We are NOT "Snakebit" or "Cursed"

[sloot]

Meaning...that we're competitive.  We were competitive in every SEC game last season, minus UGA.  That was a step in the right direction.  This season, we're struggling to this point, but we still competed with TAMU.  Obviously we didn't pick up where we left off last season, and there are a lot of reasons adding up to a negative result. 

I look at it like this.  If we're only a few plays away from winning these games with recruiting that's below mid pack, and a team that still doesn't have experienced players at most positions that CBB recruited , then there's STILL plenty of upside. 

If you want to completely disagree, and you THINK he's doomed to fail, then that's fine.  It's your right, but you don't know that anymore than I know he's going to win the SECCG in 2017.  You don't have a crystal ball.  He's going to get two more years unless he leaves on his own accord.  That's just how it is. 

I was encouraged tonight.  I thought we would get KILLED based on our defensive issues, and it would be like 52-17 or something like that.  Instead, we stood toe to toe with a team that's infinitely more talented, and we did it with not only LESS talent, but KEY injuries. 

If we're competitive for the remainder of this season, I'm still cautiously optimistic that we could do some good things the next few seasons.  He's trying to do what he thinks will win....which is not something everyone seems to like.  But...the days of 3 yards and a cloud of dust seem to be over.  Our passing game is more diverse, and we're going to take what the defense gives us. 

If we can get it together and limit mistakes, I still think we will surprise some people this season.

Some fans take solace in being competitive, others do not. It's just two completely different mindsets. We could very easily drop the next two games, although I expect us to beat Tenner. That'd put us on a five game losing streak. At what point is just being competitive not enough? Obviously none of us knows what lies ahead, but what do you believe our record will be at the end of the year?

[MuskogeeHogFan]

Not even close to being in athe neutral zone. The penalty that kept us from sealing the game was Ledbetter's roughing the passer, which was correct. But then again I could point at any of the 11 penalties as critical. I'm just tired of losing due to piss poor play calling in overtime and piss poor play calling in the 4th quarter.

We went conservative in the 4th expecting the defense to hold A&M, which they had proven in the 3rd quarter that they could do. A&M had 77 total yards in the 3rd qtr, 31 passing and 46 rushing. We thought we had them on the ropes. BA had to scramble 4 times in the 4th and only had time to get the ball away 1 time out of 5 designed passes. Play calling, lack of blocking, overloading the rush, or all of the above? From my viewpoint I think that we need to stop pulling back and being conservative and just continue to press the issue in the 4th. But I don't see that as being on BA. Now OT is a different deal, but we should never have had to go to OT to win this game.

[Iwastherein1969]

the guy took us from a dumpster fire after McFadden, Jones, Hillis and several others who was the highest ranked NFL class in ARK history to a BCS Bowl game in which we had a chance to win....the next season with a different QB ol' Red took us to a #3 ranking in the 12th week of the season and yet he was a mistake ?  wow, just wow...if memory serves, two of the three best players we lost on defense this year were recruited by Petrino...I know Flowers was and I think Philon was...Spaight was a JUCO...some people will say anything...when Petrino made his big mistake with that woman, our A.D. overreacted.....why did Long over react ? Because Petrino didn't tell him the whole truth at first asking. So like a parent who has been betrayed for the first time by his kid who he thought was perfect, our A.D. did his version of a 'shot gun blast out the back door'...in other words, he overreacted and fired the best coach we've had since Broyles....God, how many times have I said all of this ?  too many....our A.D. saw an opportunity to fire an unpopular coach with the media knowing full well all the praise that would get heaped upon him when he fired our unpersonable coach...now we are stuck with a coach who obviously has a drinking problem and cannot recruit...basically, the Razorback football program is screwed...if you cannot recruit to the facilities we currently have, you cannot recruit...we have everything and more that's new and fun and what seniors in high school would be attracted to...besides baseball, Razorback athletics has turned into Vanderbilt west...enjoy it, that's what happens when you fly off the handle and fire a coach who had won over 70% of his games and had us in the top 3 in his 3rd year here...we'll never get back to where we were

[ChitownHawg]

the guy took us from a dumpster fire after McFadden, Jones, Hillis and several others who was the highest ranked NFL class in ARK history to a BCS Bowl game in which we had a chance to win....the next season with a different QB ol' Red took us to a #3 ranking in the 12th week of the season and yet he was a mistake ?  wow, just wow...if memory serves, two of the three best players we lost on defense this year were recruited by Petrino...I know Flowers was and I think Philon was...Spaight was a JUCO...some people will say anything...when Petrino made his big mistake with that woman, our A.D. overreacted.....why did Long over react ? Because Petrino didn't tell him the whole truth at first asking. So like a parent who has been betrayed for the first time by his kid who he thought was perfect, our A.D. did his version of a 'shot gun blast out the back door'...in other words, he overreacted and fired the best coach we've had since Broyles....God, how many times have I said all of this ?  too many....our A.D. saw an opportunity to fire an unpopular coach with the media knowing full well all the praise that would get heaped upon him when he fired our unpersonable coach...now we are stuck with a coach who obviously has a drinking problem and cannot recruit...basically, the Razorback football program is screwed...if you cannot recruit to the facilities we currently have, you cannot recruit...we have everything and more that's new and fun and what seniors in high school would be attracted to...besides baseball, Razorback athletics has turned into Vanderbilt west...enjoy it, that's what happens when you fly off the handle and fire a coach who had won over 70% of his games and had us in the top 3 in his 3rd year here...we'll never get back to where we were

He got his first win of the year yesterday - against Samford. 1-3 for an ACC team isn't exactly great coaching either.

[Danny J]

He got his first win of the year yesterday - against Samford. 1-3 for an ACC team isn't exactly great coaching either.

