Sports Talk With Bo Mattingly's Podcast

Clay Moser has more than a decade of experience in the NBA, coached LeBron James last season, and is at the forefront of analytics. We sat down with him to tell his story, starting with working with LeBron and the Lakers (4:28), and how he got into coaching at NC State with Jim Valvano (9:08). He tells us an incredible and funny Valvano story (12:53), and how he sees analytics in basketball (21:00). Finally, we get into how he plans on leading the analytics charge at Arkansas (30:00).

Brandon Allen is a lot of things, including an Arkansas school record holder, a two-time bowl winner and an NFL quarterback. But perhaps more than anything, he’s as cool a customer as they come. We sit down with the former Hog to talk about getting his first NFL start and win, and what that experience has been like (3:43). We talk about how he started playing football and became a quarterback (15:35), and how he always wanted to play for the Hogs (20:43). Later, we get into the crazy early parts of his Razorback career (23:42), battling through injuries and criticism (30:20). Finally, we discuss how his career has gone so far and how he remembers his time at Arkansas (36:39).

Arkansas women’s basketball standout Chelsea Dungee is already a school record holder and is on the Wooden Award watch list. We sat down with her as she told us her powerful and emotional story, starting with what she feels her purpose is and her goal of being a first-round WNBA Draft pick (5:07). Chelsea talks about how her mom inspires her and how she learned from her when their home burned down in high school (9:27). We talk about what kind of teammate she is (19:19), and how she says she doesn’t need to get away from the game and recharge (23:23). Finally, we get into why she’s a bad loser (28:40) and not letting her emotions get the best of her on the court (30:40).

We sit down with former Razorback Chris Gragg and go behind the scenes of what it was like to be a player during the Bobby Petrino era. We start with Chris getting recruited by Houston Nutt and being a part of one of the best signing classes in program history (2:45). He tells us about growing up in Warren, Ark., (10:17) and then the successes with the Razorbacks and getting to the Sugar Bowl (16:00). We talk about what it was like to play for Bobby Petrino and the impact of the motorcycle wreck on the team (20:25). Chris tells us about playing for John L. Smith, and why things just weren’t the same (26:26). Finally, we get into how Chris overcame injuries to make it in the NFL, and what the draft process was like (33:29).

For this episode of the podcast, we go inside the mind of first-year men’s basketball coach Eric Musselman. We start by talking about the culture he wants to build at Arkansas (6:52), and how knowledge can help the team and program get better every day (9:47). We discuss what he thinks helps players and leads to success (16:27), and what game and practice prep looks like for he and his staff (28:14). Finally, we get into how he wants to attack recruiting top players to Arkansas (41:13).

In many ways, Jim Lindsey defines what it means to be a Razorback. Using archived audio from Jim and conversations with his sons, Lyndy and John David—as well as his grandson, Jack—we tell his story. We start at the beginning, with Jim’s early life and how he developed his passion for the Razorbacks (2:43). You’ll hear the story of how he rallied the Hogs vs. Texas in 1965 despite having broken ribs and his success with Arkansas (9:43). We get into the start of his professional career (16:19), his unsuccessful run for governor (24:56), and how his impact on the University of Arkansas continued after his playing days (31:28). Finally, we talk to his grandson, Jack, a third-generation Razorback (39:25), and discuss Jim’s legacy (43:09).

Ever wonder what it takes for a college football team to go on the road? We take you behind the scenes with the help of Jake Rosch, the director of football equipment operations at the University of Arkansas. We start with gear distribution, and how it’s decided who gets what and what the team wears (4:00). Then, we talk about packing up all the equipment for road games, and everything that goes into it (13:57), as well as player and coach superstitions (24:31). We get the inside scoop on what visiting locker rooms are like (31:06), and finally, we get Jake’s take on why he and his crew like doing what they do (36:13).

Colby Hale has done things with the soccer program at Arkansas that no other coach could, so we sat down with him to learn how he’s done it. We start with how selling security systems prepared him to become a soccer coach, and how problem solving is a big part of who he is (4:45). We talk about how personal and team growth only comes from being outside your comfort zone, and the impact it has on his program (8:43). Colby tells us about how a family move to England got him into soccer, and having a fighter pilot dad (19:03). We get into the growing popularity of soccer in the U.S. (23:48), and finally, how he’s gotten total ownership and buy-in from his players (30:15).

We sit down with former Arkansas coach Houston Nutt for a fascinating and wide-ranging conversation, starting with what it’s like for him to be out of coaching (5:00). Nutt talks about his life growing up and getting recruited by Bear Bryant and Frank Broyles (13:10). We get into his playing career at Arkansas and why he transferred to Oklahoma State (19:00), as well how he got his break in coaching (25:08). He tells us how he got the Arkansas job (30:46) and what made that 1998 season so special (37:53). We get his side of the story on his famous postgame interview after upsetting No. 1 LSU in 2007 (47:07), and into the distractions of the 2006-07 seasons and what happened at the end (53:33).

In a span of just 48 hours in 2017, Arkansas athletics made a couple of big hires. For the first time, we give you an inside look at how it all went down with the help of then-interim AD Julie Cromer. We get into her becoming the interim AD (6:00) and how the decision to find a new football coach was made (14:05). She tells us why she thinks Arkansas is a great job (20:20). Then, we discuss what the Razorbacks were looking for in a new coach and how the 48-hour stretch that saw a new AD and coach introduced began (27:40). Finally, we talk about how Hunter Yurachek and Chad Morris met and getting negotiations done (34:00).

