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Not that these parents' should care if their children are receiving an education or not...
FAYETTEVILLE — Parents for Arkansas freshman football players Mitch Mustain, Damian Williams and Ben Cleveland met with Razorbacks Athletic Director Frank Broyles last week to discuss concerns about the direction of the football program.
Rick Cleveland, Ben’s father, confirmed Tuesday that the meeting took place last Thursday in Broyles’ office and lasted about an hour. The meeting included Rick Cleveland, Beck Campbell (Mustain’s mother ), David and Karen Williams, and Broyles.
The meeting centered on whether Arkansas offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn will get more say in how the offense is run, Rick Cleveland said, and if it will be more pass-oriented.
Mustain is a quarterback and Cleveland and Williams are receivers, and all three played for Malzahn at Springdale High School, where they excelled in a Spread, no-huddle offense to help the Bulldogs go 14-0 last season and win the Class AAAAA state championship.
“The reason for the meeting was very simple,” Rick Cleveland said. “We wanted to know what is the direction of Arkansas ’ football program ? Are we eventually going to get to Gus ’ offense ? Or are we going to stay with the way we are at present ?”
In going 10-3 this season and winning the outright SEC West title, Arkansas’ offense has been built around sophomore tailbacks Darren McFadden, a consensus All-American who was the Heisman Trophy runnerup last week to Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith, and Felix Jones. They are the third duo in SEC history to each rush for 1, 000 yards, with McFadden at a school-record 1, 558 and Jones at 1, 018.
It was a big bounce back season for the Razorbacks after they went 5-6 and 4-7 the previous two years to put Coach Houston Nutt’s job status in jeopardy.
Nutt, who hired Malzahn last December to be offensive coordinator and call the plays, was voted SEC Coach of the Year by the media and coaches after the Razorbacks’ six-victory improvement.
“For us, personally, we have nothing against Houston Nutt, nothing against Arkansas ’ program,” Rick Cleveland said. “Every school and its head coach has the full authority to run the offense that they want. That’s what they go recruit people for, to run what they’re comfortable with.
“ That’s not the issue with us. Arkansas has every right to run that and do what they want.”
Cleveland said the issue for the Springdale players and their parents is that the offense isn’t what they were led to believe it would be during the recruiting process.
After Malzahn was hired, Ben Cleveland and Damian Williams switched their commitments from Florida to Arkansas and Mustain recommitted to Arkansas after reopening his recruiting.
“With our kids going to Arkansas, it’s basically like trying to fit a square peg into a round hole,” Rick Cleveland said of the offense. “When Gus came onto the scene, the very first question we would ask was, ‘Do you have full control of the offense and do you have full control of the personnel ?’ Which we were told, ‘Yes.’
“ I don’t believe Gus lied to us. But as the season has progressed, it’s very obvious that this is not Gus Malzahn’s offense and Gus does not have full control of the personnel or the play calling.
“ From our perspective — and it’s only our perspective — it seems as if you’ve been sold a bill of goods.
“ We never would have committed here knowing that this was the offense, because we knew our boys wouldn’t be happy.”
Rick Cleveland said the response from Broyles was that Nutt continues to be in charge of the team.
“His exact words were that experts have told us that Coach Malzahn’s offense will not work in the SEC and for it to work the quarterback has to run the ball 15 to 18 times a game,” Cleveland said. “That made it pretty clear that things are going to stay the way they are and Malzahn’s offense is not going to be run here.”
Broyles said Tuesday he had told the parents they needed to meet with Nutt, not him, but he agreed to see them when they showed up at his office anyway.
“I didn’t want to be rude,” said Broyles, who declined to discuss any details of the meeting.
Nutt declined comment Tuesday about the parents’ meeting but said he doesn’t expect any players to transfer. Malzahn couldn’t be reached for comment.
Rick Cleveland said the parents wanted to meet with Broyles “because he’s the one who ultimately controls everything” at Arkansas.
“Why not go to the person who’s totally in charge ?” Cleveland said. “It was a very pleasant meeting. There was no confrontation whatsoever.”
Since Malzahn was hired, he and Nutt have said publicly the offense would be a combination of what has worked well at Arkansas in the past with additions brought in by Malzahn and new quarterbacks coach Alex Wood, a former NFL offensive coordinator.
Malzahn has said the running backs are Arkansas’ best players and the team would play to its strengths, and his greatest contribution has been putting together an offense that enables McFadden and Jones to be on the field at the same time.