However....do you have any doubt in your mind that he will get the job done there? I have no doubt. Like him or hate him he is a good coach.

[rtr]

We went conservative in the 4th expecting the defense to hold A&M, which they had proven in the 3rd quarter that they could do. A&M had 77 total yards in the 3rd qtr, 31 passing and 46 rushing. We thought we had them on the ropes. BA had to scramble 4 times in the 4th and only had time to get the ball away 1 time out of 5 designed passes. Play calling, lack of blocking, overloading the rush, or all of the above? From my viewpoint I think that we need to stop pulling back and being conservative and just continue to press the issue in the 4th. But I don't see that as being on BA. Now OT is a different deal, but we should never have had to go to OT to win this game.

This in spades.  We had a great gameplan on offense.  We quit it in the fourth quarter especially in the next to last drive in the fourth quarter.

[Großer Kriegschwein]

We went conservative in the 4th expecting the defense to hold A&M, which they had proven in the 3rd quarter that they could do. A&M had 77 total yards in the 3rd qtr, 31 passing and 46 rushing. We thought we had them on the ropes. BA had to scramble 4 times in the 4th and only had time to get the ball away 1 time out of 5 designed passes. Play calling, lack of blocking, overloading the rush, or all of the above? From my viewpoint I think that we need to stop pulling back and being conservative and just continue to press the issue in the 4th. But I don't see that as being on BA. Now OT is a different deal, but we should never have had to go to OT to win this game.

Conservative is not the way to beat conference opponents. Agreed. Keep your foot on their throats.

[urkillnmesmalls]

Some fans take solace in being competitive, others do not. It's just two completely different mindsets. We could very easily drop the next two games, although I expect us to beat Tenner. That'd put us on a five game losing streak. At what point is just being competitive not enough? Obviously none of us knows what lies ahead, but what do you believe our record will be at the end of the year?

Sloot...I think we'll win a few more games, but I think we'll compete in most, if not all of them.  As CBB said, we're a play or PLAYER or two away from winning several more games in his tenure. 

I'm buying into that.  You know why?  Because we have no choice as fans if you're going to support the program.  Don't support it...and what type of coach do you think we'll get in two years if CBB doesn't pan out? 

You can demand better, but I guarantee you no one is demanding better than CBB is of his players.  We made some positive strides this week, but for some reason our entire team fails to perform when it matters most.  It's a mindset, and I don't know the answer with regard to how to get them to get over that hump, but contrary to popular belief on Hogville, firing the coach isn't the answer. 

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

We went conservative in the 4th expecting the defense to hold A&M, which they had proven in the 3rd quarter that they could do. A&M had 77 total yards in the 3rd qtr, 31 passing and 46 rushing. We thought we had them on the ropes. BA had to scramble 4 times in the 4th and only had time to get the ball away 1 time out of 5 designed passes. Play calling, lack of blocking, overloading the rush, or all of the above? From my viewpoint I think that we need to stop pulling back and being conservative and just continue to press the issue in the 4th. But I don't see that as being on BA. Now OT is a different deal, but we should never have had to go to OT to win this game.

Exactly.  And we've seen enough of our incompetence by the coaches in games that are close at the end or go into OT.  I think most Hog fans knew the game was over when we reached that point.  That is unacceptable to KNOW what's coming at that point, when the other team knows they have a shot, but believe it could go either way.

[gchamblee]

the guy took us from a dumpster fire after McFadden, Jones, Hillis and several others who was the highest ranked NFL class in ARK history to a BCS Bowl game in which we had a chance to win....the next season with a different QB ol' Red took us to a #3 ranking in the 12th week of the season and yet he was a mistake ?  wow, just wow...if memory serves, two of the three best players we lost on defense this year were recruited by Petrino...I know Flowers was and I think Philon was...Spaight was a JUCO...some people will say anything...when Petrino made his big mistake with that woman, our A.D. overreacted.....why did Long over react ? Because Petrino didn't tell him the whole truth at first asking. So like a parent who has been betrayed for the first time by his kid who he thought was perfect, our A.D. did his version of a 'shot gun blast out the back door'...in other words, he overreacted and fired the best coach we've had since Broyles....God, how many times have I said all of this ?  too many....our A.D. saw an opportunity to fire an unpopular coach with the media knowing full well all the praise that would get heaped upon him when he fired our unpersonable coach...now we are stuck with a coach who obviously has a drinking problem and cannot recruit...basically, the Razorback football program is screwed...if you cannot recruit to the facilities we currently have, you cannot recruit...we have everything and more that's new and fun and what seniors in high school would be attracted to...besides baseball, Razorback athletics has turned into Vanderbilt west...enjoy it, that's what happens when you fly off the handle and fire a coach who had won over 70% of his games and had us in the top 3 in his 3rd year here...we'll never get back to where we were

WTH?

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

This in spades.  We had a great gameplan on offense.  We quit it in the fourth quarter especially in the next to last drive in the fourth quarter.

I was pleased up until the 4th quarter with our D and play-calling(in spite of disliking that style, just a personal preference), because it was AT LEAST keeping us in the game and should have been enough to win.

Good head coaches and assistants have their guys mentally and physically prepared for all 4 quarters, even in the midst of adversity.  Ours seem think the game ends and check out in the 4th.  Maybe they need to be reminded that games are often won or lost in the 4th, so they can have the players prepared - or at least that the game is still going on.

That's NOT being cursed or snakebit.

[Jonbo]

The defense held A&M to 21 in regulation. You can't really ask much more than that.

I don't know how much that means. For much of the game Arkansas was successful with the old -the best defense is a time of possession controlling offense- philosophy... for much of the game. Then, suddenly, when aTm most needed to, they were able to score suddenly and at will. What it looked to me was that our defensive backfield was overmatched. It may be good strategy to keep those guys off of the field as much as possible during SEC play. It might not win any games, but it will tend to keep the score "respectable". We can say things like, "Hey! We held Alabama to 24", and stuff like that.

