Comments on: Arkansas’ Anderson “Happy” For Missouri

By: missourimule

missourimule — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 16:46:44 +0000

Point of order – 1) Missouri was southern in the civil was 2) technically, we never surrendered – we're still at war with those Jayhawkers from Kansas

By: MissouriAlum

MissouriAlum — Sun, 13 Nov 2011 05:44:11 +0000

HI Fayettechill14. It’s nice to meet you and I look forward when the Missouri Tigers compete with the Arkansas Razorbacks. I think to some extent, you’re correct with that and I think it’s unfortunate every single sports team has a percentage of their fan base that is irrational, over emotional, over reactionary and downright spiteful taking good natured sportsmanship to a place many don’t wish to go including myself. Life is too short.
That said, based on your mention, I think it’s fair to contemplate what does the term “destination job” mean and how many programs truly fit that standard. I’d say very few which would include Kansas, Kentucky, North Carolina and a few other very select programs. What I think it easily fair to say about the Missouri job is that it’s a highly respectable job with a very good history which is at least better than average and has been a part of a number of great moments throughout its history. I think stating “Missouri fans being frustrated that their program wan not a destination program” is a bit of a stretch as most reasonable fans wouldn’t make such a broad and emotional outcry to that specifically. To frame it as such, isn’t reasonable IMHO and sounds more (no offense intended) a bit like hyperbole than serious substance for consideration. I think if we pair the term “destination job” with Coach Anderson, I can say this bereft of emotion and based on the observed data points, Missouri wasn’t a destination job for him, clearly. For 3 straight years he had serious coaching change considerations with 3 other programs, first Alabama, then Oregon and finally Arkansas. I think for the rational person, one can understand the allure of the Arkansas job for him specifically and in fact because of his multiyear vacillation, I think it was good to move on and what better place for him than where he landed, apparently his destination job.
I think it’s important to point out that most Mizzou fans think Coach Anderson conducted himself with class and professional ism throughout most of his Mizzou tenure. He took a tough job at the time and did mostly positive things with it. However, I think one can easily step back and say that without a doubt, with the factual details I outlined in my first posting, while he did exhibit professionalism through most of his time at Mizzou, he did NOT with his exit. I don’t know of a single rational person who could point to those details and say that was professional conduct in any way, shape or form. I think it was unfortunate for him to choose such an exit which was totally unnecessary and does lend a slight blemish which he now has to face directly with Mizzou joining the SEC, which would be a non issue if basic professionalism had been followed with his departure. That said, I’m grateful for his time at Mizzou and wish Coach Anderson and his new program well, until they meet Missouri of course.

By: Homepage | MrSEC.com

Homepage | MrSEC.com — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 16:03:02 +0000

[...] 1. Arkansas’ Anderson “Happy” For Missouri/ Arkansas AD Long Wants Missouri In The West [...]

By: Fayettechill14

Fayettechill14 — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 22:18:13 +0000

I'm not trying to start a huge fight, but this happens EVERY time a coach leaves one major program for another. It all boils down to Missouri fans being frustrated that their program was not a "destination job," at least in this case. I guess it hurts one's pride, but Arkansas fans assure you that this was a one-time deal.

Every example I can think of that has a coach leaving one major program for another major program has featured fans of the former team calling his exit "unprofessional."

By: tdfalls

tdfalls — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 15:44:02 +0000

I don't know if this team will even make the NIT much less compete for the NC.

By: mizzou101

mizzou101 — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 18:25:27 +0000

The hypocrisy is that Anderson and many other coaches walk into a recruits living room and preach how they are going to be the kids father/mentor for the next four years. How is going to turn him into a good young man, being courteous, loyal and blah blah blah… Sign here, but if you renege, you have to sit out. As for me, I will leave for more money the moment it is offered.

By: farkansas

farkansas — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 15:49:20 +0000

yankees? man you are a moron

By: MizzouFan

MizzouFan — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 15:46:47 +0000

Compete for a NC? LOL. Laughable. With Bowers on ice this team won't make the NCAA's.

