Mr. Rogers’ Blunderhood: The Affects a Fans Decision Can Have on the Program
By Peter Morgan
America, the place where our government is ruled by laws that keep us, and our speech, free. Arkansas, the place where the latter goes out the window if you dare bash anything about our beloved Razorbacks.
Many a HOGS fan has had plenty to say when things are not going well. Remember when the University of Arkansas Athletics Department gave us “something to Crowe about”? Or when Stan Heath brought an “interesting brand of basketball” to Bud Walton Arena? How about the time fans outside of DWR feared Armageddon because it would have brought the plane toting the anti-Nutt banner crashing into the stadium?
No, we cannot sit here and state that Arkansas fans have always been quiet when it comes to their displeasure. However, a truly smart fan… one with even a credible ounce of strategic intelligence… knows when the time to voice their ire is appropriate and best for the program that they think they are going to better.
— JeffMustGo (@JeffMustGo) January 22, 2017
Enter James Rogers. Who? Exactly.
Many of you have heard of it. Some of you have even read it. And a few of you may have even mounted it over your doorway as a mission statement. The fact is that James Rogers (who listed himself as a Treasurer at 50 North Front Street in Memphis, Tennessee) took an ad out in this past Sunday’s Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. If you opened the sports section of the January 22nd edition, you could not help but notice his listing with a large, bold font heading of “RAZORBACK FANS”.
Mr. Rogers (as we have so affectionately dubbed him) begins his tirade by emphatically calling out the salaries of Jeff Long, Head Football Coach Bret Bielema, and Head Basketball Coach Mike Anderson. Mr. Rogers then proceeds to statistically list our win to loss margins in SEC play for both of the two major sports. And he’s also quick to point out that we have not come close to winning and SEC or NCAA Championship during the coaches’ tenures.
What Is Your Point?
Then the real motive for the ad is unveiled. The treasurer then spends the second paragraph downing the effectiveness of Jeff Long as an athletic director. Put plainly, Long has a well-established history of “Unprecedented Failure” in hiring coaches at the University of Arkansas…”, Mr. Rogers states. To summarize, he declares that proceeding with the same leadership in the front office will only lead to more failures for our sports programs.
Paragraph Three happens to be my favorite. This is where our unknown assailant makes a call to arms for all fans of all things Razorback. A plea to those that are tired of the lack of competitiveness (which we can understand). A second solicitation is to those who are weary of the “never ending spending that permeates” in the university’s athletics departments. [Yes, he did use the word ‘permeates’ so you’d better listen to him.] All of this begging leads to his conclusion that we should take our time and express our opinions to Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson.
You Did More Damage Than Good
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Whiskey Tango Hotel were you thinking, Mr. Rogers (if that is your real name)??? We are in the heat of recruiting right now. And if you did not think that going up against the likes of Nick Saban was not enough, you just enabled some athletic department scrub at Alabama (as well as every other competing college) clip out a piece of paper that will surely accompany that coaching staff on every recruiting visit, e-mail, or any other form of communication to our targeted players.
Mr. Rogers… No, James. Can I call you James? James, did you not use Brain One in that head of yours to think about how something so small could damage the programs that you desire to improve? Are you Houston Nutt in disguise, poised on getting revenge against a fan base that you feel betrayed you? Wake up and think abstract about something else other than your pedestrian commute over to Mud Island River Park. Yes, I use the internet just like the recruits now reading your drivel do.
It’s Your Opinion
As far as not liking Long, you are entitled to your opinion. Furthermore, our Constitution affords you the right to put it into writing. On a side note, I am almost possess more disappointment with the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for publishing the ad than I am for your having written it. I digress. Just do your research before you go out running your keypad on the spending of the department. You may not like Jeff Long, but, unfortunately for you, he has brought honor and prestige to the university in how he represents us in Uncle Frank’s shadow. I love Mr. Broyles, but, yes, we are in the modern error now, and the dividends for that are starting to pay up. And the amount of revenue that Athletic Director Long has generated for the University of Arkansas is more than enough to cover their expenses. I will have to abide here after one final note: ease up on the use of the exclamation marks, my man – although you do make Elaine Benes proud.