David Bazzel brings high-level energy to everything he does.
Whether it is his highly-rated morning radio show, Morning Mayhem with Roger Scott on 103.7 The Buzz from 6-10 a.m., or the Little Rock Touchdown Club, there will be positive energy.
On Tuesday, Baz — as he is known to most — revealed yet another outstanding lineup of speakers this fall for his creation, the LRTDC, a group that stands out as one of the potentially best as the club goes into its 19th year.
Baz will tell you he wasn’t the best linebacker in Arkansas Razorback history, but no one played harder and with an energy, anticipation and strength to lead him to being voted captain of the 1985 Razorbacks.
That team went 10-2 and beat Arizona State in the Holiday Bowl in San Diego.
Baz had already impressed head coach Ken Hatfield the year before when Hatfield returned home to take over the reins after Lou Holtz was asked to leave.
In Hatfield’s first season, the Razorbacks were 7-3-1, which was good enough for an invite to the Liberty Bowl to take on Auburn and Heisman Trophy winner Bo Jackson.
Jackson had to think his number was 53 by the time the game because he was tackled by Baz, No. 53, 15 times, earning Most Valuable player honors for Baz.
Jackson was held to 88 total yards, although he did get 40 on a touchdown run in the fourth quarter to win the game 21-15.
The lunches start with Arkansas Razorback Coach Sam Pittman on Tuesday, Aug. 22 and is followed by Laura Rutledge of ESPN on Monday, Aug. 28. Two-time Super Bowl champion quarterback Peyton Manning takes the snaps on Tuesday, Sept. 5.
Heisman Trophy winner and former Dallas Cowboy running back Tony Dorsett will be the speaker Monday, Sept. 11, with University of Arkansas Athletic Director Hunter Yurachek set for Monday, Sept. 18.
Former Razorback and NFL running back Peyton Hills, who made national news when he saved his son and niece from drowning in January, will take center stage on Monday, Sept. 25, with another Super Bowl champion quarterback, Jim McMahon, coming to The Rock on Monday, Oct. 9.
Arkansas State University Coach Butch Jones is up Monday, Oct. 9, with Jackie Sherrill, former head coach at Pittsburgh, Texas A&M and Mississippi State, following him on Monday, Oct. 16.
University of Central Arkansas Coach Nathan Brown is the featured speaker on Monday, Oct. 23, with Chris Doering, one of the great college football stories and SEC Network analyst, appearing Monday, Oct. 30.
Next will be Alyssa Lang of the SEC Network on Monday, Nov. 6, and she will be followed by ESPN’s Ryan McGee of the “Marty and McGee Show.” David Cutcliffe, of the SEC office and former head coach at Ole Miss and Duke, closes the regular season on Tuesday, Nov. 21.
The awards banquet on Jan. 12 will feature either another Super Bowl champion quarterback, Kurt Warner, a great NFL success story, or former Southern Cal and NFL running back Reggie Bush.
The LRTDC — which has grown from 45 members to an average attendance of 300 per week — was declared the best touchdown club in America by Paul Finebaum of the SEC Network last year.
The club has even been a confessional that relaunched the careers of Jon Gruden, now a consultant with the New Orleans Saints, and Hugh Freeze, head coach of the Auburn Tigers.
Both appeared at the LRTDC, admitted their mistakes and asked for forgiveness.
Mostly, though the lunches are entertaining, informative and fun and presented with an energy only Baz can create every day.