Harry King - "Nicholls State Route Means Nothing"

[WizardofhOgZ]

I will disagree with Harry on this one.  In a general situation, I can understand his take.

But, this is not a normal situation.  These kids (not ot mention the fans) were literally starving for a win.  Especially a "feel good" win where the outcome is never in doubt and everyone gets good stats.  It wouldn't have mattered, IMO, if it had come over a High School team.  They just needed to feel those good vibes only a winning locker room can provide.

And it functioned as a high level scrimmage, enabling us to work on technicque, break in new players, and resting our key performers after they got their "feel good" injections early.

Sure, better efforts and more focus will be needed against "BCS level" opponents, especially in the SEC.  Most of our players know that because they've been on the field with that level of opponent (as recently as last week), but I think a game like we had yesterday is ideal from breaking in a new player.  Walk before you run.

http:// [[[Stop spamming your site, Eric.]]] .com/sports/king-arkansas-73-nicholls-state-7-proves-nothing

[Hogwop]

Agree. If they had been able to hang around and make it close, that would have created almost as much negativity as a loss (to BCS level opponent) would have. The players and the fans all needed this. Now they just have to go take care of business in Lubbock, and keep this wave of good vibes going.

[lefty08]

Harry king is one of the most pessimistic guys there is out there, hes even moreso than bruce james, ill take his opinion with a grain of salt

[hobhog]

All I know is everyone there had a great time. It was a needed blowout, crowd enjoyed every bit of it, and players were happy.

We were glad we went. And I think it helped the team mentally. So there....

[lefty08]

I think the focus we showed and the execution shows more positive than any negative anyone can come up with from this game

[Ragnar Hogbrok]

Everyone needs to look at the one comment on the linked article.  Bwahahahaha!

[sickboy]

His headline is just trying to grab attention. Ultimately, he's just saying it doesn't give us any insight into how the Hogs will perform against Texas Tech or tougher competition.

Nothing life-shattering. But wins, especially with teams thirsty for them, are important no matter who they come from.

[sickboy]

Everyone needs to look at the one comment on the linked article.  Bwahahahaha!

Youch. That's a fiery opinion.

[Ragnar Hogbrok]

Youch. That's a fiery opinion.

I wonder how long it stays up?

[(notOM)Rebel123]

I think the OP meant to say, "Harry King Means Nothing."

[Hollywood_HOGan45]

King had been a Scrooge ever since nutt got fired.


Those boys needed a W.

[Bucksnort]

Harry is right. This was just a big check for them. Means nothing to us but a cupcake win.

[RedSkiesAtNightHog]

I will disagree with Harry on this one.  In a general situation, I can understand his take.

But, this is not a normal situation.  These kids (not ot mention the fans) were literally starving for a win.  Especially a "feel good" win where the outcome is never in doubt and everyone gets good stats.  It wouldn't have mattered, IMO, if it had come over a High School team.  They just needed to feel those good vibes only a winning locker room can provide.

And it functioned as a high level scrimmage, enabling us to work on technicque, break in new players, and resting our key performers after they got their "feel good" injections early.

Sure, better efforts and more focus will be needed against "BCS level" opponents, especially in the SEC.  Most of our players know that because they've been on the field with that level of opponent (as recently as last week), but I think a game like we had yesterday is ideal from breaking in a new player.  Walk before you run.

http:// [[[Stop spamming your site, Eric.]]] .com/sports/king-arkansas-73-nicholls-state-7-proves-nothing

Agree, Wizard.  A happy Hog team goes into Lubbock now with belief, hope, and a determination to win a road game against a very beatable team. 

[DoctorSusscrofa]

Ivory towers are really nice places to live, but football doesn't happen in a vacuum. I'd love it if everybody had equal schedules and every game was a fair test for every team. It simply isn't.  When you face aTm, Bama, UGA, LSU, Auburn, Ole Miss, Miss St, Texas Tech, and Mizzou, you're going to want to have at least one opponent that isn't a threat. Especially when Ohio State, Michigan, and Michigan St are playing teams like Akron, Ball St, Miami of Ohio, Indiana, Purdue, Minnesota, and Northwestern.  Like it or not the SEC 8th-10th place teams (the 4th and 5th place teams in each division) are generally better than the the B1G Ten's in most years.  And the last 8 years our top teams have usually been better than their top teams.  The B1G Ten is a great old conference and their top teams are competitive with ours at times.  But the weakness of their lower tier teams is such that our cream puff non-conference opponents help balance out the overall toughness of our schedules.