[Jonbo]

I also think the O-line ran out of gas just about the time of Kirkland's penalty.

[urkillnmesmalls]

We went conservative in the 4th expecting the defense to hold A&M, which they had proven in the 3rd quarter that they could do. A&M had 77 total yards in the 3rd qtr, 31 passing and 46 rushing. We thought we had them on the ropes. BA had to scramble 4 times in the 4th and only had time to get the ball away 1 time out of 5 designed passes. Play calling, lack of blocking, overloading the rush, or all of the above? From my viewpoint I think that we need to stop pulling back and being conservative and just continue to press the issue in the 4th. But I don't see that as being on BA. Now OT is a different deal, but we should never have had to go to OT to win this game.

MHF...I'm a BA fan, but he's holding the ball too much.  I watched it time and time again, and it gets worse when the pressure mounts.  It's why the last pass was batted down.  He HAS GOT to make the throws before the WR's come out of their breaks before the defenders can react, and he does that pretty well UNTIL we're either inside the 20, or the game is on the line and the offense has to perform.  Then the extra carefulness is a liability.   

I DO NOT profess to know the answer on how to get not just BA, but the entire team to not tighten up and NOT make the big plays down the stretch. 

I can really relate it to golf the easiest.  In tournaments, I used to get to about hole 14 and then I saw every possible bit of trouble on every shot, feared bad things would happen, didn't trust my swing (my biggest issue), and from there on I was lucky to scrape out pars.  Then one day I got some advice that was simple, and it changed my whole mindset.  "Just forget that 18 is the last hole, and play like you're going to make the turn and tee off on number 1 and you have 9 more holes left."  I remember thinking..."Yeah, that's too simple to work."  It worked like a charm, and once I knew it was all mental, the choking didn't play into it any longer. 

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

MHF...I'm a BA fan, but he's holding the ball too much.  I watched it time and time again, and it gets worse when the pressure mounts.  It's why the last pass was batted down.  He HAS GOT to make the throws before the WR's come out of their breaks before the defenders can react, and he does that pretty well UNTIL we're either inside the 20, or the game is on the line and the offense has to perform.  Then the extra carefulness is a liability.   

I DO NOT profess to know the answer on how to get not just BA, but the entire team to not tighten up and NOT make the big plays down the stretch. 

Agreed.  It's a tough thing to find a solution for at this point in his career here.  I think those problems were not well addressed by the staff in the preseason, or during practices during the week.  It's almost like they thought those things would just take care of themselves.  But that's JMO, and probably just conjecture at this point.

The one glaring factor is that it's the HC's responsibility to figure out how - regardless of injuries, penalties, mental mistakes by players toward the end of the game or this supposed "curse".

At some point, he and the staff have to fix it.  That's his job and why he gets paid the big bucks.

[DeltaBoy]

We are Cursed as sure as the Sun raises and Sets.

[LZH]

Exactly.  And we've seen enough of our incompetence by the coaches in games that are close at the end or go into OT.  I think most Hog fans knew the game was over when we reached that point.  That is unacceptable to KNOW what's coming at that point, when the other team knows they have a shot, but believe it could go either way.

Brother, there are excuse-makers on here in droves.....to the point that it is hilarious.  I wonder what their feelings would be if their children were relentlessly getting smacked around the playground one day - would they still say "just have patience, this is a 5-6 year rebuilding process....."?  "Well son, if someone punches you in the face, you just have to remember that Rome wasn't built in a day."

I've tried to stay out of the fray as much as possible since Saturday nite, but that doesn't make it any less intolerable.

[urkillnmesmalls]

Agreed.  It's a tough thing to find a solution for at this point in his career here.  I think those problems were not well addressed by the staff in the preseason, or during practices during the week.  It's almost like they thought those things would just take care of themselves.  But that's JMO, and probably just conjecture at this point.

The one glaring factor is that it's the HC's responsibility to figure out how - regardless of injuries, penalties, mental mistakes by players toward the end of the game or this supposed "curse".

At some point, he and the staff have to fix it.  That's his job and why he gets paid the big bucks.

They're trying DJ.  Look at who is on the field.  Everyone thought we would pick up where we left off last season, but we lost a LOT of not just talent, but EXPERIENCE.  I was one of the few who continually said that we lost a lot on defense, and I didn't feel like we would just pick up where we left off on defense.  I thought the offense would be good enough to pick up the slack for awhile, but I had no idea the O-line would struggle some, or we would lose so many players to injury.

Experience is invaluable at the UA, and we only compete when we have an experience laden team on the field.  We DO NOT have that at this point.  Will we in 2 years?  I don't know, but we're going to find out, whether some fans like it or not.   

I just think what we're seeing is similar to last season, but the difference is we played three really good teams that managed to take advantage of our learning curve. 

The ultimate goal will be that we will end a season like we did last year, and we'll have the depth and experience so that the next year we won't see the big drop off, and subsequent slow gain in experience throughout the season. 

We're not there yet.  I don't know if we'll get there under CBB, or under any coach.  You and so many others completely discredit the fact that CBP was a HUGE benefactors of a team with an abundance of talent at the VERY thing he was a mastermind at...offense.  For me his, "Let's see what he does now" season was going to be 2012, and he managed to submarine that chance (although you and others will still say Jeff Long did that, which I vehemently disagree with).   

It remains to be seen if Arkansas can play with the SEC's elite on a consistent basis.  I feel VERY confident that we won't ever find out if we have a new HC every three years, whether he's run off, or he runs off...in a ditch.   

