Arkansas Blog

if only the ADG would apply the same scrutiny and standards to the Bush administration.

where's Martha Mitchell when you really need her?

That's a novel idea, the DoG scrutinizing the Bush misadministraion. That only affects the future of the world and everyone in it.

This Nuttgate affects the Hawgs!!!

No matter Wally Hall's "explanation" this morning, I think the D-G staff should be kicking themselves for not reporting on this sooner. This wasn't "Internet gossip" and if "the" email was sent to some coaches (Danny Nutt), then I would think it could've been FOI'd. Lord knows the message boards have been going on and on about this since that time.

Pitifully handled by all involved - Nutt, the chancellor... I'm no bulletin board Dark Sider but I'm no Nutt fan either at this point. I'm a Razorbacks fan and something needs to be done to put all this to rest - even if it means cutting some folks loose.

isnt it just amazing that a grown woman would send Emails like that to a college freshman? She must not have much else going on in her life. I mean, can any of you imagine deciding to Email a football player and tell him off? I can't. I have two sons around his age and you can't tell them anything anyway. ;)

this is insanity, soap opera at its best. seems to me this could have been stopped a lot sooner if mrs saint houston had not forwarded that email.

It pains me greatly to agree wtih the Wally but I HATE I T when St. Houston climbs up there to sing. That is not his proper role.

I know nothing about this situation but I do know that when gary brashears (remember him? parade all-american QB?) was up there in Fateville, he was treated very badly indeed. I dont know why he left but I know he had good reasons. that should not have happened, unless the kid was selling heroin on the side, which in gary's case I can vouch that he was not, the coaches just made promises they did not keep.

I think also that the families and the kids didnt understand one fundamental fact: Once youre on the team, you cease to be an individual who matters. If you are of no use to the team, we dont remember your name. get hurt? have problems? dont remember you, son, sorry, go away.

That's horrible. If Mustain were 17, that e mail would have been grounds for criminal charges. Since he's of age, I guess it's just one adult belittling and harassing another. I think she's got mental problems; that's the only way I can explain a grown woman sending a letter like that to a freshman in college.

great minds think alike, tina :)

i agree, she should at the least been banned from games for a period of years. it was done for ted herrod several years ago when he started the ncaa scandal and this may be worse since it involves being mean to a kid. i am not sure what you could do to dianna nutt.

Whew!
I know I'm going against the tide, a riptide, no less, but get a grip, people -- especially the e-mailer. It's just football.
Even if Mitch Mustain were a snotty 18-year-old and his mother were the wicked witch of the west, how many of you would be concerned -- except that it's HAWGBAWL?
And just incidently, if I got an e-mail of this type from anyone, I'd make it clear that further such childish behavior would bring legal consequences for harrassment.

...And Stan Heath, fresh from a 24-point shellacking, can continue to say, "I'm the luckiest coach on earth."

http://tinyurl.com/2e2f34

>>>...And Stan Heath, fresh from a 24-point shellacking, can continue to say, "I'm the luckiest coach on earth."<<<<

No shit.

and all of this over freaking college football.
Amazing.

Wow.
I followed that link "springdale-progressive" posted. Goes to a Yellow Pages ad, and one comment blasts the owner of the business (the e-mail writer?) and recommends boycotting her bidniss - right there on the ad itself.
I don't know about that. Sounds like a terribly REpugnikun thing to do.

This is just the DemGaz taking up for their boy Wally by smearing Nutt et al. They'll Smear Nutt by associating him with some wacko fan.

Gary Brashears was a head case from the get go. He left the UA and has never been heard from since, despite all the bit his dad was spouting about the big name schools that wanted him.

Wally's "No one in the media ..." column last week was rather reminiscent of the time in 1984 he accused Eddie Sutton of swiping some basketballs and game tapes from Barnhill Arena right before heading to Kentucky. Wally wrote a couple of days later to say he was wrong and offered a litany of excuses/explanations, two of which were:

1)He'd had a root canal just prior to penning that column and his head was still full of novacaine.
2)He failed to check his facts/source.

Wally compounded that sometime later when he said a cross had been burned in Nolan's front yard. Nolan called back to say it was false, that he didn't have a front yard, that he was living in a condo, and there wasn't a cross burned in any case.

Nutt the other day on the radio should have said there wasn't one "chinchilla's" worth of evidence to Wally's claims and that all this talk was coming from drunks sitting "vicariously" on their barstools.

