rljjr]

Lol. Word: He does not care...because he is the head coach at Auburn, a far superior program to that of Arkansas',  for $7 million per year for next 7 years.

Team. Not program. Team. Arkansas is FAR superior to Auburn athletics by every measure of the word.

[Atlhogfan1]

Didn't read much of the OP because I don't believe it.  What he did was look out for himself and played self preservation after the LSU loss.  He would have been fired last season had he lost the loser gets fired game vs Lester.  Gus thought with UGa and Bama left he wasn't going to make it and he used us, more specifically his Arkansas friends, for a safety net.  He beat UGa and Bama and he didn't need Arkansas any longer.  Then the game with Sexton began. 

[ShadowHawg]

No, the gobn played a con, per usual.

These are businessmen. They know how to close a deal and it isn't AFTER you talk numbers.

The first thing in any real negotiation is a commitment to the product/position by the buyer. There is no haggling on price until this commitment is given.

This deal with Malzahn didn't fall apart after a commitment was made. There never was a commitment to begin with.

The offer was a dog and pony show for the majority who have zero idea about how deals are really struck in the world of big business.

The ptb knew if they were going into any discussions about financial aspects of a contract without having that commitment that simply presenting competitive proposals would not swing the deal. Don't be fooled.

Just look at the "backup" plans being presented. No attempts being made with Brohm, Kiffin, etc. Just straight to the clearance rack.

Don't believe the hype.

[urkillnmesmalls]

I was disappointed when Gus didn't come when we hired BB.  I'm glad he wasn't hired this time around. 

1.  Like it or not, he's been at it awhile.  I felt like him "coming home to roost" would lead to complacency, and what better place to come collect a big paycheck for 5 years and half-ass it?  "Yeah, I wanted it to work at Arkansas, but we just weren't able to get the athletes in that we needed to compete."  He could fail in epic fashion, and ride off into the sunset millions richer. 

2.  His style of play has been copied, improved, and adapted to.  It's not unique any longer, and yes...if you have great athletes with experience, and you can execute precisely, you can beat a lot of people.  BUT...I think defensive coaches have come up with ways to combat it pretty effectively.  I think we'll see his success diminish over time now...his "hey day" is over. 

3.  Divisive.  Like it or not, there are some harbored ill feelings about what happened with the Springdale 5, UA, and him.  He's not completely innocent in that whole deal, because he chose to better himself rather than stand up for the players who were being jerked around by the ego-maniacal HDN.  If things weren't rolling by year three, we could easily see empty stands again...i not sooner. 

4.  QB necessity.  We all know it...his system lives and dies by a QB who can run, take punishment, and be a difference maker.  Anything less than that...and they look very pedestrian and at times...like they live up to the "high school" moniker. 


I think it's good that he didn't come.  I really do.  We JUST SAW what a team that's at full strength, with a strong defensive plan, can do to GM's offense.  I know...Carryon wasn't at full strength...but has one hurt RB ever hurt Bama or the other big boys? 

He sort of got lucky that Bama was playing a lot of second string players, and he got UGA the first time, because they were flat and worn out.  What did he do this season that HDN didn't do?  Get to the SECCG...and lose.  And...he did that with perennial top 10 recruiting classes.  If that's the cap...then is that the answer?       

[Atlhogfan1]

This was Billy Clyde again.  Except that time we still had Broyles who found us a good coach till White screwed it up again.  Then it went to darn which is where this may be heading. 

[Atlhogfan1]

I was disappointed when Gus didn't come when we hired BB.  I'm glad he wasn't hired this time around. 

1.  Like it or not, he's been at it awhile.  I felt like him "coming home to roost" would lead to complacency, and what better place to come collect a big paycheck for 5 years and half-ass it?  "Yeah, I wanted it to work at Arkansas, but we just weren't able to get the athletes in that we needed to compete."  He could fail in epic fashion, and ride off into the sunset millions richer. 

2.  His style of play has been copied, improved, and adapted to.  It's not unique any longer, and yes...if you have great athletes with experience, and you can execute precisely, you can beat a lot of people.  BUT...I think defensive coaches have come up with ways to combat it pretty effectively.  I think we'll see his success diminish over time now...his "hey day" is over. 