The Razorbacks have run numerous trick plays for big gains and excelled in a “Wildcat” package with the versatile McFadden at quarterback.
Nutt and Malzahn also have said they expect the passing game to continue to progress next season.
David Williams, Damian’s father, declined comment on the meeting and whether his son is considering transferring from Arkansas.
“To be honest with you, I don’t think any of the boys want to transfer. They love Arkansas,” Rick Cleveland said. “But as a ballplayer, you want to be used to the best of your abilities.”
Ben Cleveland and Damian Williams each made the SEC All-Freshman Team and are among Arkansas’ top six receivers.
Williams is tied for second on the team with 19 catches for 235 yards and 2 touchdowns, including a score that put Arkansas ahead to stay just before halftime in its SEC West title-clinching 28-14 victory at Mississippi State.
Cleveland is tied for fourth on the team with 11 catches for 98 yards and 2 touchdowns, including the game-tying reception in overtime against Alabama before Jeremy Davis hit the winning extra point in a 24-23 victory.
Mustain has completed 64 of 122 passes for 853 yards and 10 touchdowns with 8 interceptions. He started eight games, all victories by the Razorbacks, before being replaced by sophomore Casey Dick.
While the three Springdale freshmen have played key roles in the Razorbacks’ season, Rick Cleveland said they anticipated having more impact on the offense.
“It’s a very fluid situation,” Cleveland said of whether he expects any of the Springdale players to transfer. “These are 18-year-old kids. One day they want to stay. One day they’re upset and want to leave.
“ What the coaching staff has to understand is that they can’t keep telling these kids, ‘This is going to happen, this is going to happen, this is going to happen,’ and it doesn’t happen.”
Rick Cleveland said his son and Damian Williams want to play in an offense where they’ll catch 60 passes per season.
J. J. Meadors, with 62 catches in 1995, is the only Razorback with 60 or more catches in a season in the program’s history.
Five SEC players have 60 or more catches this season; three had 60 or more last season.
“Our boys are used to catching 60 passes a year,” Rick Cleveland said. “They want to go to a college where they get the same opportunity. Whether they’re good enough to do that or not is a whole different question. They have to earn that.
“ They are team players... but they’re saying, ‘Hey, I don’t know if I’ll be happy being in this offense, catching 10 balls a year or 15 and blocking 90 percent of the time.’”
FAYETTEVILLE — Parents for Arkansas freshman football players Mitch Mustain, Damian Williams and Ben Cleveland met with Razorbacks Athletic Director Frank Broyles last week to discuss concerns about the direction of the football program.
Rick Cleveland, Ben’s father, confirmed Tuesday that the meeting took place last Thursday in Broyles’ office and lasted about an hour. The meeting included Rick Cleveland, Beck Campbell (Mustain’s mother ), David and Karen Williams, and Broyles.
The meeting centered on whether Arkansas offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn will get more say in how the offense is run, Rick Cleveland said, and if it will be more pass-oriented.
Mustain is a quarterback and Cleveland and Williams are receivers, and all three played for Malzahn at Springdale High School, where they excelled in a Spread, no-huddle offense to help the Bulldogs go 14-0 last season and win the Class AAAAA state championship.
“The reason for the meeting was very simple,” Rick Cleveland said. “We wanted to know what is the direction of Arkansas ’ football program ? Are we eventually going to get to Gus ’ offense ? Or are we going to stay with the way we are at present ?”
In going 10-3 this season and winning the outright SEC West title, Arkansas’ offense has been built around sophomore tailbacks Darren McFadden, a consensus All-American who was the Heisman Trophy runnerup last week to Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith, and Felix Jones. They are the third duo in SEC history to each rush for 1, 000 yards, with McFadden at a school-record 1, 558 and Jones at 1, 018.
It was a big bounce back season for the Razorbacks after they went 5-6 and 4-7 the previous two years to put Coach Houston Nutt’s job status in jeopardy.
Nutt, who hired Malzahn last December to be offensive coordinator and call the plays, was voted SEC Coach of the Year by the media and coaches after the Razorbacks’ six-victory improvement.
“For us, personally, we have nothing against Houston Nutt, nothing against Arkansas ’ program,” Rick Cleveland said. “Every school and its head coach has the full authority to run the offense that they want. That’s what they go recruit people for, to run what they’re comfortable with.
“ That’s not the issue with us. Arkansas has every right to run that and do what they want.”
Cleveland said the issue for the Springdale players and their parents is that the offense isn’t what they were led to believe it would be during the recruiting process.
