Hello, Little Rock, nice to see you
Bielema tells TD club he understands area’s history with Hogs.
Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema admitted Monday he didn’t know a lot about the history of the Razorbacks’ program in Little Rock when he accepted the job as head coach in December of 2012.
He’s pretty well versed now.
“What I’ve … learned is there’s a lot of tradition and history for people here who have taken these games in for a long time,” Bielema said, before addressing a sold-out Little Rock Touchdown Club crowd of more than 600 at the Embassy Suites in west Little Rock. “This is their only time to see it, so I respect that.”
The Razorbacks have played at least one game at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock every season since 1948. And they will continue that tradition on Oct. 1, when they play Alcorn State, their only game in central Arkansas.
The Razorbacks’ contract with the Little Rock stadium runs through the 2018 season, but an amendment, announced in 2013, cut the number of games played in Little Rock from two per season to one per season from 2014-2018. The university has paid the War Memorial commission $400,000 to make up for revenue lost by having only one game.
“I love coming over here, ”Bielema said. ” I think our players do, especially the guys from this area. It gives a chance for their parents to be a part of it.”
Arkansas, which also plays one game a year at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, against Texas A&M, has an alltime mark of 149-60-4 (.709) at War Memorial Stadium. But the Razorbacks are 1-3 at War Memorial Stadium in Bielema’s first three seasons, with their only victory coming in the coach’s first game at the stadium against Samford.
Under Bielema, Arkansas has lost to SEC members Mississippi State in 2013 and Georgia in 2014 as well as nonconference opponent Toledo in 2015. A crowd of 49,591 saw the Razorbacks lose 16-12 to Toledo last September.
Bielema said he isn’t sure what’s going to happen past 2018, but indicated he understood the reason for moving more games to Fayetteville.
“One of the greatest things you can build is a home-field advantage,” Bielema said. “Where it’s going to go from here, I have no idea. That’s a conversation that I don’t get invited to. I just go where they tell me.”
Moving from the future to the status of his 2016 team, Bielema told the Touchdown Club audience about how Monday, which was the first day of school at UA, is one of the most frustrating days a college coach can have.
“The kids go to class, or hopefully they go to class,” Bielema said. “Their minds are a little everywhere. They walk all over campus. The freshmen are trying to find the right building to meet.”
Bielema said he hoped today is the second-worst day of the year, but he also is realistic.
“It’s probably going to be that way because it’s a little chaotic,” Bielema said. “But for this year, to have an entire two weeks before the season starts is a unique luxury. It’s just the way the calendar all worked out. We’ll have all this week to have an introduction on Louisiana Tech.”
Entering season No. 4, Bielema’s stamp is imprinted on the program, which has won two consecutive bowl games — the Texas Bowl over Texas in 2014 and the Liberty Bowl against Kansas State last season.
“I know this football team better than I’ve known any other team since I’ve been here,” Bielema said. “I’ve been in the living rooms of 90 percent of the guys who have been here. I’ve known them since they’ve came into the program or since their redshirt freshman seasons.
“I know when they’ve had success. I know when they’ve had failure. I know they understand the way we do things at
Arkansas. It’s very clear and very clean to them.”
Other highlights from Bielema’s speech Monday:
On senior linebacker Brooks Ellis’ internship in Belize: “I’ve been to Belize, but I wasn’t studying medicine, I know that.”
On senior running back Kody Walker’s appearances at the Northwest Arkansas Touchdown Club: “I know they’ve only had eight of those and he’s been at six of them. As a head coach, I’ve got a guy who’s been at two more than me.”
Little Rock Touchdown Club founder David Bazzel presented a football to Bielema for freshman defensive lineman McTelvin Agim, who earned the football for winning the Touchdown Club’s Dan Hampton Award for best high school defensive lineman in 2015. Agim could not attend the awards banquet in February because he was busy with spring semester classes at Arkansas: “We’ll excuse the absence if he gets five to ten sacks as a freshman this year,” Bazzel said.