3.  Divisive.  Like it or not, there are some harbored ill feelings about what happened with the Springdale 5, UA, and him.  He's not completely innocent in that whole deal, because he chose to better himself rather than stand up for the players who were being jerked around by the ego-maniacal HDN.  If things weren't rolling by year three, we could easily see empty stands again...i not sooner. 

4.  QB necessity.  We all know it...his system lives and dies by a QB who can run, take punishment, and be a difference maker.  Anything less than that...and they look very pedestrian and at times...like they live up to the "high school" moniker. 


I think it's good that he didn't come.  I really do.  We JUST SAW what a team that's at full strength, with a strong defensive plan, can do to GM's offense.  I know...Carryon wasn't at full strength...but has one hurt RB ever hurt Bama or the other big boys? 

He sort of got lucky that Bama was playing a lot of second string players, and he got UGA the first time, because they were flat and worn out.  What did he do this season that HDN didn't do?  Get to the SECCG...and lose.  And...he did that with perennial top 10 recruiting classes.  If that's the cap...then is that the answer?      

Agreed on 1 & 2.  Too close to another situation. 

[SemperHawg]

It really doesn't matter what Gus did or didn't do, or how is did or didn't do it.  Here is what matters, Gus is no longer an option for us ever again.  More so we put the ball in his court in front of the national media with a very lucrative offer and he said no.  No more, Arkansas never gave Gus a shot, how did they let him get away.  We can now close the final chapter in one of the weirdest and most damaging times this program has ever had.  The John White network is out now that Long is gone.  Nutt and Gus and their deal with Mustain and the Springdale crew and leftover hurt feelings and all of that are now gone forever too.  This is a great opportunity for our program to start fresh with a new AD and a young hungry to prove himself up and comer type coach to come here and put himself on the map.  We have proven we can and will spend with the big boys, we have top notch facilities.  We have a fertile recruiting area in the I-30 corridor in NE Texas that needs to become our focal point again.

New Day, New Start, Go Hogs!

[UA1985]

GM played the long con this year. This was a decades worth of anger and frustration towards the University of Arkansas, it's fans, and the state that he probably feels embarrassed him back in the day by making him go to Tulsa to escape Nutt/Broyles, and forced him to give up riding the wave of his Springdale kids talents to an almost immediate head coaching position somewhere.

There's a lot of people on here who got it wrong, but they weren't getting bad information. They were being fed planted information by Gus and his agent. They started planting these seeds early. Apparently before the season even started. "Oh, I'm so tired of being on the hot seat for only winning 9 or 10 games" and "Man, Arkansas is like home to me." The folks bought it hook, line, and sinker. That information was purposefully given to influential people, and drifted down to us by the time the season started, rallying the boosters and fans who still view Gus like some sort of ex-girlfriend that got away instead of an ego-maniacal preacher that we were able to dodge.

Now, here's the part I don't know, at least not yet. Was Gus serious about his time at Auburn possibly being done? That was preseason, after all. This was before he went and beat Bama and won the west. Or did he already know that he wanted to leverage Arkansas' definite interest to get a raise and extension before the season started?

Probably the second one. Because Gus hates you. He's made that *very* clear now.

So Gus plants the seeds in the ears of certain people, and the rumors start to spread within the "inner circle" that Gus would come back to Arkansas. It probably made it's way all the way to Jeff Long's ear. He, mostly likely, laughed out loud. Gus was never coming to Arkansas, and he knew it. He knew that for that to happen, it would have to mean Auburn crashed and burned, and it would still take a very large amount of money. That probably made a lot of money people very angry.

In fact, imo it's looking more and more like Long wasn't fired over his insistence to not fire Bielema, but his insistence that trying to hire Malzahn away from Auburn would have been foolish. I don't know if it was Gus' intention to get Long fired, but we all heard the rumor that Long said he would "never coach for" Jeff Long. If he said that, his intention was most definitely to get Long fired.

