FAYETTEVILLE -- The Arkansas Razorbacks will stay together and play together on Christmas Day, four days prior to their Texas Bowl meeting against Texas at NRG Stadium in Houston.
Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema said the Razorbacks would be able to sleep in this morning prior to an hour-long brunch at 10:30 a.m., followed by meetings and then a 12- to 15-period workout that would be a shortened version of a normal Tuesday practice.
Then the Christmas fun begins with bowling and arcade action.
"We're going to Fast Lanes for some competition in the afternoon," he said. "There will be teams of five where they go against each other. They've got an arcade, and we give them movie passes that night."
Bielema said the Razorbacks have secured 22 bowling lanes at Fast Lane Entertainment in Lowell.
The Longhorns were prepared to travel to Houston on Christmas Eve and have activities together for Christmas, Coach Charlie Strong said last week. The Razorbacks decided to wait until Friday to travel, partly to save money and partly because Christmas Day on the road can be frustrating.
Bielema remembered a bowl game in which his team traveled on Christmas Day.
"It was just kind of a Debbie Downer," he said. "It was Christmas Day, you're on an airplane and going through security. You get there and everything was closed. Our guys couldn't go to dinner."
Mark Taurisani, Arkansas' assistant athletic director for football operations, came up with a travel plan.
"It would have cost us somewhere in the ballpark of $150,000 to go the day of Christmas day, rather than staying here and working through the day," Bielema said. "To go down on the 24th and 25th and have everything closed on a holiday, it just didn't make a lot of sense."
Bielema said traveling three days in advance of the bowl game will be new for him.
"I actually like it," he said. "We get a majority of our work done here, really treating it as a delayed road game, where we go on the road a day in advance, get a little more prep there."
On shoulders
Coach Bret Bielema was asked Monday about old-timers in Arkansas being excited about the direction of the program under his leadership as well as the Razorbacks' bowl game against Texas.
"I always say we stand on the shoulders of those who came before us," Bielema said. "That's not just a coaching cliche, it's absolutely how I feel and I try to get our players to buy into that.
"It's fun ... to embrace the alumni. When I first got here, they basically told me they weren't allowed to come to watch practices and be a part of the program."
Bielema has changed that.
"Everything I hear is positive," said Billy Ray Smith, the former Razorbacks All-American defensive end. "The things that I've watched, I'm a big-time Bielema backer. I like what he's doing."
The ritual
Sebastian Tretola said he's been doing his pregame ritual since high school. Whether it's been rainy or cold, Tretola has been doing it in a T-shirt, shorts and sandals for the Razorbacks this season.
"I walk around the field, just to get a feel of the field," Tretola said. "Obviously the field size doesn't change, but it's kind of a mental thing for me.
"Then I go out to the 50 after I do my little lap and I just get a little vibe. I don't really have a reason behind it. It's kind of become more so like an OCD thing, like I have to do it or I feel awkward."
Trey bien
Defensive end Trey Flowers is the SEC's active leader with 45 1/2 tackles for loss entering the postseason. Flowers is second among all active FBS players in tackles for loss, and his mark ranks third in Arkansas history behind Billy Ray Smith (63) and Henry Ford (46).
Brown twice
Texas has two standout players with almost the same name.
Defensive tackle Malcom Brown is a junior Outland Trophy finalist who had 14 tackles for loss and 6 1/2 sacks to go along with 64 tackles. Malcolm Brown is a senior running back who leads Texas with 737 rushing yards.
Crowd funning
Freshman offensive lineman Frank Ragnow said his favorite moment of the season was the reaction of fans after Arkansas beat LSU 17-0 to end a 17-game SEC losing streak.
"Just being in the middle of everyone," Ragnow said. "I didn't know what to do, but it was so fun."
Vaughn's a Horn
Three times Chris Vaughn was an Arkansas assistant coach when the Razorbacks played Texas.
Now Vaughn is on the other side of the rivalry as Texas' defensive backs coach and special teams coordinator. He moved to Texas this season after serving as cornerbacks coach at Memphis for two years.
Vaughn, from Tallahassee, Fla., played linebacker at Murray State for Coach Houston Nutt. He began his coaching career for Nutt at Arkansas as a graduate assistant in 1999, which the Razorbacks capped by beating Texas 27-6 in the Cotton Bowl.
Vaughn was a full-time assistant from 2000-2007 and was on staff when the Razorbacks won 38-28 at Texas in 2003 and lost 22-20 to the Longhorns in 2004. He followed Nutt to Ole Miss and coached there from 2008-2011 before going to Memphis.
Sports on 12/25/2014