After Malzahn was hired, Ben Cleveland and Damian Williams switched their commitments from Florida to Arkansas and Mustain recommitted to Arkansas after reopening his recruiting.
“With our kids going to Arkansas, it’s basically like trying to fit a square peg into a round hole,” Rick Cleveland said of the offense. “When Gus came onto the scene, the very first question we would ask was, ‘Do you have full control of the offense and do you have full control of the personnel ?’ Which we were told, ‘Yes.’
“ I don’t believe Gus lied to us. But as the season has progressed, it’s very obvious that this is not Gus Malzahn’s offense and Gus does not have full control of the personnel or the play calling.
“ From our perspective — and it’s only our perspective — it seems as if you’ve been sold a bill of goods.
“ We never would have committed here knowing that this was the offense, because we knew our boys wouldn’t be happy.”
Rick Cleveland said the response from Broyles was that Nutt continues to be in charge of the team.
“His exact words were that experts have told us that Coach Malzahn’s offense will not work in the SEC and for it to work the quarterback has to run the ball 15 to 18 times a game,” Cleveland said. “That made it pretty clear that things are going to stay the way they are and Malzahn’s offense is not going to be run here.”
Broyles said Tuesday he had told the parents they needed to meet with Nutt, not him, but he agreed to see them when they showed up at his office anyway.
“I didn’t want to be rude,” said Broyles, who declined to discuss any details of the meeting.
Nutt declined comment Tuesday about the parents’ meeting but said he doesn’t expect any players to transfer. Malzahn couldn’t be reached for comment.
Rick Cleveland said the parents wanted to meet with Broyles “because he’s the one who ultimately controls everything” at Arkansas.
“Why not go to the person who’s totally in charge ?” Cleveland said. “It was a very pleasant meeting. There was no confrontation whatsoever.”
Since Malzahn was hired, he and Nutt have said publicly the offense would be a combination of what has worked well at Arkansas in the past with additions brought in by Malzahn and new quarterbacks coach Alex Wood, a former NFL offensive coordinator.
Malzahn has said the running backs are Arkansas’ best players and the team would play to its strengths, and his greatest contribution has been putting together an offense that enables McFadden and Jones to be on the field at the same time.
The Razorbacks have run numerous trick plays for big gains and excelled in a “Wildcat” package with the versatile McFadden at quarterback.
Nutt and Malzahn also have said they expect the passing game to continue to progress next season.
David Williams, Damian’s father, declined comment on the meeting and whether his son is considering transferring from Arkansas.
“To be honest with you, I don’t think any of the boys want to transfer. They love Arkansas,” Rick Cleveland said. “But as a ballplayer, you want to be used to the best of your abilities.”
Ben Cleveland and Damian Williams each made the SEC All-Freshman Team and are among Arkansas’ top six receivers.
Williams is tied for second on the team with 19 catches for 235 yards and 2 touchdowns, including a score that put Arkansas ahead to stay just before halftime in its SEC West title-clinching 28-14 victory at Mississippi State.
Cleveland is tied for fourth on the team with 11 catches for 98 yards and 2 touchdowns, including the game-tying reception in overtime against Alabama before Jeremy Davis hit the winning extra point in a 24-23 victory.
Mustain has completed 64 of 122 passes for 853 yards and 10 touchdowns with 8 interceptions. He started eight games, all victories by the Razorbacks, before being replaced by sophomore Casey Dick.
While the three Springdale freshmen have played key roles in the Razorbacks’ season, Rick Cleveland said they anticipated having more impact on the offense.
“It’s a very fluid situation,” Cleveland said of whether he expects any of the Springdale players to transfer. “These are 18-year-old kids. One day they want to stay. One day they’re upset and want to leave.
“ What the coaching staff has to understand is that they can’t keep telling these kids, ‘This is going to happen, this is going to happen, this is going to happen,’ and it doesn’t happen.”
Rick Cleveland said his son and Damian Williams want to play in an offense where they’ll catch 60 passes per season.
J. J. Meadors, with 62 catches in 1995, is the only Razorback with 60 or more catches in a season in the program’s history.
Five SEC players have 60 or more catches this season; three had 60 or more last season.
“Our boys are used to catching 60 passes a year,” Rick Cleveland said. “They want to go to a college where they get the same opportunity. Whether they’re good enough to do that or not is a whole different question. They have to earn that.
“ They are team players... but they’re saying, ‘Hey, I don’t know if I’ll be happy being in this offense, catching 10 balls a year or 15 and blocking 90 percent of the time.’”
