The Razorback basketball program needs a shot in the arm. In fact, I would argue that it is time to bring back a blast from the past. Arkansas could stand to remember their greatness with the roundball and the hardware they once brought home because of it.
Honoring Nolan Richardson
Nolan Richardson needs to receive his due back in Fayetteville. The meet and greet sessions with the fans and the recognition before games are a nice start, but they don’t go far enough. Considering the accomplishments of Nolan Richardson and what he brought to the University of Arkansas, he deserves real recognition with lasting honor.
I’m thinking “Nolan Richardson Court at Bud Walton Arena” has a real nice ring to it. A bronze statue in the walkway of the front entrance of BWA would be a great testament to the success of the Razorbacks under Richardson.
How good were the Hogs under Nolan Richardson? Amazingly good.
The Golden Era for the Razorbacks was the late eighties through the mid-nineties. The Nolan Richardson Era ushered in the “40 Minutes of Hell” style of basketball that forced opponents to run up and down the floor whether they wanted to or not. The high-octane offense was combined with high-pressure, full-court press defense that caused massive amounts of turnovers for opponents and loads of fast break points for the Hogs.
Richardson and the Hogs made 15 consecutive postseason trips between 1987 and 2001, including 13 NCAA tournament appearances. The Hogs went to three final fours between 1990 and 1995. The Hogs won the national championship in 1994 and were the runners-up a year later.
The Decline Since 2002
But hard times have come upon the Arkansas program since the last great era of Razorback basketball. When Nolan Richardson and the University of Arkansas parted ways in a very ugly and public manner in 2002, the hoop Hogs have limped along trying to climb back to the top of the basketball mountain.
The Razorbacks did not hire Richardson’s longtime top assistant, Mike Anderson. They cut the ties that bound Richardson and the university entirely by hiring an upstart, first year coach from Kent State who had led the Golden Flashes to the Elite 8 and a 30 win season. After five seasons and no NCAA tournament wins later with Stan Heath, the Hogs were looking for another replacement.
The Razorbacks put their trust in another young coach. This time it was John Pelphrey who came from the University of South Alabama. The Pelphrey Era started with some promise. The Hogs won 23 games in his debut season, and for the first time in ten years, the Hogs won an NCAA tournament game. Unfortunately, it has been all downhill from there.
Since that first season, the Hog faithful have been put through a different version of “40 Minutes of Hell.” Razorback fans have had to endure watching games where the Hogs can’t rebound against smaller, less athletic teams, look totally lost on the offensive end of the floor, get lazy, and quit on defense. Despite putting together talented teams, the Razorbacks have lost their swagger and their standing in the college basketball community. Even in a lackluster SEC West, the Hogs have struggled to make headway. Back to back embarrassing losses at home last week seemed to be the breaking point for much of the fan base.
The rest had broken a long time ago.
John Pelphrey, the current head basketball coach at Arkansas, worked hard. He put forth a good effort and embraced the rich tradition of Arkansas basketball and the high expectations that came with it. The simple truth, however, is that he simply isn’t ready to take the reins of a basketball program with the prestige that accompanies the Razorbacks. His tenure in Fayetteville has seemingly been plagued with more player suspensions than victories.
The Hogs are likely headed to the NIT if they make the postseason at all this year, and one NCAA tournament victory, let alone just one NCAA tournament appearance, in four years is simply not acceptable for a program as steeped in tradition as the Arkansas Razorbacks.
It is not a stretch to consider the Razorbacks one of the all-time top 15 basketball programs in the NCAA. They rank in the top 15 in NCAA tournament appearances, tournament wins, Sweet Sixteens and Final Fours. Bud Walton Arena houses banners for 24 regular season conference championships and seven conference tournament championships. Of course, there is the crown jewel of banners, the one representing the 1994 National Championship. The Hogs nearly repeated as national champs, but were upended by UCLA in the 1995 championship game.
Arkansas threatens their greatness status if they do not make a significant move this offseason. As bad as the totals have become in the win column, the attendance numbers are worse. Arkansas basketball was once a big moneymaker for the University of Arkansas, but poor attendance has threatened to make it a significant financial drain on the athletic department.
The Case for Mike Anderson
Once more, a blast from the past may be in order. Consider what Mike Anderson has done since Nolan Richardson and his staff were ousted in 2002. In four seasons at UAB, Mike Anderson led the Blazers to the postseason all four years, including three NCAA tournament appearances. In 2004, the Blazers made it to the Sweet 16- their first appearance in nearly 25 years. It also marked their first NCAA tournament win in nearly two decades.
Anderson’s success as a head coach continued at Missouri. Anderson has transformed the Missouri Tigers into a legitimate national threat. Anderson is in his fifth season as the Tigers’ head coach. In 2008-09, Anderson led Missouri to their first ever 30 win season and to the Elite 8. Last year under Anderson’s leadership, the Tigers won 23 games including another NCAA tournament game. To this point this year, Anderson and the Tigers are already closing in on 20 wins. They sit at 18-5 and are well on their way to receiving another bid into the NCAA tournament.
Mike Anderson is the perfect fit for the Razorback program.
In fact, Hog fans have been itching for the high-paced style that lit up scoreboards when Nolan Richardson and Mike Anderson were running the basketball program in Fayetteville. If Mike Anderson were hired to replace John Pelphrey, attendance numbers would skyrocket. The hire would essentially pay for itself. In addition, it is hard to imagine that the health of the program as it could be measured by wins and losses would not improve.
It is easily a win-win situation for the University of Arkansas. The bigger question is if Mike Anderson would leave Missouri to coach the Razorbacks.
According to a report by Joe Schad of ESPN last April, the Razorback head coaching job is the one position that Mike Anderson would give serious consideration to. Assuming that is true, the window of opportunity is likely closing on bringing Mike Anderson home to Fayetteville. He is already building Missouri into an outstanding program. In one year, two years, or three years from now, that open door may be closed- that is if it hasn’t been slammed shut already.
The Razorbacks would have a readymade team for instant success next season with Mike Anderson as the head coach. In addition to talented veterans such as Marshawn Powell and Rotnei Clarke, the incoming class of freshmen is as good as Arkansas has seen in its history. Next year’s Arkansas team should be the most talented Razorback team since the mid-90’s championship squad.
With the SEC West lacking quality teams, Mike Anderson and this very athletic Razorback team would likely take the SEC by storm. A return to prominence would be much more likely than the mediocrity that has plagued the program since the turn of the century.
In short, those that pull the strings at the University of Arkansas should ask themselves two simple questions. First, do they believe that John Pelphrey will ever have the Razorbacks in position to win a national championship? From what Arkansas has seen so far, that seems unlikely.
The second question they should ask is if they believe Mike Anderson could have Arkansas in position to win a national championship. My answer to that is if Mike Anderson can lead UAB to the Sweet 16 and Missouri to the Elite 8, then he can win a national championship at Arkansas.
It is time to see if Athletic Director Jeff Long and the Arkansas Board of Trustees are as good at their job as Mike Anderson is at his. If they are, they’ll do everything they can to bring Mike Anderson home.
The best chance for a bright Razorback future in basketball is to take a page from their past legacy. They say those who forget history are doomed to repeat it.
Sometimes, repeating history isn’t so bad.
