Last night Arkansas started Freshman, Freshman, Freshman, Transfer, Transfer. Thats a starting 5 that never played a game together before this year and Coach Muss has them play in the Elite Eight. That is just amazing!!!
Baylor on the other hands was Senior, Senior, Senior, Junior, Junior. All 5 playing together for 2-3 years. It no wonder they looked like the better team.
Still I am very proud of what the Hogs accomplished this year and am still in awe of what Coach Muss seems able to do. I can only wonder what we might accomplish with just a few more pieces and with this experience under our belt, because experience does matter in my opine.
So Iāll end with a movie quote from a poker movie call Rounders. Matt Damon had just beat John Malkovich toward the end of the movie and people were upset in the room. John said āPAY HIM. PAY THAT MAN HIS MONEY. HE BEAT MEā¦ STRAIGHT UPā
Well as far as Coach Muss goesā¦ Pay him. Pay that man his money. Heās a winnerā¦ straight up
Fans complain about coaching salaries being high. But this is how they get high. Panic buying after a year of success. Not against paying Muss, but we should not complain about high salaries for coaches. Because this is how it happens. Some coaches continue success at that level and some donāt.
Certainly coaching salaries are out of control, but this is a far cry from āpanic buying after a year of successā. This is paying market value for a proven coach that now has 6 consecutive 20 win seasons and is now one of the hotter names on the coaching market.
I agree Muss is great and should be paid what he is worth, but PJ makes a good point. We tend to drive the salaries up with excitement and satisfaction for a job well done and then complain about high salaries, and not just in sports.
Iām not disagreeing about the out of control salaries and how they get that way. But Arkansas isnāt going to be the school that changes the system. We can either pay Muss at his perceived current market value, or somebody else will be glad to do it. Itās a broken system for sure, much like all of college athletics. But right now our only option is to pay if we want to play.
There is a tremendous difference in winning a minor bowl against a horrible Texas team and our basketball team winning 45 games in two COVID influenced seasons. Oh, Muss took his newcomer Hogs to the Elite Eight.
Comparing Bret & Muss makes no sense. The best Bret ever did was 2015 when he was 8-5. Very mediocre. Long gives him nice raise and extends his contact for a mediocre performance.
Muss took a team with 3 freshman to the elite 8. You have to pay the man. With big payouts if he leaves.
Ah man, Muss, after 6 years as a college head coach, has a win-loss record of .745. That would make him 6th in the country among current active head coaches in D1 conferences. During those 6 years, he went to 4 of 5 possible NCAA Tourneys (no tourney in 2000). Heās been to the Sweet Sixteen and now the Elite Eight.
This is hardly āpanic buying after 1 year of successā. Heās earned every dollar of what his current market value is.
I think his success this year demands a substantial raise. But the kind of numbers posters are talking about clearly suggests a panic that he might leave, doesnāt it?
I agree with evaluating Muss based on what he has done over the last 6 years. But at the same time, I have heard arguments on this board that what you did at the previous stop doesnāt count. It is about what you have done at Arkansas.
I havenāt seen that, but if some did make that argument, Iām sorry, but that is just stupid. Regardless of where you are coaching, if you took that team to the NCAA tournament 3 consecutive years including a trip to the Sweet Sixteen, thatās a major achievement.
There is no comparison between bert and Muss. My point was how some fans react on emotion to one game or one season as driving coaching contracts.
And I agree that Muss should be given a raise, but donāt give him a ridiculous contract like JL have Bert with the huge buyout.