I am pulling my hair out right now.

And for anyone who just says "it's only football" better clear out man.

Since I could walk I have gone to games...football, basketball (I was fortunate enough to be enrolled when Nolan took us home), baseball, track...you name it.

My grandfather played ball up there...he must be spinning in his grave right now.

Despite opinion of Wally Hall, in this situation the buck stops with Nutt. Clearly there was trash talk at the Nutt dinner table regularly for Diana (or Diane or whatever her damn name is) to forward that email to friends thinking it was "funny." It is also painfully obvious that Nutt hasn't been honest with the team or the fans.

I like to be a fan because for a brief minute you can take your mind off of BushCo...or that pressing assignment at work...or global warming...or your bills...or your Dad's health...whatever...

Attention to anyone reading this from The Hill: My check is sitting on my desk. I suggest you remedy this immediately. I am not the only donor here...

And did anyone catch Mike Nail last night during that brilliant display of the motion offense? He was calling the game and went silent..."Rick, I honestly don't know what they're running."

Atta Boy Stan. Brilliant coaching!

gjdodger, you are right. great minds. ;)

As far as gary brashears goes, I know for a fact that he had 32 scholarship offers from division I schools. His high school coach at the time told me. we were good friends. he said the biggest thrill of his career so far was when Bo Schembeckler called here about Gary and he got to talk to him, so I really do believe that is true. I am sorry for gary that things didnt turn out well.

I think the reason he didnt do well is in the post by ARKDEMOCRAT and its not because he was a head case. I think its a three-letter word that starts and ends with "d" but of course i wouldnt say any more. that would be impolite and indiscreet.

Well, once again, doigotta, the issue is the sender and the recipient. If these were two people of roughly equal status, you're right, they could settle it between themselves. The recipient was an 18-year-old college student; the sender was an older person with ties to the student's coach. That is bullying, and it's grotesque.

rosso

I agree with you when it comes to the "it's only football" crap.

We all need and want something less serious than the raping and pillaging that our country is going thru to think about And it is a simple fact that there are so many people who are directly involved in the UofA program that Nutt and Broyles take for granted daily. They are ruining young lives.

And the defense by so many is "that's the way it is" when you are in sports.

That is so much baloney. So let's see... if that really is the way it is:

"lying is okay.....wait.....expected of the coaches and recruiters"

"parents and student athletes should just shut the F up and take whatever Broyles and Nutt decide to do as the gospel"

"once you sign....you are indebted to the program and the fans to hide all the dirty laundry"

"if you speak-out or leave you ain't worth dooky"

I have had my own issues with Wally Hall over the years. But not this time. I have always taken issue with the way the paper coronated the program. But is was kind of understandable....

Due to advertising dollars the paper seemingly conspired with the UofA in a way, limiting coverage of competing sports so the U could maintain it's BIG time status. this occured despite the slipping quality of the team and it's waning drawing power.

I have always felt that the UofA used the state's lowly status in so many other areas to it's own advantage. As a young citizen of this state it has always been obvious that the state has a kind of inferiority complex and we could usually depend on the Hawgs to help us feel better.

To those who say, "it's only football" this all sounds ridiculous. But if ya look around you know that people looked to the Hawgs as our one real status symbol....a great team that we could be really proud of.

Proud enough of that we could stoop to wearing a dang Hog Hat and "calling the Hawgs" on National TV and still maintain our dignity.

So we Arkansans pumped money into that single program at record levels. Refused to allow other state colleges a piece of their pie...and

Now what we got?

A program that is the laughing stock of the national sports world.

The loss of some players to plug that hole that will come when McFadden and our super running game is gone.

A great season that was constantly overshadowed by the ego of a couple of men.

And that is sad....

I have no idea where this is headed....but I doubt the two bozos at the top have anything to worry about.

And it ain't the media's fault....gee.

Jethro asks that I post his comment on the affair:

Y'know, that was a nasty e-mail to send to an 18 year-old kid. And Mrs. Houston shoulda known better than to forward it. Not good judgement.

But Mrs. Houston ain't really a public figure, and standing by her man ain't all that bad a thing.

What about the substance of the e-mail? Was the boy phenom swaggering around like God's Gift and bitching out loud about his dorky coach? Was his Mommy spreading tales?

