The ADG sports editor’s column closed today by saying HY took a brave step into the future by allowing games against ASU. Bravery means doing something despite fear of harm or standing by righteous principle when popular will opposes you.
I don’t think this was a decision of unpopular principle. (What principle is there anyway? It’s still a football schedule.) However, it was definitely moving forward when there is substantial risk of harm. So, yeah, the UA is taking a big risk. Is it “brave”? It’s only brave when you have to do it for a greater good. Here I suppose the “greater good” is to help ASU, the only danger is to the UA.
I would not call it brave. I would call it ‘ill-advised’. What benefit is there to the University of Arkansas? Not much, maybe a little extra money in gate receipts when we play ASU. But, the downside is huge. Right now, ASU is a regional school with very little fan support and not a lot of money, but if you play them every year, it could divide the fan support and the money being sent to the U of A.
John Barnhill and Frank Broyles never believed it to be smart to play ASU. Why has Hunter Yurachek decided they were wrong? Things change, but what has changed about the reasons not to play ASU?
I’m 100% for the UofA competing with ASU,UCA, UALR and UAPB in all sports.
For those of you so worried that this could be detrimental to the UofA athletic program, I think you are being paranoid for little to no reason.
None of those other instate programs are a true threat to the #1 flagship program that is the “Arkansas Razorbacks”.
Truthfully, it doesn’t really matter. I’ve been against playing ASU, just because both of their fans want it so much. There’s no way their program can grow much more than it is, they’re a Sunbelt team, always will be. They don’t have the donors to put them in a bigger conference, and budget cuts could be drastically harmful for them. If we play in football some day, fine, play the game in Fayetteville, if not, fine.
If we must play them, I say put them in some sort of rotation. Treat ASU, UCA, & UAPB all the same. Don’t elevate ASU to permanent rival status. I strongly oppose doing it at all, but if HY is determined to do it, let it be only on those terms & always in RRS.
I don’t see why it matters if no school considers us a rival. The way to do that is to win.
As far as in-state rivalries go, I think they’re way overrated. The bad blood between the fans is not healthy. Oh, I’m sure there are some fans who don’t let it come between friendships, but the animosity one sees in Miss & Ala between those fans can be downright frightening. I know of friendships that were destroyed when we played ASU in that NIT game back in 1987. I also know of several cars that were vandalized around Barnhill that night.
I admit I hate ASU & its fans. I don’t want them to have the pleasure of ever getting treated as anything close to one of our peers.
We’ve all got a right to be wrong about something. I’m just never sure what it is I’m wrong about. If I knew, I’d change my mind & be right about it, but then I’m sure I’d find something else to be wrong about.
Nothing to gain playing the red clay wolves, absolutely
nothing. Winning such a game means zip, losing such a game would be very negative. No good logic in this equation.
Neastarkie is 100% correct on everything he’s posted on this subject. I live up here close to their campus. They have one objective and that’s to do damage to the UA!
In state rivalries are “not healthy” is a new one on me. I live in South Carolina. That opinion would be in the vast minority. In fact I’ve been here over a decade, have been to games at both Clemson and South Carolina and can assure not a single person I’ve encountered has expressed anything remotely like that. @hogmaestro can probably back me up
From the money I get selling my Clemson tickets to the SC game, I’d say this state can’t get enough of the game
The truth is they are scared that the Hogs track record of struggling against and even losing to “inferior” opponents will manifest itself against in-state schools.
I can’t speak to So. Carolina. But I know how it is in Miss & Alabama. I have family in both & have spent a lot of time in both. The tree poisoning at Auburn, the shooting in Birmingham tend to back up my view. Then, of course, I also remember a whole lot of the reactions to the basketball game when we played ASU in 1987. But perhaps your experience is more authoritative.
Our track record of losing to inferior opponents is very recent. We lost to Citadel in 1992 but didn’t lose a comparable game that I can remember until we lost to ULM under very strange circumstance is 2012. Of course, we’ve lost to almost everyone the past two seasons. I hope those are aberrations. If our fate is to be nothing more than a pretty good Sunbelt school, then let’s do it. Join the conference.
As for me, I remember when the Hogs were one of the top programs in the country. Ranked in the top 10 almost every year. I’d like to regain that. It might be a pipe dream, but we won’t get there by hoping to beat the likes of ASU and making that our “big game.”
If we beat ASU by a point, they’re just as good as we are: we lose
If we beat ASU by 21 points, we should have. We’re SEC, they’re Sunbelt: we lose
If we beat ASU by 50+, we shouldn’t have done that to little brother: we lose.
If by chance ASU catches us like we’ve been the past 2 years & they actually win: we not only lose, we’re not even the top program in the state.
Right now a lot of ASU alums (including my own siblings) support the hogs first & almost exclusively. Both told me that almost changed when we played in 1987–both found themselves cheering for ASU. Nah, this is all nothing but a really good idea for the UA. SMH
Last year multiple times on game day when ASU was playing I drove by their stadium. Half full at best even when winning. Basketball attendance is terrible. Tell me how you can compare that to Clemson and South Carolina?
