Early thoughts heading into next season

[checkraiser88]

I think if we don't make the NCAA tournament Anderson is gone. IMO this season was a huge disappointment. This team was easily good enough to make the NCAA and we choked at the end. When was the last time any team beat Kentucky twice and got left out? Does anyone know that off the top of their head? I don't think talent is the issue! We play in a below average conference. Now we are making progress on a year to year basis but it's going at a rate that is unacceptable. Are we missing pieces on this team? Absolutely! Are we still a good enough to team to get a bid on a year to year basis? YES!!!

[root_hawg]

Mike A is not going anywhere for at least 2 years.

[Danny J]

Mike A is not going anywhere for at least 2 years.

^^^  fact

We will be much better next year so don't really have anything to worry about.

[Rbill]

^^^  fact

We will be much better next year so don't really have anything to worry about.

I agree with this. We will be much better next year so hopefully this question doesn't even matter. But even if we don't make the tournament I still don't think he's fired yet no way.

[poloprince]

I wonder if your employer had the same mentality if you would still work there.

[PonderinHog]

He was "promised" a practice facility and I think his contract is for six years.  Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

[-Blu]

When was the last time any team beat Kentucky twice and got left out?

When was the last time we swept Kentucky before this year?  Go ahead I'll wait. 

And I think most are disappointed we didn't make the tournament, this team showed at times they had the talent to be a tournament team, but our inconsistency is what kept us out.  But, to ignore the cultural change and the improvements this team is making is just looking for reasons to get rid of Anderson.  This program is moving in the right direction, we've made improvements in every aspect since Mike has stepped on campus as coach.

And you look at the hurdles he has overcome.

First year, we lose our best player early in the season, we still have a winning record.

Second year, we lose 2 underclassmen starters in Abron and Nobles and we still improved and went undefeated in home in SEC play, and finish with a conference record of 10-8

Year three, we lose our 2 leading underclassmen scorers, and we finish 5th in the SEC, just on the outside of the bubble with 3 road wins, 1 neutral site win, and 22 wins to end the season.

And now going into year 4 we should bringing back the majority of our scorers and a solid recruiting class, I believe we'll go into next year projected by most experts to be at the very least a top 4 team in the conference, and projected by everyone to be a tournament team as well.

[popcornhog]

I think if we don't make the NCAA tournament Anderson is gone. IMO this season was a huge disappointment. This team was easily good enough to make the NCAA and we choked at the end. When was the last time any team beat Kentucky twice and got left out? Does anyone know that off the top of their head? I don't think talent is the issue! We play in a below average conference. Now we are making progress on a year to year basis but it's going at a rate that is unacceptable. Are we missing pieces on this team? Absolutely! Are we still a good enough to team to get a bid on a year to year basis? YES!!!

You could make an argument for firing him if we miss the tourney next year. But I would be shocked if we missed it next year. If we miss the tourney next year he should be on the hot seat though.

[Smithian]

When was the last time we swept Kentucky before this year?  Go ahead I'll wait. 

And I think most are disappointed we didn't make the tournament, this team showed at times they had the talent to be a tournament team, but our inconsistency is what kept us out.  But, to ignore the cultural change and the improvements this team is making is just looking for reasons to get rid of Anderson.  This program is moving in the right direction, we've made improvements in every aspect since Mike has stepped on campus as coach.

And you look at the hurdles he has overcome.

First year, we lose our best player early in the season, we still have a winning record.

Second year, we lose 2 underclassmen starters in Abron and Nobles and we still improved and went undefeated in home in SEC play, and finish with a conference record of 10-8

Year three, we lose our 2 leading underclassmen scorers, and we finish 5th in the SEC, just on the outside of the bubble with 3 road wins, 1 neutral site win, and 22 wins to end the season.

And now going into year 4 we should bringing back the majority of our scorers and a solid recruiting class, I believe we'll go into next year projected by most experts to be at the very least a top 4 team in the conference, and projected by everyone to be a tournament team as well.

Other than the Powell injury, all those "hurdles" were celebrated by people. The majority of posters weren't concerned with Abron and Nobles leaving. Last year all we heard was how much better it would be without Young and Powell. Now those were hurdles that had to be overcome?

[HouseOfHam]

Other than the Powell injury, all those "hurdles" were celebrated by people. The majority of posters weren't concerned with Abron and Nobles leaving. Last year all we heard was how much better it would be without Young and Powell. Now those were hurdles that had to be overcome?