By: AllTideUp

AllTideUp — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 14:49:18 +0000

There aren't too many crazy loyal fan bases when it comes to bball in the SEC. Outside of Kentucky, I don't know that anyone consistently sells out their games.

By: StL

StL — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 04:13:34 +0000

so you're saying that attendance had something to do with his recruiting dropoff?

By: buddha22

buddha22 — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 03:59:28 +0000

Thanks for your advice, your facts are wrong. Although they were not sold out for every game, they did sell out, especially during those years of elite eight and following…I know, I was there.

I was a big proponent of Mike Anderson. The man preached being stand-up and that your words and actions mattered. He lived it, right up until he told several players he was staying days before he left, when he asked to be interviewed by the Columbia Tribune where he said (paraphrasing) What more do I have to say, I love it here and we will win a championship here and when he detailed how Arkansas turned their backs on him after firing Nolan and didn't even interview him for the position and how thankful and appreciative he was that MU was the 1st and only major university that was willing to give him a chance…take all that in from a man of his "word" then contrast it to the180 degree he pulled to flee to Arkansas and you can begin to understand how incensed even his most ardent supporters were/are.

At the end of the day he didn't walk the walk but craved to be "accepted" by those that snubbed him more than his dignity and integrity.

By: Medloh

Medloh — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 23:22:47 +0000

I don't really have any bad feelings toward Anderson. He stocked Mizzou with small players that fit his system. He did a pretty good job and I think he left the program in better shape than when he got there.

But there wasn't the same level of excitement as back in the Stormin Norman days. We had some really talented teams loaded with recruits from Detroit and Missouri that were amazing to watch. The Doug Smith / Anthony Peeler days were my favorite. The Stipo / Sunvold / Frazier years were also fun. I hope we can get back to those days, and then not choke in the tourney.

By: MIZ_SEC

MIZ_SEC — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 23:04:44 +0000

Actually I don't see anyone that has blamed him for not being loyal, just criticized him for the childish way he went out.

By: MIZ_SEC

MIZ_SEC — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 23:02:10 +0000

Losing Bowers to injury and not getting Tony Mitchell to qualify really hurt us. With Ratliffe's inability to play defense without fouling, I have a feeling we will be seeing a ton of zone and four guard lineups.

By: MIZ_SEC

MIZ_SEC — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 23:00:50 +0000

Yeah the Mizzou-Arkansas rivalry has a much longer history in basketball than football, so I am happy to see that we will be playing every year in basketball.

Z-O-U

By: jafo220

jafo220 — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 22:59:03 +0000

I think they'll be fine. They're signing 6 to 7 recruits this week for 2012. Six of the seven are 3 star recruits. Four of the six are 6-9 size players and that tells me the style of ball at Mizzou has changed. Yeh I know they aren't the cream of the crop but to get that many 3 star players signed Haith's first year is pretty good in my book. Sure they may not reach the dance this year, but they could become competetive next year at some point. It's a big question right now how this year will go. Won't know until they begin conference play. The Kansas game will be the barometer. We'll see how good of a coach is when he matches up against Bill Self.

By: jafo

jafo — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 22:50:02 +0000

Actually, his style of basketball doesn't attract to many big men just because of the style of basketball. It's a high pressure, high energy fast style of ball. Your not going to find to many big guys that are willing to run thier guts out for 3/4's of a game. I liked Andersons style of ball, it was exciting to watch and unpredictable…….if you have the right players.

By: Fayettechill14

Fayettechill14 — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 22:04:13 +0000

He's never been a very good recruiter (even at Arkansas), and struggled especially to find serviceable big men to fit into the Arkansas system (most big men don't want to run that much), so I'm not surprised his recruiting was struggling.

What I find funny is that Mizzou fans are blaming Anderson for not being loyal and yet they utterly failed to fill a 15,000-seat arena even when they went to the Elite Eight. You WILL NOT succeed in the SEC if you don't have a crazy-loyal fanbase that turns up to every game.