I like what CBB says about the players, and I like what he stands for (minus the inability to keep his mouth shut about things he shouldn't have comments on).  He knows he has to win or he'll be shown the door, and I think anyone who knows him knows how competitive he is and how much these losses hurt him to his core.  This suggestion that he's just hanging on for paychecks and knows the $17M buyout is hanging out there from some fans is ludicrous.  He wouldn't be working so hard on recruiting if he didn't want to better the program and win games.   

The players continue to give it their all for him, and they haven't quit on him despite having some reasons to.  They lose...then they come back the very next week and play just as hard.  THAT is the mark of a good coach, and I still think good things are going to come from CBB, IF...and it's a big IF, we have some play makers emerge, or he's able to get some in who can immediately contribute. 

The one fear I do share with you, and many others, is that his style of play may not bring in the talent necessary to compete in the SEC.  It's working at some positions, but not across the board.  Hey, CBP got lucky with the influx of talent and Mallett transfer thanks to Rich Rod, and CBB also got lucky with the transfer of Wilson at Whisky.  So...there's usually some luck involved, and he needs some good fortune to smile on him. 

Otherwise, those who think he's a blowhard and not a good coach, will ultimately have the luxury of "I told you so."  Then when the next coach comes in and we see the same struggles, it will be rinse and repeat...because we need STABILITY more than anything else.       

[Dr. Pepper]

You're right, we're not.  We just have a 4 million dollar dud in charge of the team.

[LZH]

we lost a lot on defense

More than realized.....

[urkillnmesmalls]

More than realized.....

Yes, I agree.  And the answer is NOT having to run Greenlaw out there and expecting him not to make mistakes.  The answer would be Greenlaw running out there as a Jr. who has some experience, has developed physically, and is able to prevent the drop off that we're seeing. 

I think the harrowing question for Hog fans like me is...is our program capable of sustaining a high level of competitiveness in the SEC, under ANY coach?  People can say that CBP was doing that, and it was instilled, but they don't know that anymore than they know that CBB won't see any increase in success in 2016 and 2017.  He still had to prove that he could do it from the ground up after all of the in state talent had moved on.

At some point, I think most of us believe we'll field a team with great chemistry, and we'll win a host of games and it will result if being a more desirable destination for top talent.  We saw that in 2010, but it didn't result of a big difference in recruiting like we had expected, and the same was true for 2011.  THAT is what is the most frustrating as a Hog fan. 

I continue to see that the talent is here to win these games.  Really?  I want to see those people claiming that to give some evidence to illustrate why we should have beaten TAMU based on talent levels alone.  They won't...because they can't.   

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

They're trying DJ.  Look at who is on the field.  Everyone thought we would pick up where we left off last season, but we lost a LOT of not just talent, but EXPERIENCE.  I was one of the few who continually said that we lost a lot on defense, and I didn't feel like we would just pick up where we left off on defense.  I thought the offense would be good enough to pick up the slack for awhile, but I had no idea the O-line would struggle some, or we would lose so many players to injury.

Experience is invaluable at the UA, and we only compete when we have an experience laden team on the field.  We DO NOT have that at this point.  Will we in 2 years?  I don't know, but we're going to find out, whether some fans like it or not.   

I just think what we're seeing is similar to last season, but the difference is we played three really good teams that managed to take advantage of our learning curve. 

The ultimate goal will be that we will end a season like we did last year, and we'll have the depth and experience so that the next year we won't see the big drop off, and subsequent slow gain in experience throughout the season. 

We're not there yet.  I don't know if we'll get there under CBB, or under any coach.  You and so many others completely discredit the fact that CBP was a HUGE benefactors of a team with an abundance of talent at the VERY thing he was a mastermind at...offense.  For me his, "Let's see what he does now" season was going to be 2012, and he managed to submarine that chance (although you and others will still say Jeff Long did that, which I vehemently disagree with).   

It remains to be seen if Arkansas can play with the SEC's elite on a consistent basis.  I feel VERY confident that we won't ever find out if we have a new HC every three years, whether he's run off, or he runs off...in a ditch.   

I like what CBB says about the players, and I like what he stands for (minus the inability to keep his mouth shut about things he shouldn't have comments on).  He knows he has to win or he'll be shown the door, and I think anyone who knows him knows how competitive he is and how much these losses hurt him to his core.  This suggestion that he's just hanging on for paychecks and knows the $17M buyout is hanging out there from some fans is ludicrous.  He wouldn't be working so hard on recruiting if he didn't want to better the program and win games.   

The players continue to give it their all for him, and they haven't quit on him despite having some reasons to.  They lose...then they come back the very next week and play just as hard.  THAT is the mark of a good coach, and I still think good things are going to come from CBB, IF...and it's a big IF, we have some play makers emerge, or he's able to get some in who can immediately contribute. 

The one fear I do share with you, and many others, is that his style of play may not bring in the talent necessary to compete in the SEC.  It's working at some positions, but not across the board.  Hey, CBP got lucky with the influx of talent and Mallett transfer thanks to Rich Rod, and CBB also got lucky with the transfer of Wilson at Whisky.  So...there's usually some luck involved, and he needs some good fortune to smile on him. 

Otherwise, those who think he's a blowhard and not a good coach, will ultimately have the luxury of "I told you so."  Then when the next coach comes in and we see the same struggles, it will be rinse and repeat...because we need STABILITY more than anything else.       

You make a lot of GOOD points.  The only thing I disagree with is that he is a "good coach".  Just not seeing it.  Yes, I believe he cares and might be trying hard but just not enough.  And as far as "stability", within the context of the season we've not seen much evidence of that.  I don't like changing HC's every 3-4 years, but that's part of it if they are not showing improvement.  I don't think CBB is not a good coach for all of the same reasons I thought Nutt stunk.  I just think CBB is showing some signs that he is in over his head, in spite of his efforts.