Nicholls was an unusually weak opponent, but our other 3 nc opponents are not nearly so weak as they were.  A game like this gives our team a chance to avoid injuries and give some people experience for the future.  That - even though Harry can't see it with a magnifying glass and a reading lamp - is worth something.

[Medic821]

You know, it seems to me that we could win the next 10 National titles and people would still moan 'bot something!

[razorhead5]

Never been impressed with Harry....

[Bucksnort]

You know, it seems to me that we could win the next 10 National titles and people would still moan 'bot something!

That's really a foolish thing to say. We are just tired of the BS,  wait till next year, we're on track shiite.

[HogFanatic]

I actually felt bad for those guys yesterday. Even before the game started. They were showing their coach's pre-game speech to his players and I was like, "man, these guys are all about to get their hopes dashed." Their coach looked confused as to what to do.

The game was mostly about a paycheck and the chance to hit someone NOT in a Razorback uniform. If it weren't for those two things, everyone would have been better off just staying at home.

Still wish they would have thrown the damn ball more. I don't think I have ever seen a football game where the starting quarterback of a team only throws four flippin' passes. Just dumb if you ask me.

[lefty08]

Sounds like harry is upset the hogs  played so well,  poor harry

[Bucksnort]

I actually felt bad for those guys yesterday. Even before the game started. They were showing their coach's pre-game speech to his players and I was like, "man, these guys are all about to get their hopes dashed." Their coach looked confused as to what to do.

The game was mostly about a paycheck and the chance to hit someone NOT in a Razorback uniform. If it weren't for those two things, everyone would have been better off just staying at home.

Still wish they would have thrown the damn ball more. I don't think I have ever seen a football game where the starting quarterback of a team only throws four flippin' passes. Just dumb if you ask me.

Oh, but now with that Nichols Girls School for the Blind win, we are going undefeated the rest of the way!  All hail CBB!

[HogFanatic]

Oh, but now with that Nichols Girls School for the Blind win, we are going undefeated the rest of the way!  All hail CBB!

I don't think that is on BB. I think that is on Cheney. We should have thrown the ball just to see if we COULD. I mean, when your first two plays go for touchdowns, it's time to start working on some other stuff.

To their credit, I also believe the very first two passes ALSO went for touchdowns, but when your receivers all seem to have a case of the dropsies, maybe we need to get them involved in the gameplan? I also think the first two touchdown passes went to tight ends, but I may be wrong there.

[WilsonHog]

If anyone looked at Nicholls State when our schedule came out and said, "Wow!! We're gonna tested there, boys! We're gonna know what we have after that one!"....you need to be institutionalized.

On Friday night a guy at our high school game asked me what I thought. I told him we would score 70.

No, that was a game to say, "Hey, we're gonna score 70 on 'em. I'm going to kick back, enjoy the atmosphere, have a drink or two, just spend a relaxing weekend in Fayetteville."

Which is exactly what I did.

[HogFanatic]

For awhile I was wondering what happened to Korliss, but I'm glad they held him out.

I have no doubt Korliss could have rushed for 300 yards in that game by himself. Keon goes 84 yards untouched on the very first play. Williams reels off a NINETY yard run.

I don't think they had a defender on the field that could have touched Korliss Marshall had he been in the game.

[WilsonHog]

So what was the drink of choice, Wilson?

Couple of bottles of water and a Bud Light.

[Hogberry Snortcake]

It means we are better than Nicholls State.

[atekido]

I look at it this way.   We have fielded  "superior"  teams and played cupcakes just as bad as Nicholls and such and haven't come close to the domination that happened.  So either Nicholls is one of the worst teams in the history of sports orrrrrrr the Hogs are better than they showed in the 2nd half vs Auburn.  I'm going with the latter.

