Arkansas Sports 360 - ArkansasSports360.com

12/3/2011 at 9:07pm

Image by Mark Wagner

Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe, an Arkansas State graduate, and ASU Coach Hugh Freeze celebrate the school's first outright Sun Belt Conference championship and a 10-win season Saturday after the Red Wolves' 45-14 win over Troy.

JONESBORO — Hugh Freeze didn't stand up in his post-game news conference and claim "I did not have textual relations with Ole Miss."

But he was open enough when we asked about him a certain text message — one that just about everybody around here had heard about by game time – to say he knew about the text in question and that it didn't come from him, and also that he had a good idea where it came from and from whom.

Someone, it seems, who has a phone in the 731 area code (western Tennessee one area code over from the 901 Memphis area) sent a text message to a phone number they thought was Archie Manning's cell phone. Manning, the former Ole Miss and NFL quarterbacking great, is pretty much the one-man committee finding the Rebels' next football coach.

Hugh Freeze coached at Ole Miss for three seasons under head coach Ed Orgeron. He's a native of North Mississippi. He's had an amazing first season as a Division I head coach in leading Arkansas State to a 10-2 season and an 8-0 mark in the Sun Belt Conference. On Saturday, his Red Wolves dispatched Troy 45-14 on a blustery late afternoon at ASU Stadium.

It makes a great story that Hugh Freeze might want to be the next Ole Miss coach and that Ole Miss might want him. The idea became a little hotter thanks to an interesting story in the Memphis Commercial Appeal by esteemed sports reporter Ron Higgins, who dug up the fact that a Houston man now has Archie Manning's old cell phone number. And, sure enough, since the Ole Miss job has opened up, the messages have been piling up on his phone, supposedly from coaches who want to get Manning's ear.

The story reported that one message came from ASU Coach Hugh Freeze touting his desire for the job.

He said in the post-game interviews that the text wasn't his. He's been made aware, though.

"I knew about the text, but I didn't do anything to stop it," he said. Before Saturday's game, Freeze wouldn't address the Commercial Appeal report.

However, Freeze also didn't say anything that would dispel any notion that he might go to Oxford if summoned. Just the same, he made no promises to make a home for seasons to come in Jonesboro.

"My wife and I enjoy Jonesboro. Our kids like it here," he said.

With a moment to think about it, he added, "Now, let me say that I'm from there."

He's had a dream season — for himself, for ASU fans and administrators, and for the players who suffered through back-to-back four-win seasons before Steve Roberts was let go after coaching nine years here. He had brought Freeze on board last year as offensive coordinator. The offense was pretty good last year.

Freeze brought in Dave Wommack, the former Arkansas defensive coordinator from 2002-04 and a veteran with stops such as Southern Mississippi and Ole Miss, to bring the defense up to the offense's level. Mission accomplished: Those close games Arkansas State was losing the past few seasons turned into close wins, and ASU pounded folks when the games weren't close.

The only losses this year were the defeats one would expect: at Illinois in the season opener, and later in September against current No. 4 Virginia Tech, which had one loss before Saturday.

The manageable portion of the schedule was handled perfectly. Quarterback Ryan Aplin was developed into what is probably the conference's player of the year. Freeze should be a shoo-in for league coach of the year and should draw national honors as well. Wommack, who was thrown under the bus at Fayetteville when Houston Nutt failed to recruit enough defensive talent, showed he's got quite the acumen to design top defense.

Just look at Saturday's game, where ASU adjusted at the half and limited Troy to 98 total yards and completely shut off the running game. We can't recall seeing a team absolutely admit it couldn't run quite like Troy did in the second half, as ASU outscored the visitors 21-0.

ASU administrators like athletic director Dean Lee had to know that if Freeze proved a successful hire, they'd have to deal with bigger programs trying to hire him. It beats the alternative of continuing to suffer with a 6-win ceiling, which Arkansas State stayed at for 18 years in Division I-A.

It's just that maybe no one thought we'd be having to deal with keeping the coach after one season. But that's probably where ASU is now: celebrating a championship — you should have seen the faces of all the supporters and fans on the field — and trying hoping to keep their gem of a coach.

"We had great chemistry," Aplin said of the turnaround from last season. That chemistry stemmed from 24 seniors who were taught by an outstanding coaching staff how to win and appreciate every day on the field, playing as hard as they could. That led to the best season here in 25 years.

Now, Freeze and Lee meet on Monday to discuss the future, as the head coach said Saturday. ASU fans know that inevitably, Lee will be saying good-bye to Freeze, but they have to hope it's not next week.

Tagged: Ole Miss Rebels, Archie Manning, ASU Stadium, Hugh Freeze