Razorback Nation: Patience is a Virtue

Listening to Sports Talk radio in Arkansas right now is very tough. A lot of fans like to listen for the inputs from the hosts and former players that are on the radio. Some fans even call in to interact with the hosts and ask questions or answer questions.With every loss the negativity grows worse and worse. Its ok to be upset at losing. Some folks though are taking things way too far by calling for the coaches head after just 9 games. Most coaches don't walk into a new program and win right away. It didn't matter what coach walked into Arkansas, they would not have won that many games this year with this team as it has been assembled. Coach Bielema has been partially handicapped due to two straight up in the air recruiting classes. When Jeff Long was forced yes forced to fire Bobby Petrino and then brought back John L Smith on a 10 month contract there was uncertainty on the hill. Recruits that weren't sold on being a Hog no matter what didn't want to have anything with Arkansas because they had no idea who would be coach or what system they would run. Then during the season the team quit and the bottom fell out. John L Smith was fired as expected and finally in mid December of last year Bielema was named Head Coach. His staff only had about a month to put together some time of recruiting class to run the style they want to run at Arkansas. He did a pretty good job of gathering a few good players. Alex Collins, Dan Skipper, and Denver Kirkland were some highlights so far of the class and were last minute pick ups. With a full season of recruiting there is no doubt that the Hogs will get the players they need to be successful in the near future. Fans need to forget what has happened and focus on where this team is going. Petrino hurt the Hogs pretty bad on defense. John L Smith hurt the Hogs in general. Bielema will get this team to where its competitive and hunting for championships. It may not be next year but very soon. Fans need to also forget about Gus. No matter how you feel about him he would not be doing any better at Arkansas. He is doing well at Auburn right now because he recruited most of those players and was only gone from the program for one year. Fans will have to do something that is pretty much non existent in society these days. That is to be patient. Patience is a virtue and good things come to those that wait.

Open Letter to Razorback Nation

The College Football season is just around the corner. The SEC Media Days are going on and Coach Bret Bielema did what coach does best and stole the show. He has high hopes for the season and the future of the program. The Petrino era has spoiled the fans. Fans have been very high on the Hog for the last couple of years. Last season was a big disappointment for all involved with the U of A. Coach Bielema is already making headway with some recruits that fit his and his staff's styles better. Fans are just going to have to be patient for the next few seasons as adjustments are made and players are brought in and developed. Just look to the NFL and see how some of the most recent guys that have played for Bielema are doing. JJ Watt is considered one of the best defensive players in the league and he is only beginning his career. Russell Wilson was good at NC State but finished his development at Wisconsin and then went on to be one of the top QB's in the NFL as a rookie. There were several players drafted this past season including Dallas Cowboys first round pick Travis Frederick. Coach Bielema has a proven track record. Give him and his staff time. They will make Arkansas respectable again and hopefully bring them to the promise land. Bottom line please give the coaches time to do their jobs. We are fans which is short for fanatics but you still have to have realistic expectations for just a short while. Believe in the Hogs and support them no matter if they go 14-0 or 0-12. WPS! Never Yield! Go Hogs! Be Uncommon!

Arkansas Razorbacks: Road to Redemption

arkansassports360.com

Last weeks 52-0 loss in Fayetteville was the first shut out there since the 60's. Tyler Wilson did not play because he was still recovering from concussion like symptoms. But Tyler did make a splash not because of his play but because of his talk after the game. As you can tell from the picture it was not a happy talk. Tyler said "It wasn't pretty to me to sit on the sideline and watch as a player. Sucks I can't be out there and do anything about it. Do I feel that we, at times, gave up out there? Yeah. Absolutely," He also said "As a leader it sucks to see people not do their jobs and things go wrong." Tyler was fired up and upset at the way the players played. He wasn't the only one as Razorback Nation was also very upset. Midway through the second quarter the game was only 7-0 Alabama. But everything went south after that. The Hogs did have a chance to score but missed on field goal that banged off the upright. Just when Hog fans thought things couldn't get any worse, John L Smith did what he does best and said something stupid that the media is now running with and making the entire Razorback Nation look dumb. JLS said in his press conference to get your chin up and SMILE. That press conference video has now gone viral and plenty of parody videos are already popping up.

