Pelphrey should not be fired....Here's why

I am sure that somewhere in the back of Arkansas Razorback head basketball coach John Pelphrey's mind he is probably saying, "Can't we all just get along?" The answer to that question is a resounding NO! I would be stating the obvious if I said the Arkansas Razorback basketball program is not where it used to be, that being said John Pelphrey is not at fault for that. Ladies and gentlemen Dana Altman did not leave after one day of being the head coach for no reason. And he didn't leave because Creighton is a better job than Arkansas. This program has been down for a long time, well before Pelphrey and even to a certain extent Stan Heath.

When Altman walked on to the U of A campus to a program that was in shambles. Yeah they were coming off of an NCAA tournament appearence but that was about all that was going good for the Razorback program. Altman leaves and enter John Pelphrey. Pelphrey has the pedigree (Player at Kentucky under Eddie Sutton and Rick Pitino, as well as assisted Billy Donovan). He had the intensity that Heath lacked. He also realized from day one what it meant to be an Arkansas Razorback. John Pelphrey took a program which had not won an NCAA tournament game in 10 years and won. He beat Indiana, who had been ranked in the top 10 at one point in the year, and then eventually lost to a loaded North Carolina team. Not bad for a first year coach. What happened to Pelphrey after that is probably why Dana Altman took the first horse back to Omaha, NE.

Pelphrey lost six seniors off his first team and most of them being contributors. What many forget is the best player off of the previous two teams, Patrick Beverly, was kicked off the team. So Pelphrey loses almost every bit of his scoring and rebounding and whatever else you can possibly lose from one team. He brings in a highly touted recruiting class and all seemed to be well. Not so fast...

One of the best players from that class failed to make it, Daniel Payne who happened to be a very highly sought after junior college small forward. He was replaced by a troubled Montrell McDonald, who had already been kicked off the George Washington Colonials. After losing to Missouri State in their brand new home opener the baby Hogs started to show improvement. They began to improve some more and before you know it number four Oklahoma with beast big man Blake Griffin. Nobody expects Arkansas to win. Mike Washington plays his best game as a Razorback and some how the Hogs pull off the improbable with a victory over the Sooners. By this time McDonald is already off the team.

This was thought to be an abberation but the Texas Longhorns came a calling and there was no way the Hogs could repeat. Even former Razorback and current ESPN announcer Jimmy Dykes said there was a slim chance Arkansas could pull it out. The matchup was just too much. The game went back and forth and somehow the Razorbacks pulled it off. Arkansas was 12-1 and expectations began to increase. Then SEC play began and suspensions happened and Marcus Monk, who added much needed leadership was gone and the Hogs began to tumble. The bottomless pit might be something that comes to mind even. Obviously, this was not a fun time for the Hogs or their fans. The heat began to increase on Pelphrey. After wins over Oklahoma and Texas many forgot that Arkansas was picked to finish as cellar dwellers in the West before the season started.

This season started no better. After losses to Morgan State, East Tennessee St., and South Alabama many thought the roof would cave in on Arkansas and John Pelphrey. Even the most loyal of Pelphrey fans were asking themselves if the tall redhead was the right man for the job.

After the three game disaster you began to see a team that had some fight in them and they won some games that you wouldn't think a whole lot about. But when you had been through what the Hogs had been through and with the best playmaker they had on the bench for an unspecified suspension, these wins were good wins. Courtney Fortson came back for the Texas game and this team looked like a different team in losses to a great Texas team and a good Mississippi State team on the road.

That brings us to last Saturday where the Hogs beat an Alabama team who had beaten Baylor and almost should have beaten Purdue. Does this mean that the Razorbacks are fixed? No. Can you see improvement in this team? Yes. There are a few reasons John Pelphrey should get atleast one more year with one caveat: The bottom does not fall out of the season like it did last year.

1. He has not been dealt a fair hand since he has been at Arkansas (six seniors, suspensions, Patrick Beverly, Dana Altman, and many things that most people have no clue about including myself).

2. His players still play hard for him. (See Alabama game)

3. He has a pretty good recruiting class coming in (Although, there needs to be a big man)

4. For this program to succeed it can't be changing coaches every three to five years

5. He has proven he can win with some talent on the floor.

6. Many proven coaches have said Arkansas has a winner. (Including Nolan Richardson)

7. To build a program right (Not the Calipari way) it takes more that three years to do it.

8. He has stood tall in the face of adversity unlike Altman

I could go on and on but the bottom line is that Pelphrey deserves another year. What is an acceptable record for this season for Arkansas? I could not tell you. As much as most people don't want to hear it after a 2-14 conference record winning four is doubling the win total from last season. Unless your name is John Calipari and you are Kentucky it takes a little while to resurrect a program and that is exactly what has had to happen at Arkansas, but given the time I feel that John Pelphrey will get the job done.