If we had Powell this past season I think we win 2 to 3 more games. His departure was a big blow even though it was expected.

[-Blu]

Other than the Powell injury, all those "hurdles" were celebrated by people. The majority of posters weren't concerned with Abron and Nobles leaving. Last year all we heard was how much better it would be without Young and Powell. Now those were hurdles that had to be overcome?

We also have people celebrate when we lose and come brag about it, so what people celebrate doesn't really mean much, we are talking about facts here on what actually happened, not what people thought.

And anytime you lose key contributors, you have to overcome it.  While your right some people celebrated BJ and Powell leaving and saying addition by subtraction, those are still tough losses and was major contributors to our team.  I was one of the guys that thought we'd be better off in the long run, just because they really didn't fit Mike's system, but you still can't ignore those were your 2 best players, and it was uncertainty on where our scoring was going to come from without them here.  And you want to talk about opinions, most experts thought we'd take a step back losing them, every pre-season article I read mentioned how losing them would hurt, but like I said we OVERCAME that and performed even better than we did with them here.  And I look for this team to improve even more next year.

[Tejas_Pete]

Anderson will get 5 years minimum. Won't be an issue though because we'll make the tourney next year.

[HognotinMemphis]

Best we can reasonably hope for is to be something like U of Memphis is now with Josh Pastner. Probably start making the NCAAT most years, if not every year but never being quite good enough to make it past 2nd round. Memphis has been to NCAAT 4 years in a row now but has won only 2 games in those 4 years, counting last week. Unless the SEC gets better, likely that Arkansas will not suddenly become much better. There will always be KY and apparently Fla as well. Other than those 2 programs, and one or two other teams that changes every year or two, (this year it is TN, next year could be the Hogs), the SEC is pretty weak. If I am a HS player, I would go to KY or Fla in a heartbeat. Other than that, I would be looking at Arizona, NC, Duke, Ohio St, Syracuse, et al.

[three hog night]

When was the last time we swept Kentucky before this year?  Go ahead I'll wait. 

And I think most are disappointed we didn't make the tournament, this team showed at times they had the talent to be a tournament team, but our inconsistency is what kept us out.  But, to ignore the cultural change and the improvements this team is making is just looking for reasons to get rid of Anderson.  This program is moving in the right direction, we've made improvements in every aspect since Mike has stepped on campus as coach.

And you look at the hurdles he has overcome.

First year, we lose our best player early in the season, we still have a winning record.

Second year, we lose 2 underclassmen starters in Abron and Nobles and we still improved and went undefeated in home in SEC play, and finish with a conference record of 10-8

Year three, we lose our 2 leading underclassmen scorers, and we finish 5th in the SEC, just on the outside of the bubble with 3 road wins, 1 neutral site win, and 22 wins to end the season.

And now going into year 4 we should bringing back the majority of our scorers and a solid recruiting class, I believe we'll go into next year projected by most experts to be at the very least a top 4 team in the conference, and projected by everyone to be a tournament team as well.

Thanks for bringing clarity through fact and reason.   This class of signees has me upbeat about next season.

[PonderinHog]

When was the last time we swept Kentucky before this year?  Go ahead I'll wait. 

And I think most are disappointed we didn't make the tournament, this team showed at times they had the talent to be a tournament team, but our inconsistency is what kept us out.  But, to ignore the cultural change and the improvements this team is making is just looking for reasons to get rid of Anderson.  This program is moving in the right direction, we've made improvements in every aspect since Mike has stepped on campus as coach.

And you look at the hurdles he has overcome.

First year, we lose our best player early in the season, we still have a winning record.

Second year, we lose 2 underclassmen starters in Abron and Nobles and we still improved and went undefeated in home in SEC play, and finish with a conference record of 10-8

Year three, we lose our 2 leading underclassmen scorers, and we finish 5th in the SEC, just on the outside of the bubble with 3 road wins, 1 neutral site win, and 22 wins to end the season.

And now going into year 4 we should bringing back the majority of our scorers and a solid recruiting class, I believe we'll go into next year projected by most experts to be at the very least a top 4 team in the conference, and projected by everyone to be a tournament team as well.

It seems like we lost another player that might have helped the team in year one, but I can't remember his name.