This afternoon ESPN's Outside the Lines did their show on Arkansas. They called it #ArkansasMess . They basically talked about who was responsible and what could be done to fix the situation. There are plenty of opinions on who and what do to. Most people agree that Bobby Petrino has some type of blame in all this. The one thing that could get this train back on track is winning.

Razorback Nation got some great news today when Tyler Wilson was cleared to return. Tyler is by far the leader of this team and I dare say the organization right now. His return has already breathed some life into the fan base. Rutgers is a winnable game especially with Tyler at the helm. Tyler is the conductor of the train that is the Arkansas Razorbacks. The Razorbacks are arguably the laughing stock of college football. From top 10 program week one to a program in shambles now. The remaining games on the schedule besides LSU and maybe South Carolina are fairly winnable games. It all starts this weekend with Rutgers. The Hogs must take the rest of the season week to week in hopes of building up some wins and momentum to build the Road to Redemption.

Razorback Nation: United We Stand, Divided We Fall

Arkansas News Bureau

Arkansas fans woke up Sunday morning thinking they had a nightmare but unfortunately it was a reality. The number 8 ranked Arkansas Razorbacks lost to an unranked Louisiana Monroe WarHawk team Saturday night. The Hogs were up 28-7 before allowing the WarHawks to come back and tie the game up to send it to overtime. After the Hogs kicked a field goal they gave up a touchdown to end up losing the game 34-31. Also in the game Tyler Wilson was knocked out of the game with what appears to be a concussion type injury. The university is not really saying what is wrong with him or a timetable for return. Also injured in the game was cornerback Tevin Mitchell. Mitchell was carted off the field after colliding with teammate Alonzo Highsmith. He appears to be moving and doing better. Hopefully he will make a full recovery regardless if he play football again or not.  The last major injury from the game came from running back/fullback Kody Walker who ended up getting a lower leg injury and its being said that he is out for the season. Things went from bad to worse by lunch time on Sunday. The new AP poll came out and the Razorbacks dropped from number 8 to out of the AP poll. This was the second largest drop in the history of the poll.

Razorback fans are understandably upset today. The Hogs were a 30 point favorite over ULM. Their were high expectations for this team this season. Obviously the end goals of the season have changed but its time for the fans to get behind this team and support them. Twitter, Facebook, and other social media sites were littered with fans very upset about the loss and blaming everyone from Jeff Long to John L Smith to the players to even Bobby Petrino. Some fans are trying to sell their tickets to this weekends big match up against Alabama. I hope some fans buy those tickets because those selling them don't deserve to go. I would rather go and watch MY team get beat 100 than be hypocritical about my fandom.

If you were a fan on Saturday then you need to be a fan today. Its ok to be upset, mad, even ticked off but its not ok to throw in the towel on the team. If you don't want to be a fan anymore that's fine go out and be a fan of LSU or someone else but don't talk about the Hogs anymore like your a fan.

Its times like these that the Razorback Nation has to come together and remain strong. United We Stand, Divided We Fall!

Bobby Petrino No Longer Head Hog

Wesley Hitt/Getty Images

ImagesRumors were flying today as they have been the last few days. Around 6pm this evening it was announced that Jeff Long the Athletic Director for the University of Arkansas was going to hold a press conference at 715pm. Rumors got even wilder upon this news. It wasn't long after this that news of Petrino's firing was coming out. Joe Schad of ESPN was one of the first that I saw breaking the news on Twitter. Shortly before 7pm the AP and other credible news sources had confirmed the firing. Jeff Long didn't start the presser till closer to 730pm. He then stated that Coach Petrino would not be returning to the team. He also reveled some new details like the relationship has gone on for "some" time. There is also this new detail of a $20,000 gift to Jessica Dorrell the mistress/co-worker. My feelings have changed some on Coach. With the right provisions I would still like to have seen Petrino remain the Coach but I respect Jeff's decision. With the new details I lost a little respect for Petrino, but with the way Jeff Long handled the press conference I gained a lot for him. Long gave me the encouragement that he will get the program back on track to accomplishing the goals of winning the SEC and National Championship titles. Long said he will start the coaching search immediately following the press conference. He also named Taver Johnson as the acting head coach till Spring Football is over in late April and then will make a decision going forward after that.

