It’s a brisk morning. I awoke with the sun to a blanket of frost and an orange sun chasing it’s sister the moon across the sky. After I sat down with my cup of tea I couldn’t help but think about the sadness of today. Today most likely marks an end to something great. Well… at least something that was great but could have been better. Today could be Darren McFadden’s last game in a razorback uniform.

How do you measure dissapointment? How do you measure what might have been? Don’t get me wrong.  McFadden’s number are staggering. 4279 yards and almost 40 total touchdowns so far in only 3 seasons. And yet at the risk of being greedy I wonder what else he could have accomplished if only for a more multi-dimensional offense. Houston Nutt has never hidden the fact that he likes to run the ball. This has always baffled me since he, himself, was a quarterback. Regardless, Nutt has ranted and raved about our rushing offense’s rankings for years. It’s hard not to have good rushing numbers when that is all you do.

Last year, under Malzhon, we got a glimpse of what could be. Misdirection, trick plays and everything in between kept defenses guessing which allowed DMAC and Felix Jones to have great years culminating in DMAC coming in second in the Heisman voting.

Fast-forward through all the transfers and lies and drama of the off season to this year.  DMAC is the Heisman front runner. Our team is ranked in the top 25 and things could go well. They don’t. Despite glimmers of hope, this year has been disappointment after disappointment. I cannot help but wonder what could have been. If the so called “Pro-style offense” that we were promised didn’t turn out to be the same old same old who knows how different this year could have been. As I look back, I can’t help but wonder how much better DMAC’s numbers could have been without our “vanilla” offense.

As we bid him farewell I really do wish him the best. I’m glad we got the South Carolina game. I’m glad he was here at all. But I will never forget what Nutt did to him by his lies and ego. May we, as fans, never forget the joy that DMAC brought to us. I hope he has a stellar day today. I hope that he and the fans can have one more special moment as he wraps up his Hog career.

Goodbye Darren. Thank you for staying home, playing big, and giving us Hog fans something to cheer about. Good Luck in the Pros.