His never intended to come to Arkansas. That is now blatantly obvious not just because he literally isn't coming, but because of the "dream job" line that was put in the ears of so many people in the middle of the season. That statement was put on here by more than one source. Not just one person, but multiple people heard that Gus said Arkansas was his "dream job" he "grew up a fan" and "wanted to come home". They reiterated all that in the middle of the season on purpose. They wanted to keep Arkansas money interested in Gus, even though he all of a sudden had a great team on his hands. Even though it should have been obvious that a guy isn't going to leave a place like Auburn for Arkansas. That "dream job" line played right into the fantasies that so many had about Gus AND it explains the stupid, stupid rumors of the PTB wanting someone with "Arkansas ties" for the job. They wanted someone who thought of this as a "dream job".

$50 million to coach at your "dream job" and he isn't coming.

This state's unhealthy obsession with Gus Malzahn finally came to a head this year. We fired our athletic director and coach (who was assuredly going to be fired anyway) in an insane hail mary to get him to come "home". To be fair, there were a lot of people on this board saying the same things I was saying. "He's never coming" and "we're being played" and "this is stupid".  But we were horribly outnumbered. Thank God it's finally over.

We didn't "get Sexton'd" as so many people are fond of saying. An agent floats names as possible candidates for jobs all the time. That's not what happened here. We got played by Gus in a coordinated plan going back to the summer. And now the program is drifting in the wind.

Malzahn finally got his revenge on Arkansas.

He hates you. He never loved you. Arkansas isn't home to him. Take his posters off your wall.

Get an AD and let's go get Norvell or Kiffin.

The notion that Gus did all this because he hated us is utter nonsense. Much more likely: he wanted to get $7M/year, preferably from Auburn but if Auburn didn't step up, from Arkansas.

[hamARchy in the USA]

To this point there's no reason to be dismayed at what has taken place.  Long and BB are out.  The Gus noose didn't get hung around the program's neck.   The opportunity to get a talented coach who is committed to excellence is still there.

[The OTR]

You know what's kinda weird to me is how coaches are typically referred to by last name only (OP says 'let's go get Norvell of Kiffin' for example) but everyone calls Malzan 'Gus.'

Is it because it's shorter, or because of some other more personal reason? I think I've even referred to him as 'Gus' in my limited posted, but it's not because we're friends, or because I'm his fan.

Anyways if I could write country music songs (and sing haha) I would write a ballad of how Malzan broke all of your hearts and hurt your butts.

Edit: and I would most def call him 'Gus' in the song.

It's because they can't spell Malzahn.

[TNRazorbacker]

Good grief. He used leverage to get a pay raise. Thats the whole story. No vendettas, no revenge, just simple business. Happens every day. 

If anyone should feel snookered its the Auburn fanbase. They just gave a huge raise and contract extension to a coach they were ready to fire a few weeks back. This didn't cost us a dime. 

[ShadowHawg]

I was disappointed when Gus didn't come when we hired BB.  I'm glad he wasn't hired this time around. 

1.  Like it or not, he's been at it awhile.  I felt like him "coming home to roost" would lead to complacency, and what better place to come collect a big paycheck for 5 years and half-ass it?  "Yeah, I wanted it to work at Arkansas, but we just weren't able to get the athletes in that we needed to compete."  He could fail in epic fashion, and ride off into the sunset millions richer. 

2.  His style of play has been copied, improved, and adapted to.  It's not unique any longer, and yes...if you have great athletes with experience, and you can execute precisely, you can beat a lot of people.  BUT...I think defensive coaches have come up with ways to combat it pretty effectively.  I think we'll see his success diminish over time now...his "hey day" is over. 

3.  Divisive.  Like it or not, there are some harbored ill feelings about what happened with the Springdale 5, UA, and him.  He's not completely innocent in that whole deal, because he chose to better himself rather than stand up for the players who were being jerked around by the ego-maniacal HDN.  If things weren't rolling by year three, we could easily see empty stands again...i not sooner. 

4.  QB necessity.  We all know it...his system lives and dies by a QB who can run, take punishment, and be a difference maker.  Anything less than that...and they look very pedestrian and at times...like they live up to the "high school" moniker. 


I think it's good that he didn't come.  I really do.  We JUST SAW what a team that's at full strength, with a strong defensive plan, can do to GM's offense.  I know...Carryon wasn't at full strength...but has one hurt RB ever hurt Bama or the other big boys? 