[redbarn]

I think personally that everyone is forgetting the first half of the Auburn game.  Admittingly they faltered in the second half but they held a good Auburn team to a half time tie score and then came back this week and even though it was Nichols State, they played a game like we have never seen before.  Next week they will take on TT and hopefully they will show that the first half of the Auburn game and the Nichols State game were just a start on showing how much improved the team.

[hoghiker]

Youch. That's a fiery opinion.

Harry is a nihilist apparently.  Anything means nothing. If we had lost it would have meant something, right Harry? We didn't struggle. Does that mean nothing? Everything means something. Just sayin.

[trashcan maN]

Has Harry King ever had a hot sports take that wasn't negative towards the Hogs?

[jkstock04]

Wizard and Hogwop,

I respectfully disagree with both of you on this but I fully understand the points you are making.  No game will ever be entirely negative or positive - you can always take something away from each game on both sides of the ledger. 

Where I feel Harry is correct (and some HV posters are wrong) is if anyone chooses to cite this game as 'proof' that Arkansas is better than we thought after the Auburn loss - this is where Harry is right - this game proves nothing.

I agree with y'all though that confidence can have its origin from just about anywhere and if an Arkansas player (or two) uses this game as a springboard to better performances, than some positives can come from this game. 

Time will tell.

My thoughts as well, couldn't have said it better.

[Hollywood_HOGan45]

Has Harry King ever had a hot sports take that wasn't negative towards the Hogs?

Not since Nutt got canned.

[rzrbackrob]

Harry might be right, but I feel better about the Hogs chances going into Lubbock.

[Theolesnort]

Harry is a golf and horse racing guy. What Harry and others failed to realize is that this rout was brought on not by a bad team disintegrating with a dozen turnovers with 4 or 5 returned for touchdowns and then the rout is on. Nope Nicholls played hard with few errors and made Arkansas do their scoring with the offense. The positives that stuck out for Ark was the execution that was exhibited under such relaxed conditions. Usually when second and third teamers come in and play it is a comedy of errors for the winning team with all kinds of procedure and off sides penalties. The discipline and stick to business attitude was amazing. Ark did get some things out of the game if not good competition.

[ballz2thewall]

actually, everyone is right, because the situation is, and to some extent always will be fluid.

about improving-

we looked decent against 1/2 of auburn.  more so than any solid single two back to back quarters last year against quality opposition.  and,

last year, playing the same exact NS team, we would not have looked so dominant.

so yeah, it is still early for a decision but i do see a few jurors going our way for an improvement verdict.

[WayneHawg]

This win wad important to the hogs , but a win against TT will be IMPORTENTER !

[Locutus_of_Boar]

If anyone looked at Nicholls State when our schedule came out and said, "Wow!! We're gonna tested there, boys! We're gonna know what we have after that one!"....you need to be institutionalized.

On Friday night a guy at our high school game asked me what I thought. I told him we would score 70.

No, that was a game to say, "Hey, we're gonna score 70 on 'em. I'm going to kick back, enjoy the atmosphere, have a drink or two, just spend a relaxing weekend in Fayetteville."

Which is exactly what I did.

The week after Frank Broyles' first Arkansas team broke their own six-game losing streak on the road at Texas A&M they came home to War Memorial to play Division III Hardin-Simmons coached by none other than Sammy Baugh.

The final score of 60-15 was highlighted by two Arkansas kickoff returns for touchdowns following each of Hardin-Simmon's two scores. 

According to Orville Henry, who actually attended in person and reported on the game  and not his laundry list of personal gripes...everyone present had a wonderful time.

[scruf]

Who's Harry King?

[WizardofhOgZ]

Do you think he meant "ROUT"?

My bad . . . typo acknowledged . . .

[Martygit]

Surely, the route down there means something  Even if it's just that it's a long drive

[SemperFi]

The Razorbacks needed a win to build confidence and they got just that. If anything, success breeds success. This is something that the Coaches and Players can build upon.

[wachhog]

I guess the "lead the cheers or Nutt will be back" gang" didn't get to Harry? Geeze.

[True Fan]

They were showing their coach's pre-game speech to his players and I was like, "man, these guys are all about to get their hopes dashed." Their coach looked confused as to what to do.

When that clip came on, I had John L. flashbacks.

