Bret Bielema Moving Arkansas Razorbacks Past Bobby Petrino Era
By Ryan Wooden
Dec 5, 2012; Fayetteville, AR, USA; Newly named Arkansas Razorbacks football coach Bret Bielema speaks during a press conference to announce his hiring at the University of Arkansas. Mandatory Credit: Beth Hall-USA TODAY Sports
When Bret Bielema took over the Arkansas Razorbacks on Dec. 4 of last year, he knew that he was inheriting a messy situation. That much is obvious on the heels of 4-8 and a sixth place finish in the SEC West. However, it’s hard to imagine Bielema truly understood the breadth of the damage until now.
With Arkansas beginning spring practice on Sunday, Bielema finally got to remove the bandages and take a look at how the Razorbacks are healing up following the gut wound that was the end of the Bobby Petrino era. And after a year of John L. Smith ineptly dressing the wound, Arkansas was closer to going septic than many cared to realize prior to Bielema’s hiring.
Now Bret Bielema is getting his first crack at cleaning up the mess, and he’s embracing the challenge. At least that’s what he told Arkansas News Bureau sports writer Robbie Neiswanger in the weeks leading up to his first spring at the helm in Fayetteville.
"“We’ve all got scars,” Bielema said during an interview in his Arkansas office late last month. “But I think men are more defined by their failures and their rise after it than their successes. So I’m also not afraid of them.”"
For the Razorbacks, that rise begins slowly this spring as Bret Bielema begins the foundation-building process that four SEC schools will be undertaking over the next six weeks. And while the Razorbacks are closer in proximity to past success than any of the other four teams with new coaching staffs, they’re as far from future success as anyone save perhaps Kentucky, because… well… c’mon.
Unfortunately, the standards at Arkansas are generally a little bit higher than, “Hey, at least we’re not Kentucky.”
And, yes, the Arkansas Razorbacks are tasked with rebuilding at the onset of the Bielema era. No, Bret Bielema isn’t used to putting a program back together (he took over a 10-win program at Wisconsin in 2006). No, Bielema still doesn’t quite look comfortable Calling the Hogs. However, there’s still reason for optimism, and even if there wasn’t we could always just make one up. It is spring football, after all.
All jokes aside, Bret Bielema seems to be adopting the right mentality, though speaking towards someone’s mindset is certainly ambiguous. After being hired last December, Bielema entered a room full of browbeaten young men and expressed the kind of empathy he wasn’t exactly known for in Wisconsin.
"“I said, ‘Fellas, there isn’t anybody in this room that could’ve forecasted over the last 12 months what you guys have been through,” Bielema said, looking back on the first team meeting with the Razorbacks. “No one would’ve shared that with you during recruiting. It couldn’t have been brought up on any recruiting test or any official visit or unofficial visit. But all we can do is move forward.”"
And move forward Arkansas must. A year ago the Razorbacks had hoped to be SEC Championship contenders on the heels of an 11-win season and an impressive Cotton Bowl victory over Kansas State. When the Petrino Scandal rocked the Razorbacks, they had still hoped to make noise in the uber-competitive SEC West. Instead, the Hogs only mustered two conference wins while Texas A&M filled the vacancy they left in the Top Three of the division, and both Mississippi State and Ole Miss made strides in 2012 while Arkansas was left backtracking.
And the only team that Arkansas managed to best in the standings last season, the Auburn Tigers, have re-introduced themselves to Gus Malzahn, a former Arkansas assistant who many view as Auburn’s second-biggest reason for success during their 2010 BCS National Championship season, behind Cam Newton.
The SEC West is already the best division in college football, and with several teams setting their sights on a trip to Atlanta over the next couple years, it’s only getting tougher. Bret Bielema and the Arkansas Razorbacks will have to heal quickly if they hope to survive that gauntlet.
The wounds that were left to fester under John L. Smith have to be cleaned, and redressed if necessary. Arkansas may not be in a position to reclaim a spot among west royalty in 2013, but they’ll have to make strides.
They’ve already secured a pair of four-star commitments from Class of 2014 prospects, and regularly recruiting top talent to Fayetteville was something that even Bobby Petrino struggled to do.