His 4th quarter coaching/style isn't working, both because of his overall philosophy and being out-coached when it really counts.  HC decisions toward the end of the game most of the time are the difference between a win and a loss, especially in the SEC.

[DeltaBoy]

No one can give me a reasonable explanation to the horrible coaches , weird zebra calls and unexplained injuries we had since the Shootout loss to Texas in 1969 to now.

[LZH]

Yes, I agree.  And the answer is NOT having to run Greenlaw out there and expecting him not to make mistakes.  The answer would be Greenlaw running out there as a Jr. who has some experience, has developed physically, and is able to prevent the drop off that we're seeing. 

I think the harrowing question for Hog fans like me is...is our program capable of sustaining a high level of competitiveness in the SEC, under ANY coach?  People can say that CBP was doing that, and it was instilled, but they don't know that anymore than they know that CBB won't see any increase in success in 2016 and 2017.  He still had to prove that he could do it from the ground up after all of the in state talent had moved on.

At some point, I think most of us believe we'll field a team with great chemistry, and we'll win a host of games and it will result if being a more desirable destination for top talent.  We saw that in 2010, but it didn't result of a big difference in recruiting like we had expected, and the same was true for 2011.  THAT is what is the most frustrating as a Hog fan. 

I continue to see that the talent is here to win these games.  Really?  I want to see those people claiming that to give some evidence to illustrate why we should have beaten TAMU based on talent levels alone.  They won't...because they can't.   

Frankly, I intended to type "more than I realized".

I surely underestimated the dropoff in production from last year to this year at the DE and MLB positions.

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

No one can give me a reasonable explanation to the horrible coaches , weird zebra calls and unexplained injuries we had since the Shootout loss to Texas in 1969 to know.

Not all of them were horrible coaches here.  Not going to mention any names, because that has been discussed ad nauseam.  What we've had is mostly bad systems, IMO.  Coaches can adjust, if they aren't stubborn.  Most of our coaches that have been bad are ones who tried and stuck to their system, regardless of the fact that it was losing us games.

[urkillnmesmalls]

You make a lot of GOOD points.  The only thing I disagree with is that he is a "good coach".  Just not seeing it.  Yes, I believe he cares and might be trying hard but just not enough.  And as far as "stability", within the context of the season we've not seen much evidence of that.  I don't like changing HC's every 3-4 years, but that's part of it if they are not showing improvement.  I don't think CBB is not a good coach for the all of the same reasons I thought Nutt stunk.  I just think CBB is showing some signs that he is in over his head, in spite of his efforts.

If you're suggesting that Arkansas will always have to do more with less, and you're not sure that CBB can do that, then you're inadvertently acknowledging exactly what he's trying to do.  He's trying to play a style that works for a team that is not leading the pack in recruiting, and is more reliant on building an experienced team that plays as a team. 

How can you possibly suggest that we can field a team that would try to go TD for TD with a team like TAMU, when they have us dominated on talent across the board?  What did you see happen in that game?  Their QB and #3 on offense, BOTH AZ state HS players of the year and HIGH national recruits, and their stud DE who caused the fumble WHEN IT MATTERED AND THEY NEEDED A PLAY, won the game for them.  Period.  If we don't make stupid penalties to kill ourselves...we would have overcome their advantage.     

It's the very reason individual mistakes HURT us so much, because we don't have individual PLAYERS that have the talent to make up for those mistakes.  They have to play AS A TEAM, and as of right now, they are almost doing that, but not quite.

Listen man...I'm as frustrated as anyone. I watched last night cussing the penalties, talking to my friend and relatives on the phone, and commiserating the loss. 

I'm just tired of "fire the coach" every time, because I'm convinced that's not the answer at this point.  If for NO OTHER reason, it's because we've already seen that top coaches don't beat down the door to come here.  I'd rather take my chances with CBB turning it around over the next few seasons, than I would bringing in an up and comer to prove himself.   

If we see this in the next two seasons, then count me in on needing a change.  But...until we can prevent being forced to play Greenlaw-type of players, I'm not as quick to blame the coaching as others.

And remember DJ, I was SLAUGHTERED here for saying we should have hired Malzahn, and I had posts deleted when CBB was hired.  I know, Malzahn's creepy and dirty, and that's why he's at Auburn...I've heard it all.  But if he had been hired here, he would have been embraced by the majority of the fans, most of which know nothing about his alleged "slimy past," and if he was winning, no one could have cared about his past.

But....you don't see me on here saying, "I told you so," we should have hired Malzahn."  It doesn't serve any purpose, and at this point in time, NOTHING would make me feel better than beating them this season. 

And as it appears right now, maybe Malzahn has missed on getting QB's to run his system, and he better get that remedied pretty quickly, or he may fall out of favor pretty quickly at Auburn. 

     

[urkillnmesmalls]

Frankly, I intended to type "more than I realized".

I surely underestimated the dropoff in production from last year to this year at the DE and MLB positions.

Hey fair enough, and a lot of that is on CBB's shoulders.  He led us to believe that we wouldn't see a drop off, and we were told that we may even see better play on defense.  Well...that was misleading to say the least right?  Instead of popping off about Ohio State, and making everyone believe we would see great things this season, maybe he should have been a little more cautious and he should have acknowledged the loss of those players and the unproven players that would have to perform immediately.   

He's not blame free...and I'm not saying that at all.  At this point, the good still outweighs the bad IMO, unless you're a person who only focuses strictly on wins and losses.  I get that is it for some people, and they're often the same people who would have forgiven BP unconditionally. 

I just know that a fork in the road is coming, and improvement is possible without it showing up in the W column, but it needs to be more steady than what we're seeing this season, or he won't make it.  It's that simple...