[-Blu]

It seems like we lost another player that might have helped the team in year one, but I can't remember his name.

Gleen Bryant and Rotnei Clark transferred and Aaron Ross was a incoming recruit that didn't make it to campus.

[HawgAdvocate]

It seems like we lost another player that might have helped the team in year one, but I can't remember his name.

Jeff Peterson was depth, at best.

[Delicious~Dreams]

He was "promised" a practice facility and I think his contract is for six years.  Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

Are you ever wrong on here?   


Early thoughts are that improvement needs to continue.   They need to play with more consistency and hopefully with new recruits, adjustments etc. that will relate on the court next year.   Go Hogs!

[YouCrawl_IQuall]

We just need more consistency. Even in the late season losses we didn't necessarily play bad basketball, just incredibly inconsistent on making buckets. There's a lot to say about how hard that team was still playing against Cal, shows me a lot in CMA's ability to lead, coach and motivate. Gets me excited for the future years. We just need better consistency from the shooters. No more starting games 3-22

[The Hogfather]

No more starting games 3-22

Amen.  How can a team shoot that poorly?

[Atlhogfan1]

Amen.  How can a team shoot that poorly?

Well they play an opponent starting 4 guards missing one of the best frontcourt players in their conference and the Hogs shoot 15 jump shots in their first 20 shots including 0-7 from 3. 

[PonderinHog]

Are you ever wrong on here?   


Early thoughts are that improvement needs to continue.   They need to play with more consistency and hopefully with new recruits, adjustments etc. that will relate on the court next year.   Go Hogs!

All the time.  Apparently, his contract is for seven years.

[code red]

I think if we don't make the NCAA tournament Anderson is gone. IMO this season was a huge disappointment. This team was easily good enough to make the NCAA and we choked at the end. When was the last time any team beat Kentucky twice and got left out? Does anyone know that off the top of their head? I don't think talent is the issue! We play in a below average conference. Now we are making progress on a year to year basis but it's going at a rate that is unacceptable. Are we missing pieces on this team? Absolutely! Are we still a good enough to team to get a bid on a year to year basis? YES!!!

I agree.  Folks are saying how we will be so much better next year???  Well so will UK.  Most of their youngsters aren't going anywhere next year.  Pearl will have Auburn in contention.  Dude has been to the NCAA every year as a HC except one.  Stallings and Martin will not be denied with there passionate style.  Tennessee will be freaking awesome.  This Razorback team has to shoot the ball lights out to win...period.  That is what Mike better concentrate on.  Because we have seen he doesn't believe in rebounding or defense.

[YouCrawl_IQuall]

I agree.  Folks are saying how we will be so much better next year???  Well so will UK.  Most of their youngsters aren't going anywhere next year.  Pearl will have Auburn in contention.  Dude has been to the NCAA every year as a HC except one.  Stallings and Martin will not be denied with there passionate style.  Tennessee will be freaking awesome.  This Razorback team has to shoot the ball lights out to win...period.  That is what Mike better concentrate on.  Because we have seen he doesn't believe in rebounding or defense.

Not so sure Tennessee will be all that great next year. Stokes could leave and Mcrae is a senior.

[code red]

Not so sure Tennessee will be all that great next year. Stokes could leave and Mcrae is a senior.

Yet we hang our hat on a PG who hasn't played yet.

[YouCrawl_IQuall]

Yet we hang our hat on a PG who hasn't played yet.

uh, what does that have to do with my post

[code red]

Pure speculation at this point on my part and yours.  I think you gotta take Tennessee right now in that match up.  Esp considering we will have to shoot the 3 to beat'em.

[YouCrawl_IQuall]

Pure speculation at this point on my part and yours.  I think you gotta take Tennessee right now in that match up.  Esp considering we will have to shoot the 3 to beat'em.

Well they could possibly lose 40 ppg and their leading rebounder. That's if Stokes leave, very likely he stays for his Senior year. But this run by the Vols has definitely got him noticed.

[swinetologist1]

I agree.  Folks are saying how we will be so much better next year???  Well so will UK.  Most of their youngsters aren't going anywhere next year.  Pearl will have Auburn in contention.  Dude has been to the NCAA every year as a HC except one.  Stallings and Martin will not be denied with there passionate style.  Tennessee will be freaking awesome.  This Razorback team has to shoot the ball lights out to win...period.  That is what Mike better concentrate on.  Because we have seen he doesn't believe in rebounding or defense.

