APAs was noted Friday, Arkansas coach John L. Smith has had about as bad a week as any one person could imagine. Smith has almost no money to his name as he files Chapter 7 bankruptcy and had to bury his brother, who died last Monday.
Unfortunately, the football world is not forgiving or understanding to such hardships.
As a result, Arkansas’ incredible slide which began with a Week 2 loss to Louisiana-Monroe keeps coming and it doesn’t look like there’s much relief down the stretch. Rutgers became the third straight team to beat the Razorbacks, winning 35-26. Quarterback Tyler Wilson was back from his concussion, but that didn’t change the fact that Arkansas’ defense continues to be absolutely horrid. The Scarlet Knights were able to gain over 500 yards and Rutgers QB Gary Nova threw five touchdowns.
Consider the following: Arkansas has to go on the road to Texas A&M and Auburn next — the Tigers just took No. 2 LSU to the wire tonight – before getting a winnable stretch of home games against Kentucky, Ole Miss and Tulsa. But to end the season, Arkansas has South Carolina, Mississippi State and LSU.
And firing Smith now won’t help a thing.
The question will be how demoralized the Hogs are at that point. There may not be enough “United We Stand” videos to go around.
As a Rutgers alumnus, I am very excited at the growing possibility of going to a BCS game – which would be the first for the school.
As a hog fan, congratulations to Rutgers, they played a great game and deserved to win,,,,
Congratulations to Rutgers for a well-deserved win, and I’m taking nothing away from what their program has accomplished. But I still question the headline “Thanks to Rutgers, Arkansas drops its third in a row.” Arkansas finished in the top six last season. Although many factors are involved, I’d say the total meltdown is primarily thanks to Bobby Petrino.
John L smith has turned into Arkansas worst nightmare!!!
@ Deb
I would actually lay the blame at the feet of testosterone and Harley-Davidson.
But that’s just me.
As an RU season ticket holder that was one of the better wins in the programs history. I agree with Deb. Petrino’s actions torpedoed Arkansas season. It’s a shame. But I’ll take it.
@clemsonstillsucks …
Good point
LSU got five number one votes last week. Gee, I wonder how many they’ll get this week
A win is a win..
@sljacksonjr …
So it is, and I have nothing against LSU. That’s why I was so gracious when my team lost to LSU last November. But alas, I made the mistake of defending Alabama’s right to play in the title game. Thus, whenever I post, a large network of LSU bullies has spent a year giving thumbs down to even my throwaway comments like “Good Point.” Just thought I’d give them something worthy of their efforts. The good sports among the LSU faithful here know I respect their team.
The Bible thumping Arkansas alumni effectually killed Arkansas football for years to come Just because they could not tolerate Coach Bobby having a little extracurricular fun
once Arkansas blew that 10-0 lead, I knew they were the team that was going to cost me my 10-team ML parlay.
And of course I hit 9 of 10 in the parlay.
stonedwhitetrash says:Sep 23, 2012 12:42 AM
The Bible thumping Arkansas alumni effectually killed Arkansas football for years to come Just because they could not tolerate Coach Bobby having a little extracurricular fun
———–
Uh, no. If it was just an affair Petrino would have kept his job. The cover up/lies, the fact he hired his nookie on the side for a position she was not qualified for, etc are what cost him his job. Any football coach in the country would be fired under those circumstances.
I guess Stonedwhitetrash thinks the Bible thumpers at Penn State stopped Sandusky from “having a little fun”. Petrino was, is and will always be a scumbag. No doubt next year, he will again be be trolling the sidelines for a school that will do anything for a win.
I hate this for the Arkansas players. They desperately needed a strong leader to keep them focused after the Petrino mess and Smith is not that guy. The players themselves don’t have the character to fight through this adversity because Petrino never cared about developing that in his young players.
Very unfortunate all the way around. There’s no question that AR has talent.
Just a thought………….Maybe Arkansas was not that good from the beginning nor a top ten team. I know everyone wants to question John L Smith but Arkansas did graduate alot of really good players with 3 wide receivers and a couple of defensive players getting drafted into the NFL. A coach is only as good as his talent. It is just my opinion and a different outlook on this situation. There is a top ten team every year who underachieves, last year it was Florida State and this year it is Arkansas.
@WingT …
Good post, and I feel the same way. These youngsters have such a short time to achieve their college football goals. For many of them, it’s the last organized ball they’ll ever play. And for the gifted few, it’s their one chance to sell themselves to NFL scouts. When Petrino put his personal jollies above the good of his team, he did so much more than monkey with the Athletic Department finances and screw the program out of a title run. He also shortchanged the kids out of the opportunity of a lifetime. Between this and how he handled the Falcons, I hope his days as a HC are over.
@ Deb
Was Bobby Petrino really that great of a coach, to explain why the team is in such a collapse? I mean they won the Cotton Bowl last year against another really good K-State team. On pure talent alone shouldn’t they be winning some games, the hogs have better players than like 90% of the teams in D-1? How do you go from 3rd best in the nation to can’t steal a win from a sleeping baby?
@dmvtransplant …
Petrino is a good college coach. But I think it’s more about continuity–especially with college kids. Look at what’s happening with the Saints in New Orleans. They were 13-3 last season and have–in my opinion–one of the top four quarterbacks in the game, a QB that is a brilliant field general. Yet they’re 0-3 without their head coach. Those are pros who’ve worked together as a unit for years but things just aren’t gelling for them without Payton even though nothing in their system has changed. These are college kids who now have a new HC and had to change direction right before the season started. It messes with their heads.
Top to bottom, the SEC is just so, so much better than everyone else. They just don’t lose to anyone, especially not to FCS or previously winless schools….