[LZH]

Hey fair enough, and a lot of that is on CBB's shoulders.  He led us to believe that we wouldn't see a drop off, and we were told that we may even see better play on defense.  Well...that was misleading to say the least right?  Instead of popping off about Ohio State, and making everyone believe we would see great things this season, maybe he should have been a little more cautious and he should have acknowledged the loss of those players and the unproven players that would have to perform immediately.   

He's not blame free...and I'm not saying that at all.  At this point, the good still outweighs the bad IMO, unless you're a person who only focuses strictly on wins and losses.  I get that is it for some people, and they're often the same people who would have forgiven BP unconditionally. 

I just know that a fork in the road is coming, and improvement is possible without it showing up in the W column, but it needs to be more steady than what we're seeing this season, or he won't make it.  It's that simple...

It's odd how you can attend a game in person and see certain things very clearly, and then the next week you can watch a game on TV and see other areas much better.  The absence of last year's defensive studs was noticeable on nearly every play in Arlington Saturday.  That fact didn't jump out at me nearly as much during the TTU game while I was in Fayetteville.

We can blame the offense and the QB all we want to, but the loss of those three kids to the NFL was/is bigger than I ever expected.  I was certain that our depth was sufficient enough to handle it.  I mean, we were led to believe that.....right?

[urkillnmesmalls]

It's odd how you can attend a game in person and see certain things very clearly, and then the next week you can watch a game on TV and see other areas much better.  The absence of last year's defensive studs was noticeable on nearly every play in Arlington Saturday.  That fact didn't jump out at me nearly as much during the TTU game while I was in Fayetteville.

We can blame the offense and the QB all we want to, but the loss of those three kids to the NFL was/is bigger than I ever expected.  I was certain that our depth was sufficient enough to handle it.  I mean, we were led to believe that.....right?

We were, and even though I had my doubts about the defense, I thought they would be effective enough that our offense could overcome those concerns.  But NONE of us had any idea that we would run the ball less effectively than we had the previous season, and despite a much greater variety on offense, we would completely fail in the red zone. 

Don't look now, but next season we should be improved considerably on defense based on experience alone, but the question marks will be the offensive line.  So...as usual, as Hog fans we always seem to have a team that can't quite get it all together. 

Hey...it's HARD being a Hog fan.  But hey...no one ever promised me it was going to be easy.   

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

How can you possibly suggest that we can field a team that would try to go TD for TD with a team like TAMU, when they have us dominated on talent across the board?  What did you see happen in that game?  Their QB and #3 on offense, BOTH AZ state HS players of the year and HIGH national recruits, and their stud DE who caused the fumble WHEN IT MATTERED AND THEY NEEDED A PLAY, won the game for them.  Period.  If we don't make stupid penalties to kill ourselves...we would have overcome their advantage.     

It's the very reason individual mistakes HURT us so much, because we don't have individual PLAYERS that have the talent to make up for those mistakes.  They have to play AS A TEAM, and as of right now, they are almost doing that, but not quite.

Their studs did make plays, but not until the 2nd half.  Sumlin adjusted to the adversity, and made us and our coach look inept.

I don't think BB can, will or even wants to have a team that can score on any given play.  But that is one of our main problems.  TOP seems to be more or as important to him as scoring.  We don't have the players to do that, I agree.  The "system"(with not enough talent) is the problem, and again, I agree.  But that is BB's system, and he will live or die with it.  That's why he's looking like a bad hire, by an AD who likes that same Big 10 philosophy.

Playing "as a team" falls on the coaches to make that happen.  BB, the former assistants(except for Shannon) and current ones gave failed miserably at that.  We will probably just get new assistants, again.  Who hires and fires assistants?  Yet he stays and there's no improvement.

And I'm right there with you with Gus.  I stay away from that discussion for the same reasons you mentioned.  I don't get the hate - he is a better coach overall than BB, IMO.

[hoghearted]

We went conservative in the 4th expecting the defense to hold A&M, which they had proven in the 3rd quarter that they could do. A&M had 77 total yards in the 3rd qtr, 31 passing and 46 rushing. We thought we had them on the ropes. BA had to scramble 4 times in the 4th and only had time to get the ball away 1 time out of 5 designed passes. Play calling, lack of blocking, overloading the rush, or all of the above? From my viewpoint I think that we need to stop pulling back and being conservative and just continue to press the issue in the 4th. But I don't see that as being on BA. Now OT is a different deal, but we should never have had to go to OT to win this game.

[DeltaBoy]

Yep we are Cursed  we Hire Jeff Long and he gave BB Golden Handcuffs.
We get shafted by the Tinner ref in the Liberty Bowl, SMU 82, Texas games to many to count. When we have the better we get hurt chewing gum or we have the Sternover We drop a sure TD pass in the OSU bowl game , The Hot Blonde on the Harley Smile and now.BA who plays like he had a Lombardy in the 4th At when the game is on the Line.

[urkillnmesmalls]

Their studs did make plays, but not until the 2nd half.  Sumlin adjusted to the adversity, and made us and our coach look inept.

I don't think BB can, will or even wants to have a team that can score on any given play.  But that is one of our main problems.  TOP seems to be more or as important to him as scoring.  We don't have the players to do that, I agree.  The "system"(with not enough talent) is the problem, and again, I agree.  But that is BB's system, and he will live or die with it.  That's why he's looking like a bad hire, by an AD who likes that same Big 10 philosophy.

Playing "as a team" falls on the coaches to make that happen.  BB, the former assistants(except for Shannon) and current ones gave failed miserably at that.  We will probably just get new assistants, again.  Who hires and fires assistants?  Yet he stays and there's no improvement.

And I'm right there with you with Gus.  I stay away from that discussion for the same reasons you mentioned.  I don't get the hate - he is a better coach overall than BB, IMO.