By: qbbearcat

qbbearcat — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 21:33:08 +0000

It's not that he left for Arkansas it's that he stopped doing his job halfway throught the year. He had no players signed and had a bunch of scholarships available so basically he left the cupboard bare. That is what has most fans upset with Anderson…it looked as though he already knew he was leaving.

By: Hog Fan

Hog Fan — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 21:14:01 +0000

I get a little tired of all the hypocrisy around coaches that leave to take a different job. Most of us have jobs, and have left other jobs to take the jobs we have. We rarely tell our current employers that we're shopping other jobs, and we generally appreciate the job we have and only leave to take what we perceive to be a better one. All the bashing of Petrino by Falcons fans when Arthur Blank fired Dan Reeves mid-season, the Missouri fans unhappy with Anderson…yet nobody says "poor Houston" when Ole Miss fires the guy mid-season. It's just plain hypocritical.

By: Medloh

Medloh — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 21:04:39 +0000

We'd contend for the NC if the NCAA offered a 6'5 and under league. Anderson did a really terrible job recruiting big men his last few years at Mizzou. Now we lost our best big man, power forward Bowers. Difficult to say how well Mizzou will do the next few years with a serious lack of size but loaded with talent at the guard spot.

By: JEH

JEH — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 18:29:35 +0000

It's going to be a very tuff year due to the Bowers injury, Mizzou just has zero depth in the front court. But this Hogs-Tigers series has all the makings of a real fun bball rivalry! The Norm/Nolan matchups of the 90's were a ton of fun and I look forward to seeing them again! M – I – Z

By: MissouriAlum

MissouriAlum — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 18:29:12 +0000

No doubt, he was at least a decent coach for Mizzou and time will tell how good his replacement will be (obviously). What baffles me is why he chose such an unprofessional exit from the University of Missouri. Really, all he needed to do was exhibit basic professionalism by simply stating he had a change of heart about the Arkansas job and answer the local presses questions, then leave standing tall and walking out like a professional with class. I know some would have still been upset, but people have the right to change their minds in the face of new data points and I certainly respect why he left. Instead, he chose to completely bypass that in an almost comical fashion from the way he landed in Columbia and was blocked from view at the airport, to the way he entered the Arena (by the SUV pulling onto the walkway literally a couple of feet from the entry door), to tell his players he has accepted the Arkansas job, to completely disappearing from view afterwards. None of this was professional by any standard at all and the University of Missouri family deserved a better exit than that. Also, I'm very puzzled by the seemingly lack of recruiting in his final year. It's odd. That said, I know many of us appreciate Coach Anderson and his positive efforts at MU, especially after the disgraceful Snyder era. It just goes to show, you never know what’s going to happen in life so always, ALWAYS act with class and professionalism so you always have that.

By: Handsdown

Handsdown — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 18:22:19 +0000

Missouri has some stepping up to do in football, but they'll be able to compete immediately for an SEC championship in basketball. If Bowers didn't get hurt, Missouri would probably be ranked in the top 10 instead of #25.

By: hogwild

hogwild — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 18:12:59 +0000

I'll be at every one of them games with my hog hat on. MU couldn't sell out it's games even when MA made them a top ten team. Don't think I have any worries getting a ticket up there, and I'll probably be louder than all those yankees combined. Hey it ain't his fault he want's to coach somewhere that makes winning fun. Hey tigers, get ready for forty minutes of HELL. This ain't no politically correct/under appreciated 40 minutes of fast basketball anymore.

By: Jimmy

Jimmy — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 18:10:24 +0000

I think Frank Haith will be lucky to escape the Miami/Shapiro scandal.

By: Mizzougunner

Mizzougunner — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 17:58:05 +0000

Anderson would have left a very good team in Columbia, if he had bothered to do any recruiting in his last 12 months on the job. Unfortunately, MU only has 8 healthy scholarship players on the roster this year, so I don't see any national championships in our future.

Frank Haith looks to be signing a fairly mediocre 6 man recruiting class today. Along with the 3 players he has sitting out this year (2 transfers and 1, Lawrence Bowers, due to injury), next year's team may be better thanks to a full roster.