He sort of got lucky that Bama was playing a lot of second string players, and he got UGA the first time, because they were flat and worn out.  What did he do this season that HDN didn't do?  Get to the SECCG...and lose.  And...he did that with perennial top 10 recruiting classes.  If that's the cap...then is that the answer?      

Pettway is their best back and he has been hurt all season. They did what they did with their backup rob.The 3rd string guy was hurt also.

Auburn was playing a true fresh at cb because the starter was hurt and Georgia exploited it as they should have. They weren't full strength.

He has beaten Saban twice in the last 5 years.

Easily better than HDN.

[DeltaBoy]

He will never coach here now ................Cause we don't want that snake.

[The Boar War]

Gus got really scared and started cultivating old relationships to have a job at the end of the season.  Things turned out well for him after the UGA and Alabama games and he struck while the iron was hot.  Gus has secured himself financially but he sealed his fate at Auburn.  He played the Nebraska airplane on the tarmac trick with a fan base that is crazy and doesn't like him anyway. 

[RME]

$50 million to coach Arkansas or
$50 million to coach Auburn ...

which one you taking?

Auburn ... easier to recruit and better name recognition.

This. Pretty hilarious the people bought hook, line and sinker into the "Arkansas is home" mindset, believing that would be enough to pull him back.

He was one win from the playoff this year. He's got a 10 win season now. He's in the middle of fertile recruiting ground. He's got a level of comfort with Auburn after being there for several years. And he just got paid.

Tell me why he'd take a position that's not even close to a lateral move at this point?

He gone (and, frankly, always was). Next.

[spe450]

As jack Nicholson said as the joker.....


He played this stinking city (fan base) like a harp from hell.

That was Danny Devito as penguin

[lamont7906]

Happy he not coming here he is to gimmicky, truth Arkansas may get the last laugh another 8-4 season next year he back on the seat. We need a coach that coach up the talent. Plus I rather spend 3.5 or 4 on the coach and 1.5 for each coordinator. That's still the price of Gus deal but you get two great coordinators at that price

[SemperHawg]

Gus got really scared and started cultivating old relationships to have a job at the end of the season.  Things turned out well for him after the UGA and Alabama games and he struck while the iron was hot.  Gus has secured himself financially but he sealed his fate at Auburn.  He played the Nebraska airplane on the tarmac trick with a fan base that is crazy and doesn't like him anyway. 

This is probably the most reasonable assessment of how it most likely all went down that I have seen.  I also agree that I think Gus burned himself in the end with this move.  The clock is ticking on him at Aubbie, all he did was assure that he leaves there with more money. 

[Razorbackers]

Gus got really scared and started cultivating old relationships to have a job at the end of the season.  Things turned out well for him after the UGA and Alabama games and he struck while the iron was hot.  Gus has secured himself financially but he sealed his fate at Auburn.  He played the Nebraska airplane on the tarmac trick with a fan base that is crazy and doesn't like him anyway.

I think you could be right. Like I said, he possibly could have meant it preseason that he would consider coaching at Arkansas. I personally don't think he did, but I also have always held him in very low regard.

And yes, Auburn is paying an insane amount of money for him. They're going to sour on him immediately if he doesn't win big.

[jimmur74]

Couldnt be further from the truth

GM played the long con this year. This was a decades worth of anger and frustration towards the University of Arkansas, it's fans, and the state that he probably feels embarrassed him back in the day by making him go to Tulsa to escape Nutt/Broyles, and forced him to give up riding the wave of his Springdale kids talents to an almost immediate head coaching position somewhere.

There's a lot of people on here who got it wrong, but they weren't getting bad information. They were being fed planted information by Gus and his agent. They started planting these seeds early. Apparently before the season even started. "Oh, I'm so tired of being on the hot seat for only winning 9 or 10 games" and "Man, Arkansas is like home to me." The folks bought it hook, line, and sinker. That information was purposefully given to influential people, and drifted down to us by the time the season started, rallying the boosters and fans who still view Gus like some sort of ex-girlfriend that got away instead of an ego-maniacal preacher that we were able to dodge.