Their QB and that RB/WR/Flanker/RIDICULOUSLY fast dude, number 3, made plays the ENTIRE game.  It wasn't just the second half.  If you're saying their DE Garrett wasn't making plays, then watch the replay...he was beating Kirkland like a rented mule most of the game, but AC was getting just enough of a chip on him to keep BA from getting his head taken off.   

Now...he tried to rush on every play, which is a big reason we were running on them so well, but he was definitely disrupting the passing game all night. 

We're going to agree to disagree and that's cool.  I think he'll pan out, and in a few years the fans will be glad that we have a coach who cares as much as he does about the players, and is able to also win games.  I hope I'm right, and you're wrong. 

Am I convince of it, and would I make a substantial bet?  Nope.  Because as I continue to say, he could get a great team assembled, but he has to have some difference makers, and there's no guarantee he's going to get those kids on campus.  I honestly hope they're already there, and it's just a matter of them developing and stepping into the limelight.  Otherwise, there are a LOT of eggs in the basket of getting kids recruited in who will go straight onto the field, which is not a proven recipe in the SEC.   

[riccoar]

No, we are not snake bit or cursed.  We are also not picked on by refs.  I simply don't do conspiracies or believe them when it comes to refs.  Our coach is not the issue either.  He plays a pro style game and has a proven track record.

But, Allen has to do better in the closing minutes.  You can give all the stats on paper that build him up, but they don't win you games.  Finishing does and he's having issues with that.  And I have no idea how Bielema gets him to shake that.   He's pretty much all we got besides our two RB's  and Henry.

Our secondary and tackling are just embarrassing.  And more than anything, our conditioning obviously needs to be worked on.

[jackflash]

I don't think this team is coached badly. I am pretty sure coach BB didn't coach allen to fumble or miss a wide open TE then throw a int. 

[MuskogeeHogFan]

Yep we are Cursed  we Hire Jeff Long and he gave BB Golden Handcuffs.
We get shafted by the Tinner ref in the Liberty Bowl, SMU 82, Texas games to many to count. When we have the better we get hurt chewing gum or we have the Sternover We drop a sure TD pass in the OSU bowl game , The Hot Blonde on the Harley Smile and now.BA who plays like he had a Lombardy in the 4th At when the game is on the Line.

Gee whiz, this speaks volumes as to why you think that Robert's posts have merit. You have been around a long time Delta. You should know better than this. Snakebit? What? Like the Joplin Spooklight? Come on man.

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

He plays a pro style game and has a proven track record.

An inept "pro style" and an awful record here.

[LZH]

Don't look now, but next season we should be improved considerably on defense based on experience alone, but the question marks will be the offensive line.  So...as usual, as Hog fans we always seem to have a team that can't quite get it all together. 
Hey...it's HARD being a Hog fan.  But hey...no one ever promised me it was going to be easy.   

Hey, there's always next year.......................(again).

[HogimusMaximus]

An inept "pro style" and an awful record here.

Did you play football in high school?

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

Did you play football in high school?

No, because of an injury. What does that have to do with BB's terrible record here? 

Why make it personal?  This is a football message board for fans to share opinions about the football program, not what level of football they played, or if they played at all.

[rtr]

 

Gee whiz, this speaks volumes as to why you think that Robert's posts have merit. You have been around a long time Delta. You should know better than this. Snakebit? What? Like the Joplin Spooklight? Come on man.

I believe it is the Seneca Spooklight.

[Pigsknuckles]

If only Coach would not appear the be channeling Rodney Dangerfield, or Curly from the Three Stooges on every camera shot...

[sylamore]

Considering the condition we are in, we should ask one big question. If in the same situation, and it seems they did have a big struggle many years ago; if caught in the same situation as we are, we should perhaps all ponder....WWAD? (What would Alabama do?) The same perhaps could be said now for the more recent plight of Ole Miss, and how they worked themselves out of it. Seems to me they both worked at it until they got themselves the coach they wanted.

I love old school power football and do think it can work. But something is wrong with the psychology of this team. Brett might have some great notions but a Vince Lombardy level motivator...he has not been. Folks complained of playing in Little Rock as a factor. I think a really good coach should be able to motivate his players to get up for playing a game in a cattle field. And a little time riding the pines, can indeed be a great motivator. If we have that style of power football we still need speed at skill positions and especially, on defense. Also, if we run power football we should perhaps strive for at least one old school Earl Campbell type bruiser of a running back.

[hawgon]

If only Coach would not appear the be channeling Rodney Dangerfield, or Curly from the Three Stooges on every camera shot...

What is that thing he does with his mouth?  It is never closed.  It is always slightly rounded and open. 

[PossumFan]

We are not cursed.  We simply have the worst in game coach in college football.  It is that simple.

Have you ever witnessed a Mike London game? Might change your thinking.

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

Heck I'm satisfied that we played them as close as we did.  It tells me we can hang in the sec.

PR, I can honestly say I have that feeling somewhat - they played much better than the last 2 weeks.  But is that good enough at this point to "hang" in the SEC?

It also made me think, why was this team not ready to play like that the last 2 weeks?  Also, why do we seem to quit in the 4th quarter?  Why can't our coach get this team to do what it needs to to win, and why such a slow start?

In his post-presser, I heard a lot of "a play here, a play there" and "we're almost there".

Not falling for THAT again...

[urkillnmesmalls]

PR, I can honestly say I have that feeling somewhat - they played much better than the last 2 weeks.  But is that good enough at this point to "hang" in the SEC?

It also made me think, why was this team not ready to play like that the last 2 weeks?  Also, why do we seem to quit in the 4th quarter?  Why can't our coach get this team to do what it needs to to win, and why such a slow start?

In his post-presser, I heard a lot of "a play here, a play there" and "we're almost there".

Not falling for THAT again...

