Arkansas Baseball at Mid season

I came out and said in this blog before the baseball season started that Arkansas would win the national championship.  This Hog team has done absolutely nothing to put a damper on those expectations.  Right now sitting at 28-6 (9-3 in the SEC) the Hogs have won every SEC series but one at LSU.  Arkansas handled LSU on Friday and blew a six run lead in the seventh inning to lose on Saturday.  They could not muster up any momentum after they lost on Saturday only to lose on Sunday.  Since then Arkansas has won 15 of 16 with the only loss coming to a powerful Kentucky team. 

This team is better than the team that went to Omaha last season.  Why?  They are better in every phase of the game.  Two things that stick out on this team is: they are not striking out as much which makes their batting averages better.  Number two they are pitching better than last season. 

 Many Razorback fans down through the years have grumbled about Arkansas batting averages not being on par with other SEC teams.  There was some validity to that.  This season almost every starter is hitting over .300 with Zach Cox and Travis Sample hitting over .400, although Sample does not have enough at bats to qualify as a leader in the SEC.  The power numbers are better Arkansas currently ranks third in the SEC in batting average, slugging percentage, on base percentage, and homeruns (currently one behind Kentucky).  They rank second in hits runs scored and runs batted in.  Those are great numbers.  Brett Eibner, Andy Wilkins, and Zach Cox make up what some call the most powerful trio in college baseball.  Not to mention Colin Kuhn has been playing off the charts.  Monk Kreder was brought in to hit homeruns and he has not done that but he has hit over .300 and is on a 16 game hitting streak.  With the addition of Sample to this lineup it becomes one of the best in college baseball. 

Arkansas' pitching has been better than many thought it would be this season.  Arkansas ranks third in the SEC in earned run average, number two in opponents batting average, and the number one spot in the most important category which is wins.  Arkansas' starting pitchers are getting the job done especially Drew Smyly.  Smyly slated to be Arkansas' third starter before the season has locked down the number one spot with his 1.99 earned run average which ranks fifth in the SEC.  Brett Eibner is coming off of his best outing of the year versus Mississippi State.  Randall Fant came in and took the Bulldogs down only allowing one earned run, leading Arkansas to a 13 to three victory.  He then came home to get in trouble and will have to sit out this weekends series versus Georgia.  The move of Mike Bolsinger, Arkansas' number one starter to start the year, back to the bullpen may prove to be Arkansas' biggest move.  Bolsinger was the Hogs bullpen ace last season.  He pitched pretty well as a starter, but he seems to be more comfortable coming out of the pen.  D.J. Baxendale has been a shut down closer all year long.  Even though, hitters seem to be catching up to him he seems to have the stuff and the toughness to be a great closer in the SEC.  The bull pen has had early struggles, but it seems they are all coming together right now to be a very formidable pitching staff.  

Right now Arkansas is in position to host a regional and super regional at Baum Stadium, ranking in the top five in most polls and being rated number two in the ratings percentage index (RPI).  Although, baseball is a funny game.  Anything can happen, but if the Hogs continue to play as they have been a trip to Omaha is in the future.  The question is can they go there to win it?

After the Madness

It's all downhill from here.

Nah, it's gonna be ok with a little softball to be played and a little Razorback baseball to help us keep our sanity. Every year the Blitz crew spends several months after the NCAA tournament waiting on Hog football to get going.

Yes, there are MLB and NBA games(including the playoffs), but March Madness marks the end of the excitement for us most of the time. It's a sad day watching the title game, especially when Duke wins it, because it means we are down to baseball and the latest football gossip.

Another trip to Omaha for the Hogs is a real possibility, but my opinion of baseball has been well documented (I'm not a big fan). So I will suffer through this with the hope and expectation that the football season will be one for the ages.

I can't wait to get a review together and talk about the outlook for the season and the stars on both sides of the ball up on the Hill. Like my excellent tourney picks (insert sarcasm) I will be laying down the analysis sometime in the summer for the football season, and hopefully I will be able to predict with accuracy a banner year.

After all, I had West Virginia!

The issues of Arkansas Basketball

If you have been following our top 10 college basketball programs of all-time you noticed that Arkansas got honorable mention, which in essence made them the 13th ranked program of all-time. Looking at the top 13 it's pretty hard to imagine a team that has fallen from grace like the Razorbacks have. Arizona is the only one that is close. When you compare the two programs the Wildcats are superior to the Razorbacks since 1995.