I could be wrong but most of UK's youngsters are going to the NBA. SOP for Cal

Also, Pearl may have Auburn in contention but it won't be next season, or else we'll need to be asking what Pearl is doing to rebuild so fast that Anderson didn't

[jry04]

Anderson has 5 years. The RF will not approve any buyout until after year 5.

[Atlhogfan1]

Anderson has 5 years. The RF will not approve any buyout until after year 5.

He isn't going anywhere anyway.  Football takes priority because of $.  As long as the basketball program is mediocre and people are buying enough tickets to help pay the bills, Long isn't going to deal with Anderson.  Why would he?  Long is in a no lose situation if he lets him stay and stay.  This hire isn't on him and he doesn't need the political headache of dealing with those who forced it. 

[HawgAdvocate]

Well they could possibly lose 40 ppg and their leading rebounder. That's if Stokes leave, very likely he stays for his Senior year. But this run by the Vols has definitely got him noticed.

Most that are knocking Tennessee continue to forget about 5* SG Robert Hubbs. He was injured early in his freshman season, but should come back strong for next year.

[Breems]

This hire isn't on him and he doesn't need the political headache of dealing with those who forced it. 

LoL. Still can't convince yourself to accept the logic that even you posted a few weeks ago, eh?

I wonder what suit Long's wife laid out for him this morning.

[gmarv]

seems to me the thread is pointless we will be better next year.
our guys will have another year under there belts.which will bring
a more consistent team.portis kingley qualls madden bell and even
harris will be improved. i,m thinking 24 or more regular season wins.
and i can,t wait. go hogs

[JayBell]

Well they could possibly lose 40 ppg and their leading rebounder. That's if Stokes leave, very likely he stays for his Senior year. But this run by the Vols has definitely got him noticed.

Won't the game be at Arkansas?  I'd give the Hogs the edge in that game.  No SEC team should be Arkansas in Bud Walton next season.

[ICEman]

So, you are saying that we got better this year against teams in this conference who got worse?  This perceived improvement therefore rings hollow?

[azhog10]

Other than the Powell injury, all those "hurdles" were celebrated by people. The majority of posters weren't concerned with Abron and Nobles leaving. Last year all we heard was how much better it would be without Young and Powell. Now those were hurdles that had to be overcome?

There were a lot of arguments that we would struggle to score points with Powell and Young gone. Probably more of those arguments than the ones saying we would be a better offensive team without those two.

[azhog10]

Amen.  How can a team shoot that poorly?

Never seen a team shoot so inconsistent like us. We are very good at home and then horrid on the road. Idk if it's bc we only shoot in the Bud and maybe there is something there with the background and what not. But these kids have been shooting in different gyms their whole life. The rim is the same size, the same height off the floor, and the distance is the same. I just don't get it. There can be blam on the coaches no doubt for some of the losses this year, but it's hard on anyone when you shoot so well at your place and then go on the road and can't seem to throw it in the ocean while sitting on the shore.

[Hogman2]

When was the last time we swept Kentucky before this year?  Go ahead I'll wait. 

And I think most are disappointed we didn't make the tournament, this team showed at times they had the talent to be a tournament team, but our inconsistency is what kept us out.  But, to ignore the cultural change and the improvements this team is making is just looking for reasons to get rid of Anderson.  This program is moving in the right direction, we've made improvements in every aspect since Mike has stepped on campus as coach.

And you look at the hurdles he has overcome.

First year, we lose our best player early in the season, we still have a winning record.

Second year, we lose 2 underclassmen starters in Abron and Nobles and we still improved and went undefeated in home in SEC play, and finish with a conference record of 10-8

Year three, we lose our 2 leading underclassmen scorers, and we finish 5th in the SEC, just on the outside of the bubble with 3 road wins, 1 neutral site win, and 22 wins to end the season.

And now going into year 4 we should bringing back the majority of our scorers and a solid recruiting class, I believe we'll go into next year projected by most experts to be at the very least a top 4 team in the conference, and projected by everyone to be a tournament team as well.

When is the LAST time we got beat by the WORST teams in the SEC when an NCAA bid was in the mix!

[Sivad]

Long is in a no lose situation if he lets him stay and stay.  This hire isn't on him and he doesn't need the political headache of dealing with those who forced it. 

