Mules.
That's the name Gus Malzahn gave his softball team that entered the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Triple Crown of Softball several years ago.
Every time he entered a team, he asked whether the players could be assured of not playing Sunday morning because the team was made up of guys from a Bible study and Sunday school class.
He was always told, sure, lose the first two games.
They didn't. Not only did they worship together, most were coaches on the Shiloh Christian football team and had played competitive sports most of their lives.
So they would win a few games, and Malzahn and a couple of others would have a few home runs.
The one time they made it to Sunday morning, they held a worship service at Dupree Park in Jacksonville -- then the home of the second leg of the Triple Crown -- and several people attended.
The Mules participated three times, if memory serves, and even though they brought a check, they were given a scholarship because they didn't have a sponsor and they were just good guys.
Malzahn would go on to lead Springdale to an undefeated football season, and in 2006 he joined Houston Nutt's staff at Arkansas, bringing several of his former players, some of whom had committed to other schools.
The one year Malzahn was on Nutt's staff was tumultuous, to say the least.
Rumors flew, and while Malzahn has never confirmed specifics -- although it was reported he was called "High School" by former Hogs defensive coordinator Reggie Herring, who would apologize when the season was over -- one thought came to mind several times.
Malzahn and Nutt had to be as stubborn as mules to survive that season that divided much of the Razorbacks fan base.
They won 10 games in a row before losing the final three, including the SEC Championship to Florida (a game the Hogs should have won) and to Wisconsin in the Capital One Bowl in Orlando, Fla.
Sitting there Jan. 1, 2007, who would have ever thought that less than a decade later, Nutt would be a TV analyst and the Wisconsin coach, Bret Bielema, would be coaching the Arkansas Razorbacks.
And Malzahn is the head coach of the Auburn Tigers after spending a year as offensive coordinator at Tulsa, three at Auburn -- where he helped direct Cam Newton and the Tigers to the national championship -- and one at Arkansas State as head coach, where he went 9-3 before scoring the Tigers' head coaching job for the 2013 season.
That season, he turned a receiver into a quarterback, won the SEC and lost the national championship 34-31 to Florida State. He was labeled an offensive genius.
He's continued to win, just not at the same pace as arch rival Alabama. After 8-5 (4-4 SEC) and 7-6 (2-6) seasons, Malzahn entered this season under pressure. Remember, Auburn fired Gene Chizik two years after winning that 2010 national championship.
It didn't help Malzahn that he lost two of his first three home games this season, even though the losses were to No. 4 Clemson and No. 6 Texas A&M.
Then the Tigers beat tumultuous LSU, costing Les Miles his job; Louisiana-Monroe; and a rebuilding Mississippi State. Now the Tigers open as a nine-point favorite against the Arkansas Razorbacks, who are coming off a huge win over Ole Miss. The Hogs' losses are to No. 1 Alabama and the No. 6 Aggies.
Not sure how oddsmakers come up with point spreads or how they have incredible accuracy, but this one isn't about the spread, it's about which team executes and protects the ball. A spread of nine points is almost an insult, but oddsmakers can be mulish.
Sports on 10/19/2016