It's been known to happen. Maybe it's Good Riddance to God's Gift and Mommy too.

Just sayin', that's all.

Jethro

It's all well and good......the boy wonder didn't kiss HDN's ass so good riddance eh, Jethro?

The adults shouldn't act like adults....the kids should?

homer....

Unbelievable!!! I think it's time to clean house. Houston Nutt, his staff, Frank Broyles and John White should all be fired. I didn't want to believe any of them could be this dishonest and unprincipled.

Maybe we should move UofA to Springdale! They seem to think it belongs to them.

This sounds like there's going to be a massacre and some serious smiting going on up in NWA. What favorite son will step over the carcass pile to assume leadership of the Hawg Nation? When the smoke clears and all the mirrors are broken, who will come forth in shining armor to slay the dragons in our corner of God's little acre?
You want to bet this news reaches page one soon?

The pigskin heart does take some funny bounces when it gets fumbled and tumbled about.

Gary Jr., was a fine football player, who showed his dedication to the program by graduating in December from high school so he could enroll at UA for the Spring and go through drills.
His biggest problem was Gary Sr., who saw his retirement on that right arm.
While Jr. needed to work on his mechanics, he threw a pretty ball, and I know for a certainity he was a coveted prospect, and it wasn't just Worm (Michael Banning) telling me so.
Like many other small-school in-state kids, Gary didn't make the adjustment to college life or the speed of the college game. That isn't a knock against him, just more a reflection that he wasn't prepared and the system is stacked against players who need more development, not just on the field, but on campus.
How does that relate to Mustain?
Well, Beck and Gary Sr., would make one hell of a two-headed parent monster, that's for sure.
Also, Mustain wasn't prepared for the college game either. Despite all the acclaim he didn't step foot on campus college-ready, his performance in the Army High School All-American game indicated that. He needed to be redshirted, but it was a situation where the Hogs had to have somebody playing QB. Nutt was under intense pressure, he had to win this season, he couldn't take the developmental route. Lose with Mustain on the bench and you'd have riots in the street. So Nutt took the path of least resistance and won 10 games with subpar play at QB.
It was a no-win situation for Nutt all the way around.
That isn't a defense of Nutt, he's made some remarkably poor decisions, I personally think he's done a terrible job of evaluating in-state talent (of the 23 native Arkansans in the NFL, 18 never played a down at UA), but he's also done very well at developing players, particularly at offensive line, running back and defensive back.
Part of the problem is the fanbase. Unrealistic expectations each and every year. Another is most pine for the old days of the SWC and playing Texas every season. Arkansas's fans have never really bought into the SEC and its traditions. No real rivalry game has emerged in the last 15 years, though Tennessee might come closest.
Plus, you have a remarkably strong contingent in the media, many in the cult of Orville, who have been opposed to Nutt from the start. Thinking he should have never been hired in the first place and that Arkansas should have went with Tuberville.
As far as Gus Malzahn goes, what's ignored is this whole mess is that he used those players as much as anyone. Like many other high school coaches with college aspirations, he rode into a D-I coaching gig on the backs of his top prospects.
And does anyone else see the irony in Wally now blaming the media? The last little note in today's column says his conversation with Nutt and his defense of the column was edited out of the internet broadcast.

HDN said on the Buzz that he never told Gus he could not run the spread offense. So why did Gus leave to go to a program that promised him he could run the spread offense?
Read between the lines folks!
I love the Hogs as much as the next person but something is DEFINITELY amiss at Fayetteville. The email from a supposed fan (needless to say a FOHDN) was one of the lowest actions I have ever seen by an adult to a young person. And what penalty does she pay? No more sideline passes and instructions to not write a player anymore! Man, that is SO severe. The b**** thinks that just because she is a FOHDN she is free to rant and rave like her opinion means a shit. Here's an idea. Everybody who truly loves the Razorback program and is in the need of physical therapy should NOT go to her clinic. Hit 'em where it hurts.
As to HDN's wife thinking parts of the email were funny I can only say I pity her ( and him ).
Houston, you have a far greater responsibillity than you seem to know. Your rah-rah doesn't cut it. Be a man and tell your recruits the truth about their potential for playing time. Let them make up their minds if they want to be a Hog and work for a starting job. These are kids after all. Unfortunately they still believe a lot that adults tell them. Don't abuse that trust.