DJ...you look for the negatives.  It's your nature for whatever reason.  You're leading the charge for the ouster for CBB, and it's  not going to work.  He's going to get to prove it if he can't lead this team to at least 8 wins by year 5. 

And yes, I believe we can "hang" in the SEC, and we just had the now #14 team in trouble, but couldn't make a play to win the game, or in this case, we couldn't stop shooting ourselves in the foot. 

And specifically to your question, we have a LOT of young kids on defense, which explains why we've been consistently out of position, and in my eyes, improving as we go.  Remind you of anything?  I think we were sold a bill of goods regarding drop off from last season, and/or the coaching staff just wasn't going to allow for any excuses for a drop off.  The D played TAMU pretty well in the second half minus a bad missed assignment.

If you're looking for an explanation of why our running game disappeared, and we lost our identity until last week, I can't answer that.  BUT...I have what I think is a solid guess.  I think Enos came in and they worked overtime learning his plays, and trying to make our offense more dynamic.  It didn't really need that...it just needed more variety and a more effective passing game to complement the run.  Instead...we came out winging it all over the field against a stacked box.  BUT...when we got into the red zone, suddenly that stacked box that we could expose was able to be effective against the pass AND the run because of the shrunken field, and we didn't have an answer for it.  I think it was more of an instance of going overboard for the sake of change, in a nutshell.   

So...FFWD a few weeks, and CBB exerted his influence and challenged the O-line to get back to what they proved they could do, and probably took some of the "shotgun" and pass happy style away from Enos, and went back to his ground and pound style. 

We appear to be back on track somewhat, but the issues at LB aren't going to go away, and we still have some substantial injuries.  Who knows how it will play out, but it would be very hard to argue that we didn't show improvement last week over the first three.

If we lay an egg against Tenner, I doubt I will log onto Hogville the rest of the season.  It will just be a weekly repeat of this week.  Same fans who feel like we should fire the coach at every sign of adversity and have nothing but negativity, and some who continue to hold out hope and look for positives. 

I'm just sick of the losing, and then having to recap it all week on Hogville.  It doesn't matter if we defend CBB, or run him down.  We can donate, go, and buy merchandise...or not...and that's about it.  That's our sphere of influence.         

[Corkscrew Johnson]

We put ourselves in this position by having an offense that doesn't have the possibility of scoring on every drive/play from scrimmage.  Even if running the ball and milking the clock is "working", there is always the possibility the other team will get enough time to score.  It's so simple:  If you score more points than the opponent, you win - you don't have to put yourself in a position to rely on the D to get a turnover, or score for you(or put you in position to score).

When you play with that mentality, you end up in a close game at the end or in overtime.  At that point, once again, it's the team who scores that wins.

Those kids played the best game they could(except for a few bad penalties).  They were not bad.  They just have a head coach who relies on time of possession, running out the clock, playing conservative.  He also has a D assistant who did not have his group ready to play.  How many times did we have to call time-out, or obviously were not ready for what they were bringing(Again, Randy Shannon wanted the DC position)?

We are not cursed or snakebit.  Those are just excuses for trying to explain what(or who) gets us into that position where we have to make a play at the end of the game.  Which, at that point, could easily go either way.  Their kicker missed an easy game-winning field goal.  How's that being "snakebit"?  WE got lucky - and according to those who say it's a curse, then we could say A&M was cursed at that point, also - Luck was on our side getting into overtime.  They just have an offense that can score when they need to.  We don't.

I agree with most of your assessment.  We need to have more of a killer instinct.  However, it was probably a lot easier to take those risks when you had Hatcher, Cornelius, and JW3, not to mention a healthy HH.  Those are, without exaggeration, our 4 most talented offensive weapons (with Collins thrown in there).  No surprise we went back to Collins in crunch time (before he got hurt, which coincidentally, stopped our momentum on the 4th quarter drive that could have ended the game). 

This team has a unique makeup of
1.  inexperienced youth (hard to fault true freshman Dre Greenlaw for getting out of position against one of the more complex offenses in college football)
2.  experienced youth who were thrown into the fire but are still young (keep in mind that under better depth circumstances, the A&M game would be Skipper and Kirkland's 4th career start as redshirt sophomores).
3.  upperclassmen with average-to-above average talent (Brandon allen, rohan gaines)

In the end, we are not snakebit or cursed because there is no such thing.  We have had a strange combination of injuries, youth, poor officiating, and coaching conservatism that cost us the A&M game. 

[hogsanity]

Yes, I agree.  And the answer is NOT having to run Greenlaw out there and expecting him not to make mistakes.  The answer would be Greenlaw running out there as a Jr. who has some experience, has developed physically, and is able to prevent the drop off that we're seeing. 

I think the harrowing question for Hog fans like me is...is our program capable of sustaining a high level of competitiveness in the SEC, under ANY coach? 

The answer is Yes--IF they can get a coach here long enough that can string together several recruiting class that brings in legit sec talent at key spots year after year. OL has never really been a problem at AR, neither has RB or TE. The DL has been pretty solid for several year now.  The problem spots have been lb, especially mlb, the db's, and outside of one freakish class, WR. Just like this year, bkack to starting a tr fr at mlb ( since moved to wlb ). Now, due to injury, Drew Morgan is the #1 wr. RS Fr is now starting at Safety I think I read earlier.

There are spots you can get away with starting FR, but MLB ( any lb for that matter ) and safety are not really ones you want to try that at. 

[DeltaBoy]

Gee whiz, this speaks volumes as to why you think that Robert's posts have merit. You have been around a long time Delta. You should know better than this. Snakebit? What? Like the Joplin Spooklight? Come on man.

They are still Historical FACTS when we get a shot, Some one gets hurt , has a boneheaded play or the Zebra's throw the hankie on us.