Patience pays off
Razorback Road
Matt Jones
Issue date: 2/4/09 Section: Sports
The best thing that could have happened for Arkansas this season was also the worst - the Razorbacks beat Oklahoma and Texas.
Sure, the wins filled the seats at Bud Walton Arena, gave confidence to a group of young players and gave Hog fans an old, familiar feeling of success. But with success comes pressure, and to this point the Razorbacks haven't been able to answer the bell.
That doesn't explain, however, fan unrest with the program just a month after two of Arkansas' biggest wins this side of the 21st century. After all, the team starts three freshmen on most nights, and its only senior, former football star Marcus Monk, hasn't played in two weeks because of an eligibility question.
Add to that injuries and suspensions, and former coach Nolan Richardson said fans need to chill.
"I've had 40 years of coaching experience, and when I hear people talking I find I don't know anything about the game," Richardson said Tuesday.
"Sometimes when you play a game like the ones against Oklahoma and Texas it can give you a false sense of how good you really are. I've always said anyone can win one game."
The wins over the top 10 programs to finish out the nonconference season raised expectations for a team predicted to finish last in the Southeastern Conference Western division. And Arkansas' youth has been exposed in its inability to follow up in league play, just 1-5 entering tonight's home game with Tennessee.
Razorback coach John Pelphrey has taken much of the heat for the Hogs' slow start in the SEC with criticism ranging from his choice of starters to his decision to not press because of an abundance of inexperience and a lack of depth.
"Patience is a virtue," Richardson said. "John is a young coach. As he develops his feel, he figures out what he does best. If we're impatient, it won't work well."
Richardson cited Tennessee women's coach Pat Summitt and former UCLA coach John Wooden as examples of how even great coaches can struggle early in their careers.
Sure, the wins filled the seats at Bud Walton Arena, gave confidence to a group of young players and gave Hog fans an old, familiar feeling of success. But with success comes pressure, and to this point the Razorbacks haven't been able to answer the bell.
That doesn't explain, however, fan unrest with the program just a month after two of Arkansas' biggest wins this side of the 21st century. After all, the team starts three freshmen on most nights, and its only senior, former football star Marcus Monk, hasn't played in two weeks because of an eligibility question.
Add to that injuries and suspensions, and former coach Nolan Richardson said fans need to chill.
"I've had 40 years of coaching experience, and when I hear people talking I find I don't know anything about the game," Richardson said Tuesday.
"Sometimes when you play a game like the ones against Oklahoma and Texas it can give you a false sense of how good you really are. I've always said anyone can win one game."
The wins over the top 10 programs to finish out the nonconference season raised expectations for a team predicted to finish last in the Southeastern Conference Western division. And Arkansas' youth has been exposed in its inability to follow up in league play, just 1-5 entering tonight's home game with Tennessee.
Razorback coach John Pelphrey has taken much of the heat for the Hogs' slow start in the SEC with criticism ranging from his choice of starters to his decision to not press because of an abundance of inexperience and a lack of depth.
"Patience is a virtue," Richardson said. "John is a young coach. As he develops his feel, he figures out what he does best. If we're impatient, it won't work well."
Richardson cited Tennessee women's coach Pat Summitt and former UCLA coach John Wooden as examples of how even great coaches can struggle early in their careers.
Be the first to comment on this story