Looking Back at 1980's, Which Was Decade of Hogs' Success

With Ken Hatfield, Lou Holtz Razorbacks, you'll be surprised at how many they won

Arkansas Communications

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — High, puffy hair was in style and the 1980's were, looking back, an age of excess. That includes Arkansas football, which was one of the top teams for most of that period of time under Ken Hatfield and Lou Holtz.

Americans indulged in everything they could afford (probably a lot of over-spending) and for Razorback fans, winning football games were definitely in style. In today's edition of the Slop House Podcast, allHOGS.com writers Kent Smith and Andy Hodges look back on those years of getting close to that elusive national title while stacking up a season of bowl appearances, and some of the surprising numbers that suggest the glory days in the Southwest Conference weren't what fans glamorize them to be.

How good was this decade, really? The Hogs had the highest winning percentage of any team in the Southwest Conference, which was as good as any in the country in the early part of the decade, they were tied with Alabama, played in bowl games nine years in the decade (the one that didn't, a Hall of Fame coach in Holtz was fired), the most wins by a starting quarterback in program history.

The winning percentage of nearly 72% is second in program history behind the 77.6% of the 1960's. The 1970's is third with a win percentage of nearly 70%. Those are the standards I grew up watching and started covering early in my career.

That last items was Greg Thomas, who also set a new standard in the state of an African-American starting quarterback for the Hogs in 1984, which was a watershed year for the entire athletic program along with 1985 in bringing results of new attitudes on race, but we'll cover that more in a later episode.

This one looks at the overall football program, from the period of time with Hatfield and how many people tend to look past the 1985 season, which was first of three seasons with 10 wins during the decade.

HOG FEED:

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DFW RADIO BIT SHOWS WHY TEXAS JOINING SEC MIGHT LEAD TO SOME MISUNDERSTANDINGS

ARKANSAS FOOTBALL SCHEDULE GIVES HOGS BEST CHANCE IN DECADE TO TOPPLE LSU, ALABAMA FOR FINAL SEC WEST CROWN

FORMER RAZORBACK TREYLON BURKS WRAPS UP HONEYMOON, JETS OFF TO TITANS IN BETTER SHAPE

DUKE COMING TO BUD WALTON A MARQUEE GAME THAT SHOULD BE HAPPENING WITH HOGS

LAST THING OTHER SEC TEAMS PROBABLY WANT IS KJ JEFFERSON PLAYING WITH A CHIP ON HIS SHOULDER

FORMER ARKANSAS STAR CORLISS WILLIAMSON FINDS PATH BACK TO NBA

NUMBERS WILL SHOCK HOGS FANS BUT IT'S WHY THEY GOT SUCH GOOD SCHEDULE FOR 2024

WILL ARKANSAS FINALLY BECOME TEAM THAT ROCKS THE BOAT REGARDING RULES?

DUKE CHERRY ON TOP OF LOADED HOME SLATE DESIGNED TO SELL TICKETS

MORE QUESTIONS THAN ANSWERS RIGHT NOW FOR DAVE VAN HORN WITH HOGS' ROSTER FOR 2024

RECORD-SETTING FORMER QUARTERBACK RYAN MALLETT DROWNS IN FLORIDA

MUSSELMAN ANSWERS NBA CRITICS, ADDRESSES DEVO DAVIS NEEDS FOR NBA

2024 MOCK DRAFTS PREDICT GLOOM, DOOM FOR HOGS BASKETBALL, BUT THAT WILL CHANGE

ARKANSAS EXPECTED TO FINISH OUTSIDE OF TOP 25 IN FOOTBALL FOR NEXT THREE YEARS

THESE NBA DRAFT PROJECTIONS FOR 2024 ARE MEANINGLESS

CHARLOTTE HORNETS HOPING TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF NICK SMITH'S FALL IN FIRST ROUND OF DRAFT

ARKANSAS FINALLY COMPLETES ROSTER WITH MEMPHIS TRANSFER

ORLANDO FANS NOT REALLY WORTHY OF GETTING SOMEONE LIKE ANTHONY BLACK WITH MAGIC

LIVE BLOG OF NBA DRAFT THURSDAY NIGHT

WHICH TEAMS LOSE SEC SPORTS IN THESE SIX SCENARIOS?

VOLS' EXIT AT COLLEGE WORLD SERIES MAKES DAY BRIGHTER FOR A LOT OF RAZORBACK FANS

WIGGINS AMONG FOUR RAZORBACKS AT MLB COMBINE

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