Nutt tells fans Razorbacks ready to return to postseason

LITTLE ROCK - Houston Nutt managed to draw a laugh from the Little Rock Touchdown Club when he talked about the last two seasons.<br> <br> ``We&#39;ve had two rough years,&#39;&#39; he told the room full of Arkansas fans. ``Six straight years I didn&#39;t hear much from you. Everything was pretty good.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> The frustration at the Touchdown Club was palpable last fall as the Razorbacks stumbled to their second straight losing season, but on Tuesday, the Arkansas coach made an appearance, determined to convince fans that better days are ahead. Nutt spoke for about 45 minutes before answering several questions.<br> <br> ``We want to get back to a bowl, and I&#39;m going to tell you this, you can multiply it nine times for your coaches,&#39;&#39; Nutt said. ``You want to get back we want to take you there. But you can multiply it nine times. That&#39;s how bad these coaches want to get you there.<br> <br> ``And we&#39;re going to do it. We&#39;re going to do it this year.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> Nutt took the Razorbacks to bowls in each of his first six seasons before missing the postseason in 2004 and 2005. Arkansas went 4-7 last year.<br> <br> One of the Razorbacks&#39; losses last season was a 70-17 rout at Southern California. Arkansas opens the 2006 season at home against USC.<br> <br> ``It was tough ... embarrassing. There&#39;s no other way to say it,&#39;&#39; Nutt said. ``We do owe them. We owe them a big one.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> The Razorbacks finished spring practice earlier this month, giving Nutt a chance to stop and analyze his team. Arkansas relied on its running game last year Darren McFadden rushed for 1,113 yards, becoming the seventh freshman in Southeastern Conference history to reach 1,000.<br> <br> But the Razorbacks lacked balance, frustrating fans who wanted a more aggressive passing game. Nutt, a star high school quarterback at Little Rock Central in the 1970s, tried to dispel the notion that he is too conservative.<br> <br> ``I know everybody wants to see the ball slung all over the field, and everybody can stand up and cheer,&#39;&#39; Nutt said. ``As former quarterback, I love to throw the football, and we&#39;re going to get better.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> Nutt has relinquished play-calling duties to Gus Malzahn, hired as Arkansas&#39; offensive coordinator after last season. Malzahn won the state title at Springdale last season the Bulldogs went 14-0 using his spread offense.<br> <br> Springdale&#39;s quarterback, Mitch Mustain, is coming to Arkansas after being one of the most sought-after recruits in the country, and Nutt is eager to see what he can do.<br> <br> ``Mitch Mustain will get a look early,&#39;&#39; Nutt said. ``He has great anticipation, he has RPMs on that football, and he knows where to go with it. That&#39;s what I&#39;m excited about.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> For now, Casey Dick is Arkansas&#39; No. 1 quarterback despite a difficult spring. Dick started the last four games in 2005 as a freshman after replacing Robert Johnson. The Razorbacks went 2-2 with Dick starting.<br> <br> ``Casey didn&#39;t have the spring we wanted him to have ended up strong last year as you know,&#39;&#39; Nutt said. ``Robert actually had the best spring, but again I think because he&#39;s sitting back there second team, it&#39;s a nice feeling sometimes ... bright lights aren&#39;t on.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> Although the Razorbacks need better quarterback play this year, Nutt says his receivers will be a major role in whether the offense improves. Marcus Monk has had 72 catches in his first two seasons at Arkansas, but the Razorbacks need another threat opposite him.<br> <br> Nutt said Arkansas had trouble recruiting receivers for a few years. He said that, because of quarterback Matt Jones&#39; running abilities, Arkansas had been labeled an option team.<br> <br> ``We didn&#39;t get the receivers that we needed during that time, but I&#39;m excited about what we have now,&#39;&#39; he said.<br> <br> Nutt said next year&#39;s freshmen receivers will have an immediate chance to show what they can do. Seven of Arkansas&#39; signees in February were receivers, including Springdale&#39;s Damian Williams, who had 1,495 yards receiving as a high school senior.<br> <br> ``All these guys, they were great in high school,&#39;&#39; Nutt said. ``Let&#39;s see ...&#39;&#39;<br> <br> (Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)