In my formula I felt that it gave weight to teams who had sustained greatness. It was not about who had won the most national championships or final fours, but who had won those championships, been to the final fours, won the conference championships and other criteria over time. The Razorbacks qualified.


This whole debate started when I was listening to a local radio show that stated the Arkansas basketball program was Mississippi State outside of a few great years. This formula blows that notion out of the water. When I began thinking about a formula to try to score the greatest programs my initial thought was rank all-americans instead of NBA draft picks. The problem I ran into it was down right impossible to find a reputable all-american list for each program. Also, lately NBA draft picks and not all-americans have been the measuring stick for a programs success. Although throughout college basketball history this fact has not always been true. If you take recent success out of the formula and you put all-americans in the formula instead of NBA draft picks then Arkansas ranks about eighth all-time, which is exactly where The Sporting News ranked them a few years ago. My question when considering all things is can you make a program who has not had much success in 14 years a top 10 program? To me the answer was no.


The North Carolina's, the Duke's, the Kentucky's, and the Kansas' are programs that have had sustained success over time. Even when you get outside of those programs in the top 10 like Michigan State, Louisville, Syracuse, and Arizona those programs have had lulls but always come back. Honestly, none of those programs have had such a long period of time that they have been irrelevant like Arkansas has. Why? What has happened? There have been several things that happened. From Nolan's out bursts to his mistreatment at Arkansas or John White trying to make the University of Arkansas the Harvard of the South to the detriment of the athletic program, there are many factors that have made Arkansas a fallen program. Not to mention the Stan Heath experiment where Stan got some good players to come through here, but was not a strong enough coach or personality to bring the program to where Arkansas fans expect it. Now Arkansas has John Pelphrey and as of right now the program has regressed since he has been the head coach. Is all of it his fault? Probably not. Dana Altman did leave after one day on the job. Bottom line is though each coach is responsible for his program no matter the problems before or after he became the coach. Butler's coach is in his third year and they went to the national championship game.


What is acceptable at Arkansas? Is it the height of Nolan Richardson's program where Arkansas was a threat to go to the Final Four every year? Is it Eddie Sutton's program that had a shot to get there but was more than likely a sweet 16 team? I know one thing that is not acceptable and that is the current state of the program. You will never see Duke, North Carolina, or Kansas have such problems in their programs. Arkansas is clearly not those programs though and probably never will be. For that matter Kentucky who has had problems in the past they will not ever have 14 years of sustained failure as Arkansas has had. Adding to that, Michigan State, Syracuse, and Louisville will not have such problems and all these programs have similar histories as Arkansas.


The pattern you will see if you look at the top 10 programs of all-time is great coaches. Each school has at least had two of them and Arkansas is no different with Eddie Sutton and Nolan Richardson. Although both were great Eddie had problems that would have lead to his ultimate demise. Nolan thought he had become greater than the program and frequently made the statement he didn't want any superstars. In the last six years of his tenure at Arkansas he did not get them and the program suffered.. The problem is in the seven years since Nolan Arkansas has not been able to land a coach that is acceptable for Arkansas as a program. Is the money there? Are the facilities there? Is the tradition there? The facilities are there with or without a practice facility. The tradition is there. Somebody needs to sell that. The money is speculated to not be there. It has always been there before. Is that a product of today's economy or changes in the top of the athletic program?


The University of Arkansas has committed to another year of John Pelphrey and all of Arkansas is hoping that he can bring the program back. Recruiting seems to be better for 2010. It might get a lot better here in the spring signing period. There is a 2011 and class that looks to be promising for the Razorbacks. Things could be on the up and up, but if significant improvement is not made next year then it is time for a change no matter how the 2011 class feels. Any program can not let a group of recruits hold the program hostage. Arkansas is no different.


Whatever the problem. Arkansas deserves better right now. This program is a proud program one that has history that can compete with almost any in college basketball history. It is time for this program to start taking steps toward bringing the program back to the future.