Now, here's the part I don't know, at least not yet. Was Gus serious about his time at Auburn possibly being done? That was preseason, after all. This was before he went and beat Bama and won the west. Or did he already know that he wanted to leverage Arkansas' definite interest to get a raise and extension before the season started?

Probably the second one. Because Gus hates you. He's made that *very* clear now.

So Gus plants the seeds in the ears of certain people, and the rumors start to spread within the "inner circle" that Gus would come back to Arkansas. It probably made it's way all the way to Jeff Long's ear. He, mostly likely, laughed out loud. Gus was never coming to Arkansas, and he knew it. He knew that for that to happen, it would have to mean Auburn crashed and burned, and it would still take a very large amount of money. That probably made a lot of money people very angry.

In fact, imo it's looking more and more like Long wasn't fired over his insistence to not fire Bielema, but his insistence that trying to hire Malzahn away from Auburn would have been foolish. I don't know if it was Gus' intention to get Long fired, but we all heard the rumor that Long said he would "never coach for" Jeff Long. If he said that, his intention was most definitely to get Long fired.

His never intended to come to Arkansas. That is now blatantly obvious not just because he literally isn't coming, but because of the "dream job" line that was put in the ears of so many people in the middle of the season. That statement was put on here by more than one source. Not just one person, but multiple people heard that Gus said Arkansas was his "dream job" he "grew up a fan" and "wanted to come home". They reiterated all that in the middle of the season on purpose. They wanted to keep Arkansas money interested in Gus, even though he all of a sudden had a great team on his hands. Even though it should have been obvious that a guy isn't going to leave a place like Auburn for Arkansas. That "dream job" line played right into the fantasies that so many had about Gus AND it explains the stupid, stupid rumors of the PTB wanting someone with "Arkansas ties" for the job. They wanted someone who thought of this as a "dream job".

$50 million to coach at your "dream job" and he isn't coming.

This state's unhealthy obsession with Gus Malzahn finally came to a head this year. We fired our athletic director and coach (who was assuredly going to be fired anyway) in an insane hail mary to get him to come "home". To be fair, there were a lot of people on this board saying the same things I was saying. "He's never coming" and "we're being played" and "this is stupid".  But we were horribly outnumbered. Thank God it's finally over.

We didn't "get Sexton'd" as so many people are fond of saying. An agent floats names as possible candidates for jobs all the time. That's not what happened here. We got played by Gus in a coordinated plan going back to the summer. And now the program is drifting in the wind.

Malzahn finally got his revenge on Arkansas.

He hates you. He never loved you. Arkansas isn't home to him. Take his posters off your wall.

Get an AD and let's go get Norvell or Kiffin.

[jkstock04]

GM played the long con this year. This was a decades worth of anger and frustration towards the University of Arkansas, it's fans, and the state that he probably feels embarrassed him back in the day by making him go to Tulsa to escape Nutt/Broyles, and forced him to give up riding the wave of his Springdale kids talents to an almost immediate head coaching position somewhere.

There's a lot of people on here who got it wrong, but they weren't getting bad information. They were being fed planted information by Gus and his agent. They started planting these seeds early. Apparently before the season even started. "Oh, I'm so tired of being on the hot seat for only winning 9 or 10 games" and "Man, Arkansas is like home to me." The folks bought it hook, line, and sinker. That information was purposefully given to influential people, and drifted down to us by the time the season started, rallying the boosters and fans who still view Gus like some sort of ex-girlfriend that got away instead of an ego-maniacal preacher that we were able to dodge.

Now, here's the part I don't know, at least not yet. Was Gus serious about his time at Auburn possibly being done? That was preseason, after all. This was before he went and beat Bama and won the west. Or did he already know that he wanted to leverage Arkansas' definite interest to get a raise and extension before the season started?

Probably the second one. Because Gus hates you. He's made that *very* clear now.

So Gus plants the seeds in the ears of certain people, and the rumors start to spread within the "inner circle" that Gus would come back to Arkansas. It probably made it's way all the way to Jeff Long's ear. He, mostly likely, laughed out loud. Gus was never coming to Arkansas, and he knew it. He knew that for that to happen, it would have to mean Auburn crashed and burned, and it would still take a very large amount of money. That probably made a lot of money people very angry.