 Not long after the press confrence Bobby Petrino released a statement through his agent. You can read the statement here. He basically says he is sorry and hopes the school has success. The big question now is who will be the new Head Hog. There is a short list already started by fans and national pundits alike. That list includes: Former Assistants Garrick McGee(Current Head Coach at UAB) and Gus Malzahn(Current Head Coach at A-State), Former UNC Coach Butch Davis, Current USF Coach Skip Holtz, Current Baylor Coach Art Briles, and others. I for one want a coach that has already proven what he can do. I feel like the team the Hogs have now is primed and ready for greatness. Why mess that up with a brand new system. I would be fine with Coach Johnson or any current coach on staff continuing being the interim coach through the upcoming season. After the season then make a choice to either keep the current coach or get a guy that will get the Hogs to the promised land. There are just a few guys that could be brought in now that could change my thinking. These guys are major long shots but Bill Cowher and John Gurden are just two off the top of my head that I would be ok with coming in and seeing what they could do with the talent up on the hill right now. How do you feel about Petrino, Long and the University now?

Bobby Petrino, Is he still your coach?

Razorback Nation has been on a heck of an emotional roller-coaster this past week. Fans found out Sunday night that Coach Petrino had been in a motorcycle accident. Everyone rallied around Coach with prayers and thoughts of a quick recovery. Love for Coach Petrino was at an all time high that is till Thursday afternoon. Rumors were all over the place when the police report came out that said there was a passenger involved in the wreck. Turns out that passenger was a 25 year old female employee. Late Thursday night there was a press conference held by Athletic Director Jeff Long. Right before the presser the media was issued a written statement from Coach Petrino. Petrino Statement In the statement Petrino admits to having an inappropriate relationship. Now Razorback Nation is divided on what should be done about this situation. My feeling is Petrino will be suspended for several games that may include a huge match up with defending champion Alabama. I really hope that he will be back. He has the team on the verge of winning championships. I am in now way condoning what he has done but if he didn't break any laws or rules then I don't have a problem with what he does on his own time. I am only concerned with what he does on the football field. The biggest question that has to be answered is did coach break any university policies. That to me that is what Jeff long is investigating. There is also the fact that coach lied to the AD and everyone else about what really happened. He was trying to cover it up as to not embarrass the school or his family but it has made the situation even worse and more embarrassing. Petrino's past is a major catalyst of why the national media is reacting the way they are.  I encourage everyone to seek out information from legitimate news sources and make an educated opinion. I would love to have some feedback and see how everyone feels about this topic.

Troy at Arkansas Prediction

Week 3:

According to EA Sports this is how the game will turn out.

Final Score: Hogs  44 Troy 17
Hogs Rank after game: 13
Total Offense: 469
Passing Yards: 352
Rushing Yards: 117
Total Yards: 570
Player of the Game: Jericho Nelson, Tkl, TFL, 4 ATK
Heisman Leader: Andrew Luck-Stanford

My prediction:
This game will be the first real test of the season. Troy isn't a scrub but they are no powerhouse either. Hogs should cruise comfortable in this game. Get a little more tuned up for the big match-up next week with the Crimson Tide. The important thing for the Hogs in this game is not completely overlook Troy. They are good enough that they could surprise the Hogs if they are not ready. With that said this is a Bobby Petrino coached team and he always has his teams ready for that weeks opponent. Probably see the starters go a little longer to make sure they are in football shape for the next game. 

My score:
Hogs 35 Troy 7

Next Game:

at #2 Alabama