Hog Talk Episode 7

Hog baseball, spring football, and thoughts on the basketball national championship game

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Program #1

1. Kentucky 847

In the formula of all-time greatest programs the Wildcats scored off the charts in just about every category. Oh the Wildcats only own 46 conference championships, 50 NCAA tournament appearances, 42 Sweet 16 appearances, 13 final fours, and just seven national championships. In the pantheon of greatest college basketball programs of all-time Kentucky is tops. Even the most talented college basketball teams have to have great coaching to win the big one. The Wildcats have that one covered. Adolph Rupp, Joe B. Hall, Eddie Sutton, Rick Pitino, Tubby Smith, and currently John Calipari, most of these names seem to be listed among the greats in college basketball history. No other team has dominated their conference the way that the Wildcats have. The SEC regular season and tournament has been dominated by the 'cats. When Arkansas moved to the SEC in 1992 the Hogs gave the Wildcats a run for conference dominance for a four year period, but the Wildcats are the standard bearer of the SEC. They always will be. The 1996 Kentucky Wildcats could be the greatest college basketball team of all-time. That team went 34-2 and had players that fit coach Rick Pitino's system. The best part about that for Kentucky fans is that those players were probably the most talented in the nation as well. The 1996 team started a run of three straight national championship appearances. The 1998 team won on Pitino's talent, but it was Tubby Smith's toughness that got them over the top. It's not just the 1990s that was great for the Wildcats. Basically, since college basketball has been played the Wildcats have been great. The first final four appearance for the Wildcats was in 1942 and they almost repeated that feat in 2010 by getting a number one seed and appearing in their 32nd elite eight. There just isn't much that Kentucky does not lead college basketball in. All-time wins would be the greatest feather in the cap of the Wildcats. Depending on what publication you look at the Wildcats are credited with 99 NBA draft picks, which is sure to rise after this season with the likes of John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins, and Eric Bledsoe. Many will say that Kentucky's troubled past should keep them from the number one spot, but it is hard to argue the sustained greatness of the Wildcats. Some will say that UCLA deserves the top spot because of their 11 national championships. The Wildcats own seven of their own and it has been over a longer period of time. Yes, UCLA has been great especially from 1963 to 1975, but they just don't compare to the Wildcats over time. North Carolina fans might have a stake to the claim of number one, but the Wildcats have 14 more conference championships, nine more NCAA tournament appearances, 14 more sweet 16 appearances, and two more national championships. Kansas has 53 conference championships, but the Wildcats own the edge in tournament appearances, Sweet 16 appearances, NBA players, and National championships. In the long run it is just hard to argue that the Kentucky Wildcats are not the greatest program in college basketball history.

Program #2

2.  North Carolina 817

Five national championships and three of those coming in the last 17 years.  The Tar Heels have won two national championships since 2005.  It seems like the Tar Heels are in the final four every year, save this one.  Like I said before once you get into the top six of the greatest programs of all-time you can make a case for each one of them to be number one.  The Heels scored more points than anybody on this list for recent success with 61 points.  The Heels are number two in all-time winning percentage and tied with Kansas for number two in all-time wins.  Even though Duke is in the national championship game the Heels are still the standard in the ACC.  When it comes to the greatest rivalry in college basketball North Carolina holds the edge in all-time wins, winning percentage, conference championships, tournament appearances, final fours, NBA draft picks, and national championships.  Like most of the schools in the top 10 list the Tar Heels have had more than one legendary coach.  Dean Smith stayed at North Carolina for 36 years and left the school as the NCAA's all-time winner.  He has since been passed by Bobby Knight.  Roy Williams took over after a good run by Smith's top assistant Bill Guthridge for three years and then former player Matt Doherty's three year run that just didn't work out.  Williams, an assistant under Smith, took over the Tar Heel program after missing the NCAA tournament two straight years.  Williams immediately started paying divedends!  He took North Carolina to the second round of the NCAA tournament in his first year and then the next year he won his first and the school's fourth championship.  It's been pretty smooth sailing since.  Although the Heels went to the NIT finals this season there is little doubt that the Tar Heels will be right back in the thick of the national title hunt for years to come.   To end this column without talking about some of the players who have been Tar Heels would be silly.  Michael Jordan, have you heard of him?  What about James Worthy, Sam Perkins, Vince Carter, Antawn Jamison, Phil Ford, and even the Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak.  That's just a few.  It could be argued that no other school has had more of an impact on the NBA than North Carolina.