In fact, imo it's looking more and more like Long wasn't fired over his insistence to not fire Bielema, but his insistence that trying to hire Malzahn away from Auburn would have been foolish. I don't know if it was Gus' intention to get Long fired, but we all heard the rumor that Long said he would "never coach for" Jeff Long. If he said that, his intention was most definitely to get Long fired.

His never intended to come to Arkansas. That is now blatantly obvious not just because he literally isn't coming, but because of the "dream job" line that was put in the ears of so many people in the middle of the season. That statement was put on here by more than one source. Not just one person, but multiple people heard that Gus said Arkansas was his "dream job" he "grew up a fan" and "wanted to come home". They reiterated all that in the middle of the season on purpose. They wanted to keep Arkansas money interested in Gus, even though he all of a sudden had a great team on his hands. Even though it should have been obvious that a guy isn't going to leave a place like Auburn for Arkansas. That "dream job" line played right into the fantasies that so many had about Gus AND it explains the stupid, stupid rumors of the PTB wanting someone with "Arkansas ties" for the job. They wanted someone who thought of this as a "dream job".

$50 million to coach at your "dream job" and he isn't coming.

This state's unhealthy obsession with Gus Malzahn finally came to a head this year. We fired our athletic director and coach (who was assuredly going to be fired anyway) in an insane hail mary to get him to come "home". To be fair, there were a lot of people on this board saying the same things I was saying. "He's never coming" and "we're being played" and "this is stupid".  But we were horribly outnumbered. Thank God it's finally over.

We didn't "get Sexton'd" as so many people are fond of saying. An agent floats names as possible candidates for jobs all the time. That's not what happened here. We got played by Gus in a coordinated plan going back to the summer. And now the program is drifting in the wind.

Malzahn finally got his revenge on Arkansas.

He hates you. He never loved you. Arkansas isn't home to him. Take his posters off your wall.

Get an AD and let's go get Norvell or Kiffin.

If Malzahn is the reason Jeff Long got fired than I applaud him. Cool conspiracy theory.

[jkstock04]

This. Pretty hilarious the people bought hook, line and sinker into the "Arkansas is home" mindset, believing that would be enough to pull him back.

He was one win from the playoff this year. He's got a 10 win season now. He's in the middle of fertile recruiting ground. He's got a level of comfort with Auburn after being there for several years. And he just got paid.

Tell me why he'd take a position that's not even close to a lateral move at this point?

He gone (and, frankly, always was). Next.

Level of comfort? The guy was a breath away from getting the Bret Bielema treatment after the LSU game.

[RME]

Level of comfort? The guy was a breath away from getting the Bret Bielema treatment after the LSU game.

Comfort in knowing the area, system, university, etc. after being there for several years.

Not comfort from irrational and stupid fans/administrators breathing down his neck.

But now he's paid, so I'm sure those irrational and stupid fans/administrators don't bother him nearly as much.

[HF#1]

It is what it is, move on. I'm glad Auburn is stuck with him. He'll be gone in 3 years or less and Auburn will have wasted a ton of cash.

[BDSCT51]

It really doesn't matter what Gus did or didn't do, or how is did or didn't do it.  Here is what matters, Gus is no longer an option for us ever again.  More so we put the ball in his court in front of the national media with a very lucrative offer and he said no.  No more, Arkansas never gave Gus a shot, how did they let him get away.  We can now close the final chapter in one of the weirdest and most damaging times this program has ever had.  The John White network is out now that Long is gone.  Nutt and Gus and their deal with Mustain and the Springdale crew and leftover hurt feelings and all of that are now gone forever too.  This is a great opportunity for our program to start fresh with a new AD and a young hungry to prove himself up and comer type coach to come here and put himself on the map.  We have proven we can and will spend with the big boys, we have top notch facilities.  We have a fertile recruiting area in the I-30 corridor in NE Texas that needs to become our focal point again.

New Day, New Start, Go Hogs!

This is the truth! Our little gang here in the deepest corner of south Georgia have been saying all along that Gus was never going to "come home". It was all about money and that was to be expected. I am most decidedly on the "young, hungry" coach bandwagon. Let's get us one!