I pose this not to be argumentative, but to discuss perception versus reality. I've worked with hundreds of young men and women here in Florida as they pursue opportunities as scholar athletes. While I realize Florida is different because of population difference and having 3 p5/numerous g5 schools, this is more to the mindset of these kids and variables that effect their decisions.
My entire family as far back as I can remember were diehard St. Louis Cardinals fans. I ended up being a Cub fan. Why? Because in my youth cable TV became a thing. WGN was on channel 9. At that time you still had to tune in to the radio to catch most Card games, but there was a Cub game on channel 9 almost every single day from April to September. I was hooked when Sandberg became the starting 2nd baseman. I use this to demonstrate the effects of available media.
We live in an age where information is only a keystroke away. When I was a kid most Hog games were by radio with the occasional televised game. Later we could watch many (not all) on Raycom or Jefferson Pilot. As cable expanded you could actually watch most Razorback games on Saturday. Now every single P5 program can be viewed on some form of outlet every single week (most G5s as well). It was easier for us to grow up all Hog because of family ties and (for lack of a better way to say it) limited options. It's not that way for these kids.
If a kid is a recruit, they now have camps, travel leagues, Facebook, Twitter, Hudl, recruiting services...it's endless. This combined with exposure to any significant program opens an entirely different world of possibilities that we may never have considered at that age.
The point is: many of us grew up "all Hog" because it's what we knew. It's not the same for this generation. You can disagree, but it's foolish and not reality. The majority on here were also not highly recruited athletes coming out of high school, so you have no experience in being able to relate to this decision. It's easy to say "I would be all Razorback because that's my dream", but you didn't get offers from Notre Dame, Michigan, Stanford, etc. I'm as big of a Hog fan as anybody here, but (as a parent) if my child receives offers from Stanford, Vanderbilt, Northwestern, etc then I am definitely going to at least have them look at those options. I find it hard to believe that most parents on here would be so obtuse as to not do the same. If my child WANTS to go to Arkansas, great...but I'm not going to force that on them given the other opportunities.
To summarize, many of us (myself included sometimes) are hung up on the way things used to be and what WE valued as a fan. These kids don't have the same mentality, dreams, or "loyalties" we had growing up. Your OPINION may be that it's right or wrong, but that's not an opinion they share.
Anyways...off my soapbox. Flame away...
My entire family as far back as I can remember were diehard St. Louis Cardinals fans. I ended up being a Cub fan. Why? Because in my youth cable TV became a thing. WGN was on channel 9. At that time you still had to tune in to the radio to catch most Card games, but there was a Cub game on channel 9 almost every single day from April to September. I was hooked when Sandberg became the starting 2nd baseman. I use this to demonstrate the effects of available media.
We live in an age where information is only a keystroke away. When I was a kid most Hog games were by radio with the occasional televised game. Later we could watch many (not all) on Raycom or Jefferson Pilot. As cable expanded you could actually watch most Razorback games on Saturday. Now every single P5 program can be viewed on some form of outlet every single week (most G5s as well). It was easier for us to grow up all Hog because of family ties and (for lack of a better way to say it) limited options. It's not that way for these kids.
If a kid is a recruit, they now have camps, travel leagues, Facebook, Twitter, Hudl, recruiting services...it's endless. This combined with exposure to any significant program opens an entirely different world of possibilities that we may never have considered at that age.
The point is: many of us grew up "all Hog" because it's what we knew. It's not the same for this generation. You can disagree, but it's foolish and not reality. The majority on here were also not highly recruited athletes coming out of high school, so you have no experience in being able to relate to this decision. It's easy to say "I would be all Razorback because that's my dream", but you didn't get offers from Notre Dame, Michigan, Stanford, etc. I'm as big of a Hog fan as anybody here, but (as a parent) if my child receives offers from Stanford, Vanderbilt, Northwestern, etc then I am definitely going to at least have them look at those options. I find it hard to believe that most parents on here would be so obtuse as to not do the same. If my child WANTS to go to Arkansas, great...but I'm not going to force that on them given the other opportunities.
To summarize, many of us (myself included sometimes) are hung up on the way things used to be and what WE valued as a fan. These kids don't have the same mentality, dreams, or "loyalties" we had growing up. Your OPINION may be that it's right or wrong, but that's not an opinion they share.
Anyways...off my soapbox. Flame away...
