Back from a self-imposed hiatus, it’s 20 Questions.

This time around, we sat down with Fayetteville attorney Woody Bassett. If you don’t know Bassett, you probably haven’t been in town long.

Born in Louisiana, but a Fayetteville guy through and through, Bassett has been connected to the Arkansas Razorbacks since he roamed the sidelines as a kid with the Broyles brothers. These days, he’s an entrenched and vital part of the community.

Bassett has represented his fair share of Hogs over the years, too, and even scored a rare head-to-head victory over the NCAA by gaining basketballer Sunday Adebayo an extra season of eligibility back in the 1990 s. Anybody smart enough to beat the NCAA is good in our book.

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Arkansas Democrat-Gazette What is your first Razorbacks memory ?

Woody Bassett Going to a game at Razorback Stadium with my father [Bill ] in, I think it was probably 1959. That’s my first vivid memory.

ADG What was your favorite thing about Fayetteville during your college years ?

WB The people. I think anybody that lives in Fayetteville is blessed to be able to live with so many wonderful people.

ADG What’s your favorite part now ?

WB Still the people.

ADG It seems safe to assume players got in trouble when you first started doing this. Is it also safe to assume they get more media attention now ?

WB No question. There’s just so much more media now, so many different forms of media now — and obviously the Internet — so when someone gets in trouble now, there’s going to be a lot more attention.

ADG Does that make your job any tougher ?

WB I don’t think it makes my job as a lawyer any tougher, but I think it makes it tougher on the player. There’s more scrutiny now about the case and the disposition of the case, because so many people are watching it, reading about it or listening about it.

ADG Do you think these guys are on such a pedestal that it’s easy to forget they’re still kids in a lot of ways ?

WB It is easy for people to forget that. I think when you play for the Razorbacks there’s a lot of attention on you, and you have to take the good with the bad. If you perform well, you get a lot of nice things written about you, but if you make a mistake, there’s a downside because you’re going to get a lot of attention for that. That truly goes with the territory.

ADG One local media member lovingly refers to you as “Perry Mason to the Razorbacks.” How do you feel about that ?

WB Well, that’s a nice thing for someone to say, but all Perry Mason’s clients were found not guilty. I appreciate the compliment, but I’m hardly a Perry Mason.

ADG L. A. Law or Boston Legal ?

WB Boston Legal.

ADG The Verdict or 12 Angry Men ?

WB The Verdict, and that’s a tough decision.

ADG Don’t you think the Sunday Adebayo case is worth at least a miniseries ?

WB That’s probably not a miniseries, but it is a nice story because he’s a good guy and he was really dealt an injustice. But to the NCAA’s credit, they did the right thing.

ADG What was your best sport growing up ?

WB Basketball. I was an average basketball player, but probably a below-average football player.

ADG What’s your greatest athletic achievement ?

WB I don’t have any athletic achievement I feel like I can brag about.... The guys I played with would read whatever I said, and say, “I’m not sure about that.”

ADG OK, two-part question: What’s the best sporting event you’ve ever attended, and why ?

WB My favorite memory is being at the national championship game in 1994 when Scotty Thurman nailed that threepointer to seal the win against Duke. It doesn’t get any better than that.

ADG What’s in your CD player right now ?

WB The Best of The Band, and I’ve got a Van Morrison disc in there, but I’m pretty flexible on my music. I like it all.

ADG If you could bring one currently touring music act to Fayetteville, who would it be ?

WB I think I’d bring Bruce Springsteen.

ADG What’s your favorite part of game day ?

WB Boy, I love the tailgates.

ADG Is Reynolds Razorback Stadium too comfortable ?

WB I think that’s up to the crowd, but I really think the atmosphere at night is pretty fantastic.... There’s just a lot more electricity in the air at night.

ADG So, will we see you in any of the courtside seats at Walton Arena ?

WB No. I sit in seats that my father had for years. He had two great seats at Barnhill Arena back before Arkansas basketball really hit the big-time, and when we built Walton Arena, he kept those seats in the same location. I’m very happy where I’m sitting.

ADG We think you used to have a bumper sticker that read, “Question Authority,” which in a way seems odd for an attorney. What was behind that ?

WB By the way, I haven’t had that sticker on my car in years, but what that meant at the time was that every once in a while you need to question what your government’s doing. All of us as citizens need to be supportive of our country and supportive of our government, but every once in a while, you need to question what they’re doing, let people know you disagree, and why. It was nothing more or less than that.

ADG OK, that’s 20. Thanks for playing.