Exactly.
The Anderson hire was forced on Long by the vocal group of ex players and fans demanding a fantasy time travel return to "Hawgball/40 Minutes of Hell" and to pay reparations to Nolan.
And that group has now set the achievement bar so low for their nostalgic hire, that Anderson will be here for many years to come even if he NEVER produces.

[Danny J]

My early thoughts are exactly the same as coming into this past season. We will struggle at times early in the season especially in SEC play. We will begin to gel likely around the first of February. We won't have that problem again the next year with the way the classes are being staggered.

[LA Football fan]

We will always struggle early in the SEC because Mike will continue to schedule SWAC's of this world in non conference.  Easy wins with no revelations on what our weaknesses are that need to be improved before conference.

He will get his wins just like Nutt in the non conference games and then finish around .500 in conference play.  Hopefully we win enough to get in the tourney but I am resigned that we will likely be a bubble team for the foreseeable future. 

That's okay though because the last 15 years we were never even on the map to make the tourney.  I am hoping Mike gets the magic back and love watching fast paced basketball.  Hate to see us lose games before they get started by poor shot selection, nonexistent rebounding, and silly fouls.  It is what it is and we will see it play out the next couple of years.  Go Hogs!!!  Congrats to those players for competing hard all year.  Had some great moments this year watching the Hogs.  Hoping for more next year!

[MountieDawg]

This year seemed like the HDN years in football. Win a couple big games playing great and catching them at the right time and losing games you should win.

[Breems]

Exactly.
The Anderson hire was forced on Long by the vocal group of ex players and fans demanding a fantasy time travel return to "Hawgball/40 Minutes of Hell" and to pay reparations to Nolan.
And that group has now set the achievement bar so low for their nostalgic hire, that Anderson will be here for many years to come even if he NEVER produces.

I seriously want a list of people that believe this so I can laugh at them in my spare time. We have 3 so far.

[The_Iceman]

Exactly.
The Anderson hire was forced on Long by the vocal group of ex players and fans demanding a fantasy time travel return to "Hawgball/40 Minutes of Hell" and to pay reparations to Nolan.
And that group has now set the achievement bar so low for their nostalgic hire, that Anderson will be here for many years to come even if he NEVER produces.

I can't stand people like you who degrade Mike Anderson by calling him a nostalgia hire. You act like he has been rotting away down at some Birmingham high school coaching PE for the last 9 years.

No, Mike Anderson has taken two programs with consecutive losing seasons and built them both up to NCAA-T teams, taking one to the Sweet 16 and the other to the Elite 8.

Based on his resume alone, and not taking his connections to Arkansas into consideration, he was worthy of being hired as the head basketball coach at the University of Arkansas. His prior connections to the program were only an added bonus.

But go back to hating, I'm sure you get great joy out of it.

[AWHAWG]

Not so sure Tennessee will be all that great next year. Stokes could leave and Mcrae is a senior.

if he doesn't believe in defense how did we lead in turnovers.  Defense was one of the first things he talked about when he go here.

[Breems]

I can't stand people like you who degrade Mike Anderson by calling him a nostalgia hire. You act like he has been rotting away down at some Birmingham high school coaching PE for the last 9 years.

No, Mike Anderson has taken two programs with consecutive losing seasons and built them both up to NCAA-T teams, taking one to the Sweet 16 and the other to the Elite 8.

Based on his resume alone, and not taking his connections to Arkansas into consideration, he was worthy of being hired as the head basketball coach at the University of Arkansas. His prior connections to the program were only an added bonus.

But go back to hating, I'm sure you get great joy out of it.

I think they're funny. This separates the "realists" from the venom-spewers (Sivad has worn his emotions on his sleeves for quite a while, though).

Time will tell if our fans made the right choices with Bielema and Anderson. I'm hearing Long is finally being allowed to give some input on the women's basketball coach. Some say he's being forced into offering Gary Blair.

[The_Iceman]

I'm hearing Long is finally being allowed to give some input on the women's basketball coach. Some say he's being forced into offering Gary Blair.

I think Gary Blair's record speaks for itself. We would be lucky to get him back.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gary_Blair

[HawgAdvocate]

I'm hearing Long is finally being allowed to give some input on the women's basketball coach. Some say he's being forced into offering Gary Blair.

I hope you are joking.

[jry04]

Gary Blair would be a "nostalgic hire."