LITTLE ROCK — A daily salary exclusively for the elite, a litany of productive dual-threat quarterbacks, current star power and the good ole days mean the free pass for first-year coaches might not last 12 games in College Station, Gainesville, Starkville or Knoxville.
None of those circumstances are relevant in Fayetteville and that’s a good thing for Chad Morris, who inherited a talent gap that should be worth a two-year grace period at a minimum.
In the four years before Morris arrived, Arkansas’ recruiting classes were ranked Nos. 30, 22, 24 and 26 by ESPN. Short on time, Morris’ first class was No. 51.
Meanwhile, SEC West members Alabama, Auburn, LSU and Texas A&M have not had a class ranked lower than No. 20 during those five years, and most have been in the top 15. In addition, Arkansas’ 2018 schedule includes four members of a group being heralded as the SEC’s best collection of quarterbacks in years.
Morris, and the others in their initial year on the job — Texas A&M’s Jimbo Fisher, Florida’s Dan Mullen, Mississippi State’s Joe Moorhead and Tennessee’s Jeremy Pruitt — know the newly-hired darling of the fans and the media can wind up on the hot seat in three years or less.
Ole Miss’ Matt Luke is in his first season without an interim tag, but NCAA sanctions hanging over the program will skew recruiting and limit his chance of success.
Considering Morris’ situation, 5-7 or 6-6 this year and a minor bowl game next year would be a reasonable and acceptable bridge to 2020.
A .500 record would produce immediate grumbling at A&M and Mississippi State, reluctant tolerance at Florida and some short-term satisfaction at Tennessee.
Fisher is most on the spot to produce immediately:
—Hired away from Florida State, Fisher’s $75 million salary works out to $20,547.95 per day for 10 years. Alabama’s Nick Saban recently got a raise to $7.5 million, so A&M’s big donors and fans expect Saban-like results and quickly. Eight wins are not enough. Fisher’s predecessor, Kevin Sumlin, won eight or more in five of his six years. Also contributing to the pressure, Fisher has coached eight quarterbacks drafted in the NFL and former No. 1 pick Jameis Winston called him “the quarterback guru.”
—Mullen is inexorably linked to successful quarterbacks and the Gators haven’t had a standout at the position since Tim Tebow almost a decade ago. As an offensive coordinator, Mullen tutored Alex Smith at Utah and Tebow in Gainesville. As head coach at Mississippi State, his protégés were Dak Prescott and Nick Fitzgerald. Tebow, Prescott and Fitzgerald were legitimate dual threats and even Smith rushed for more than 1,000 yards total his last two years. It is no coincidence that Emory Jones, supposedly one of the best run-pass quarterbacks in the country last year, was the first big recruiting victory for Mullen at Florida. Only one season removed from an SEC West championship, Florida fans expect immediate success.
—Under normal circumstances, Moorhead would not be under the gun his first year, but a healthy Nick Fitzgerald changes everything. Fitzgerald threw 647 times for more than 4,200 yards and 36 touchdowns, and carried 357 times for more than 2,300 yards and 30 touchdowns in the last two years. Although Moorhead has said there will be less designed running by the quarterback, such numbers conjure winning scenarios. A defense that made giant strides last year is also part of the reason the Bulldogs are behind only Alabama, Georgia and Auburn among the favorites to win the SEC.
—Nine times a winner of 10 games or more and a five-time participant in the SEC championship game under Phil Fulmer, Tennessee has won seven or less since Fulmer departed after the 2008 season and has not sniffed the game in Atlanta. Since he left, the Vols are 23-49 in the SEC. Citing four top 20 recruiting classes in the last five years and the success of other Saban disciples, the faithful believe they are not far from a return to the league hierarchy.