Program #3

3.  UCLA 797

When a program wins the most national championships of all-time you would think that it would be the number one program.  The case can obviously be be made for the Bruins to be the number one program.  According to our formula they come in at a close number three.  Obviously, UCLA gets the most points for national championships and they load up on conference championships.  The most staggering number that comes from this program could bet that 103 players have been drafted to the NBA from this program.  Much like the Jayhawks the names associated with this program have changed basketball forever.  John Wooden is the first one that comes to mind.  Coach Wooden led the Bruins to 10 national championships in 12 years with a third place finish thrown in there.  UCLA had the most remarkable run of championships ever.  In that championship run they finished four of those seasons undefeated.  They won 88 games in a row that was the most ever.  Some of the most staggering numbers in all of sports.  Some of the other names associated with this program are:  Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul-Jabaar), Bill Walton, Gail Goodrich, Jamaal Wilkes, Kiki Vandeweghe, and Reggie Miller just to name a few.   UCLA's most recent national championship came in 1995, but the Bruins went to the final four in 2006, 2007, and 2008 under coach Ben Howland.  With that kind of success you can gurantee that UCLA will be there for years to come.

Program #4

4.  Kansas 778

When you get into the top six programs of all-time each fan base thinks you can make the case that each one of them are number one. When you get into the top four it's more than the fan bases, each program can make the claim.  The Kansas Jayhawks come in at number four in the top 10 programs of all-time.  Kansas owns three national championships which is tied for fourth all-time with Duke.  The Jayhawks have participated in 13 final fours which is tied with Kentucky for third all-time.  The Jayhawks own 69 NBA draft picks.  Where the Jayhawks set themselves apart from Indiana and Duke are their conference championships.  The Jayhawks have won a staggering 53 conference championships.  Some of the most legendary names in basketball are associated with the Kansas basketball program.  Some of those names are:  Dr. James Naismith, Phog Allen, and Wilt Chamberlain.  More recently:  Larry Brown, Roy Williams, and now Bill Self.  Coach Larry Brown won a national championship at Kansas in 1988 with the "Danny (Manning) and the miracles" team.  He went on to win an NBA championship with the Detroit Pistons in 2004.  Roy Williams had Kansas to the door step more than once but could not win a championship for the Jayhawks.  Williams left for North Carolina where he has won two NCAA championships.  On the 20th anniversary of the "Danny and the miracles" team Kansas brought home their most recent national championship as the Jayhawks topped Memphis.  Mario Chalmers went down in NCAA glory when he hit a three pointer with 2.3 seconds left on the clock to send the game into overtime where Kansas went on to capture the school's third championship.   

Programs #5-6

6. Indiana 528

Five national championships, eight final fours, and 71 NBA draft picks set the Indiana Hoosiers apart from most programs. The thing that most people do not know is that the Hoosiers won two national championships before Bobby Knight. Obviously, the NCAA's winningest coach is the biggest name in Hoosier basketball history. Knight picked up 661 of his record 901 wins as a Head Coach at Indiana. The Hoosier basketball program has had some great college players but have not produced a bunch of NBA superstars. Although, they did produce one of the NBA's 50 greatest players, Isiah Thomas. Thomas went on to lead the Detroit Pistons to back to back NBA championships. He also coached the Indiana Pacers and New York Knicks. Thomas is now at Florida International University as a Head Coach. Even though the Hoosiers have fallen on hard times it's hard to imagine them being down forever with new Head Coach Tom Crean. Crean did a great job at Marquette and has been short on talent since taking over for the embattled Kelvin Samson. All that being said the Hoosiers are one of the greatest college basketball programs in the history of college basketball.

5. Duke 693

Before Coach K the Blue Devils were good and after Coach K the Blue Devils have been great. Duke was off the charts in almost every category in the all-time greats formula. They have won three national championships (1991, 1992, 2001, 2010) which ranks behind only UCLA, Kentucky, Indiana and North Carolina. They are tied with Kansas. The Blue Devils have went to 15 final fours and appeared in the national championship game 1964, 1978, 1990, 1991, 1992,1994, 1999, 2001, and 2010. The Blue Devils are credited with 74 NBA draft picks, but it's not about NBA draft picks with this team. It's about college success. They might have the greatest coach in college basketball history. Coach K has the three national championships as mentioned before, but he also has led the USA Basketball team to the gold medal. The US had not won the gold medal since the 2000 olympics. He's the best of the best. Names like: Grant Hill, Christian Laettner, Corey Maggette, and Elton Brand just to name a few have played for the Blue Devils. This program does not seem to be losing any steam. Many people thought they were on the decline and they are one of two of the top 10 all-time programs to be in this year's final four. Even though they are not as close to program number four in the formula they are definitely putting distance between themselves and Indiana