Quinn Grovey is the only starting quarterback to record back-to-back 10-win seasons in Arkansas football history. We sit down with the Razorback great to get his story, including how he left the state of Oklahoma to come to Arkansas (6:00). He has a great story about Andre Ware and Houston (16:11), and talks about how he found out Ken Hatfield was leaving (22:35). Later, we get into how his broadcast career started (30:19), and his relationship with Frank Broyles (33:37). Finally, we discuss how his career might have been different if he was playing in today’s age of college football (41:16).

T.J. Smith is a Razorback football team captain, and he’s having an impact on and off the field. We dive into what life was like for him as a kid, and how he learned about serving others at a young age (7:22). He tells the hilarious story of how he started playing football for the first time in high school (13:00), and how that led to college coaches—including in the Ivy League—noticing him as a prospect (17:00). We get a first-hand account of the impact of a coaching change on the student-athletes (20:51), and finally, we get to know T.J. a little more and what he wants his future to look like (28:02).

Dre Greenlaw has been through more in life than most. We talk about his childhood of growing up in the foster care system and moving all over the state of Arkansas (2:46). Dre tells us how faith played a major role in his life and helped him get through the tough times (7:33), and then we get into how he met now-Houston assistant coach Brian Early and what led to him living with the Earlys (11:19). We get into the tough decision for Dre to come to Arkansas and turn down Coach Early’s offer to play at Arkansas State (17:56), and how his journey is going now (23:50). Finally, we get into what the coaching transition was like for him at Arkansas (25:07), and what he wants people to think when they see him (26:38).

Have you ever wondered what goes into getting Arkansas’ top-class facilities ready for players, coaches and fans alike? We did. And we sat down with associate AD for facilities Justin Maland to get the inside scoop, starting with the new grass surface that was installed at Razorback Stadium (2:03). We get into the 20,000-foot view of managing facilities on a college campus and the facilities “arms race” (7:11). We talk about everything that went into the north endzone project (15:44) and the upgrades coming to Baum-Walker Stadium (22:35). Justin talks about working for Norm DeBriyn and the baseball program and getting into facilities management (28:10).

The Razorback football program recently hired Turner Gill as its new executive director of player and staff development, and so we sat down with the former college head coach to get to know him and his vision for Arkansas. We get into why he decided to retire from coaching (4:28) and what he learned from legendary coach Tom Osborne (11:40). Gill tells us why he decided to start playing baseball, and how that led to him getting into coaching and winning three national titles as an assistant (17:40). We talk about what he’s bringing to his new role (27:00) and finally how his experiences as a player and coach help him relate to student-athletes (35:30).

Ken Hatfield is a Razorback legend. He grew up in Arkansas, played for the 1964 national championship team and later returned to become the head coach with the highest career winning percentage in program history. We sat down with Hafield to reflect on his career—beginning with whether there is any controversy to Arkansas’ football national championship in 1964 (2:40)? The impact Frank Broyles had on unifying the state behind the football program (4:30) and how different the culture is today (6:55). Next, Hatfield recalls some of his favorite memories from the 1964 season (16:20), including his famous punt return against Texas (22:27). We explore how he got into coaching (26:12), his return to Arkansas (31:04) and his departure for Clemson after two back-to-back Southwest Conference championships (34:57). Finally, we talk to Hatfield about his new role of the College Football Playoff selection committee (41:44).

Mental health of student-athletes has become one of the most talked-about issues in college athletics. Arkansas has taken a step forward, hiring Dr. Chris Bader as the assistant athletic director for mental health and performance. We sat down with Bader to get his thoughts on what people need to understand about mental health and the impact social media has on it (4:15). We get into working with coaches (8:15), and what the key is to dealing with pressure and failure (16:19). Bader discusses why anxiety issues are more prevalent than ever (26:20) and advice on getting mentally healthy (28:00).

When many people think of Clint Stoerner, they think of the fumble against Tennessee. But shouldn’t he be remember for so much more? We sat down with the former Razorback to tell his story—starting with what he’s up to now and why he likes coaching (3:00). We go back to how he grew up (9:36) and how he got into football instead of baseball (15:50). Next, he tells us why he chose Arkansas over LSU (21:18) and what it was like when Houston Nutt got hired (25:25). We get into what he remembers about the 1998 Tennessee game, the fumble that everyone talks about and the immediate aftermath (29:53). He talks about what he had to endure from angry fans (36:43), and what he thinks fans think of when they hear his name (42:48). Finally, we talk to Clint about getting redemption against the Vols in 1999 and his story coming full circle (44:05).

Ryne Stanek and Jalen Beeks were once teammates with the Razorbacks. Now, after taking two very different paths, they’re teammates again with the Tampa Bay Rays, and are part of a grand pitching experiment. We dive in to the “opener” role that Stanek has taken on and how he likes it (3:50), and his journey to the big leagues (10:00). We get into what it was like for him to get the call to the majors (13:20) and how he still follows the Razorbacks (16:09). Next, Beeks joins the pod and talks about how his JUCO experience helped pave the way for him to make it to the show (20:47). We chat about how playing at Arkansas helped prepare him for where he is today (27:21) and, finally, get his thoughts on the Hog baseball program today (29:43).

If you ask people in the know, Maria Fassi might just be the LPGA’s next superstar. We get her thoughts on those impressions and whether or not it adds pressure (2:36). She takes us through why winning the NCAA title at home was so important to her (9:40), and then rewind to how she got into golf in the first place (18:00). We walk through how she decided to go to college and chose Arkansas (24:00), and playing in the inaugural Augusta National Women’s Amateur (28:10). Maria tells us where her confidence comes from (33:00) and we get into why people love her swing (42:19). Finally, we learn how hard work is paying off for Maria and what she hopes the future holds (45:35).