Remember last week's edition of I tell ya' Herbie about teams firing coaches not only earlier in the season than normal, but firing coaches earlier in their tenure than usual as well!
Last week, it was Florida State dumping Willie Taggart after a year and a half and eating a large contract and this week?
Arkansas and Chad Morris- C'mon down!
The Razorbacks cut ties with Morris with less than two years finished on his contract and with this one I can see both sides of the coin.
Arkansas is seeing some absolutely humiliating losses under Morris such as last years' loss at home to North Texas and this year has been worse with home losses to San Jose State and Western Kentucky with a narrow escape in their home opener against 1-AA Portland State 20-13.
Morris compiled a record of 4-18 and Arkansas was winless in the SEC during his tenure.
Add to those embarrassments, Western Kentucky's 45-19 win in Fayetteville was led by former Hog passer Ty Storey, whom Morris allowed to leave as a graduate transfer and things really look bleak.
And you can make a real case that allowing Morris to stay and if things continue along the same course, the hole gets even deeper to dig out.
However, I can see a case for giving Morris more time as well.
Morris inherited a team that had won only won four games before he arrived, Morris' son is a four-star recruit that had committed to Arkansas for the 2020 season (Fat chance in keeping that commitment now), Morris' teams at SMU didn't begin to turn the corner until his third season and the success that the one-loss and ranked Mustangs are having now with players that Chad Morris recruited there and Morris installed a completely new system from the run-oriented style of former coach Bret Bielema, so you can make an argument that Morris didn't have enough time to have the players to run what he needed to fit his style of play.
Arkansas has quickly become a difficult job with lack of success, playing in arguably the toughest division in college football, with high fan expectations and now an athletic department that isn't showing a lot of patience for a revamp of the program.
It's going to be very difficult for them to attract a big name when you look at the big picture unless the said name has an attraction to the state or the school.
The only names that I can think that would apply and would be considered a hot candidate might be Memphis head coach Mike Norvell, who played at Central Arkansas or Auburn coach Gus Malzahn, who might return to his Arkansas roots if enough money is thrown his way.
I'm not sure that Arkansas will spend what it takes to pay Malzahn (considering they are still on the hook for so much money on Chad Morris) and Norvell might decide that openings at Florida State , potential openings such as Michigan State, etc or even staying pat in a year that may have very few Power Five jobs available.
So what do you do if you are Arkansas?
They tried doing something different with Bret Bielema bringing a run-based power style and tried Morris with a spread offense that was heavy on throwing the football, but at the same time doing the things that the other SEC teams do with less talent doesn't seem to be a great idea either.
I'd hate to see Arkansas with all of their tradition turn into Ole Miss, a faded has-been that celebrates a 9-3 season every dozen years, but it appears that they already are there.
I'm almost ready to say that Arkansas might have been doomed from the day they joined the SEC from the old Southwest Conference and size-wise and considering the recruiting area that the Hogs need to recruit well, they might have (money income aside) been much better suited to stick around the SWC and join the Big 12 when the SWC dissolved.
My answer?
I don't have any.
You got yourself into this mess, get yourself out of it.
I do have one piece of advice though- Play Arkansas State!
It can't make it worse, can it?
Um, maybe it can.
No comments:
Post a Comment