All Hogs

Razorback Fans Need to Stop 'Paralysis by Analysis' in Win

Some still not ready to accept Calipari's team may actually be rapidly improving with wins over Texas, Kentucky
Andy Hodges|
Arkansas Razorbacks coach John Calipari reacts during the second half against the Texas Longhorns at Moody Center in Austin, Texas.
Arkansas Razorbacks coach John Calipari reacts during the second half against the Texas Longhorns at Moody Center in Austin, Texas. | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

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Arkansas Razorbacks

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — After a 78-70 win over the hated Texas Longhorns, some Arkansas Razorback fans still can't just be glad and move on. No, the Lunatic Fringe of the fan base have to question success.

It's the Arkansas way in a lot of respects and nothing really new. For many it has to be the Hogs just simply played out of their mind while the opponent stumbled and bumbled through a game.

In other words, just lucky. If I heard it once around town the day after a second straight upset win nobody was predicting, the questions got so routine I was answering before they started asking.

"Texas played bad" or "Hogs got lucky last night," were the most common. They didn't want to hear that, no, Razorbacks coach John Calipari has gotten his players to simply start playing better.

Luck can occasionally be good for just one game. Two is probably a little more. All the Razorbacks did was validate their 89-79 win over Kentucky on Saturday night by beating Texas. Both games were on the road and Quad 1 wins that may have put the Hogs right back into the March Madness conversation.

Maybe no better example of that is with Johnell Davis. Even I was asking what all the fuss was about when he committed to transfer from Florida Atlantic as one of the top transfers in the annual portal transfer maneuvers.

Our Jacob Davis explained it pretty well in his story late Thursday night. He's not the only one. Now if he could get Jonas Aidoo on track and healthy after an injury a few weeks ago, this team might be clicking on all cylinders at the exactly perfect time of the year.

Granted, Texas' offense wasn't hitting on all cylinders in the first half Wednesday night. I'm' not enough of a basketball expert to tell you if the Longhorns' problems were the result of them forgetting how to play or Arkansas' defense playing the way Calipari wants.

After cutting my teeth in the media watching first Eddie Sutton, then Nolan Richardson working on defense constantly. In those days, the coaches would then wander over to the media watching when we could do those types of things and explain what was going on. It was educational and, by unspoken consent, off the record and for informational purposes only.

Both of them stressed over and over it doesn't take shooting skills or anything but effort to play defense. It was much more colorful listening to them describe it, but you get a PHD in stopping another team's offense just by listening.

Calipari seems to be along those same lines. That's just a guess because we're not allowed to even look at the practice facility when we drive past going down the street named after Nolan. Those practices are held inside on the Eddie Sutton practice court.

Oh, every coach since Nolan left about 23 years ago has talked about defense but none have gotten the Hogs fired up enough to consistently play that way. Calipari is getting close to getting his players into that frame of mind.

Fans, though, should just take the win and move on down the road.

No. 3 Alabama is coming into town for a Saturday night game that will start at 7:30 p.m. The Razorbacks are seemingly pretty much stuck in that late time slot which means Calipari will want to bail on the postgame after 10 minutes asking if it's okay for him to go because it's late.

"They'll probably just beat all that luck we've been having out of us," one guy told me at the store today.

The Crimson Tide may do it, but it will be the rowdy Bud Walton Arena crowd Calipari and his staff have been asking for all season long. It will be all of that and probably a little more. The students may be camped out for tickets already.

But the guess is take luck out of the equation. Besides, luck simply when preparation collides with opportunity. The Razorbacks may have both of those coming together at just the right time of year.

HOGS FEED:

• Calipari's undying belief in star allowed prophetic turnaround

• Projecting Razorbacks' offense can't use 20-year-old history baseline

• Hogs turn 'Horns down with dominant defensive performance

• Razorbacks topple Texas, pick up first SEC winning streak

• Texas type team Razorbacks need to find way to beat tonight

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Andy Hodges
ANDY HODGES

Sports columnist, writer, former radio host and television host who has been expressing an opinion on sports in the media for over four decades. He has been at numerous media stops in Arkansas, Texas and Mississippi.

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