[Tomhog™]

The one thing I took away from the game is this offense is finally back to being a big hit offense.  5 single play touch downs is crazy! We didn't have that last year at all.  Now if we can just get a semblance of a passing game to complement the running attack.

[sickboy]

Harry is a nihilist apparently.  Anything means nothing. If we had lost it would have meant something, right Harry? We didn't struggle. Does that mean nothing? Everything means something. Just sayin.

So, in other words... he's a coward.

[Oklahawg]

Harry is a golf and horse racing guy. What Harry and others failed to realize is that this rout was brought on not by a bad team disintegrating with a dozen turnovers with 4 or 5 returned for touchdowns and then the rout is on. Nope Nicholls played hard with few errors and made Arkansas do their scoring with the offense. The positives that stuck out for Ark was the execution that was exhibited under such relaxed conditions. Usually when second and third teamers come in and play it is a comedy of errors for the winning team with all kinds of procedure and off sides penalties. The discipline and stick to business attitude was amazing. Ark did get some things out of the game if not good competition.

This!

This should be the grand takeaway for every fan!

We dismantled a team that didn't beat itself. We scored every possible way. We played deep into the walk-on part of the roster.

Execution was crisp to the end. Unbelievable! I've NEVER seen a UA team in any sport get up early and have the reserves play with such focus and attention to detail.

Contrary to Harry, this was HUGE news!! This was a game that signaled many things if you were coherent enough to notice. A stunning display that gave a lot of pups experience and vets a tune-up. A machine-like devouring of an opponent.

I didn't shield my eyes because the MSM quit coaching at halftime as the reserves fumbled about. I didn't have to clench my seat at the end because we allowed a defeated team to get back into it and not care (was it USF vs a Nutt team that we got up a couple of scores and tried to coast, only to give them a shot to tie at the end?).

Too many no-name opponents holding close or making life tough for the Hogs. Let's track a few of those over the years: ULM, Western Illinois, a 1-10 SMU team, The Citadel.

[alohawg]

We're a fighter that's lost 10 bouts in a row in our weight division. Saturday we were in the ring against an opponent a couple weight divisions below us and beat the snot out of 'em. That's all.

[HF#1]

That game wasn't meant to be a test.  It was meant to give us an oppenent while also providing an extra week of practice without having to really do any kind of game planning.  People tend to severely discredit what that can do for a team like this. 

Bielema wanted to accomplish 3 things.

1. Keep everyone focused
2. Play a ton of new guys
3. Make sure we execute effectively

We accomplished all three things and got a W.  This game served a lot of purpose even though it was against a shadow of a team.   Now we prepare for Texas Tech with tons of confidence. 

[Swine-as-wine]

Personally......this game seemed to me, to have less effectiveness than a scrimmage.
Saying that NS was over-matched, would be a major understatement. This of course
takes nothing away from getting a win after 10 consecutive losses. No one....fans or
especially players, could end this wretched streak quick enough. I could garner nothing
in any form of improvement, against "competition" this weak. Ultimately, the lingering
thoughts this game left for me, was that we had to begin passing the ball to keep the
score down, rather than what's typically the opposite of that being done. In other words.....
someone doesn't throw a punch thru a piece of paper, to show that they can shatter
6 two by fours. Games like this don't build confidence at all.

[HF#1]

Games like this don't build confidence at all.

I disagree when you've lost 10 in a row...  A win is a win is a win is a win.

[HogFanatic]

Personally......this game seemed to me, to have less effectiveness than a scrimmage.
Saying that NS was over-matched, would be a major understatement. This of course
takes nothing away from getting a win after 10 consecutive losses. No one....fans or
especially players, could end this wretched streak quick enough. I could garner nothing
in any form of improvement, against "competition" this weak. Ultimately, the lingering
thoughts this game left for me, was that we had to begin passing the ball to keep the
score down, rather than what's typically the opposite of that being done. In other words.....
someone doesn't throw a punch thru a piece of paper, to show that they can shatter
6 two by fours. Games like this don't build confidence at all.

These are my thoughts almost exactly.

You guys remember that game against South Carolina when Dmac ran for like 325 yards? After the game Steve Spurrier was complaining to the media that Arkansas was "running up the score with that running back."

No need for that, although I am stoked for the win, but I hoped to see the receivers get some work.