FanHouse Nolan Richardson

Nolan Richardson was doing his research, trying to decide if he wanted to accept the offer of the ownership group trying to bring a WNBA team to Tulsa, asking old friends what it was like to coach in the women's game.

One of the phone calls he made was to LSU women's coach Van Chancellor, whom Richardson knew from their SEC days (Chancellor coached the Mississippi women when Richardson was at Arkansas.) Chancellor spent 10 years in the WNBA coaching the Houston Comets to four WNBA titles.

"He told me that once you've dealt with women athletes, you are going to wish that you had coached them all your life," Richardson said.

In the midst of a coaches' teleconference about 10 years ago, Nolan Richardson proffered why the conference, the SEC, in which he coached the Arkansas basketball team, was so stout. It was located in the South, he said, ground zero for slavery, and, as a result, the many black players who were the stars of the SEC were the products of purposeful breeding by slave owners of "big black [men] with his big woman so he [slave owner] would have a big black kid."

Coach Richardson continued to coach without much criticism and any sanction for his historical hysteria. He wasn't tarred and feathered like Jimmy the Greek was so famously for making similar comments.

Coach Richardson was spared because, unlike The Greek, he is black. He was handed a pass because of the extra gravitas he carried as the second black coach to lead a team to a Final Four championship, and because we in the media -- especially commentators of color -- are particularly uncomfortable criticizing people of color for such transgressions and gaffes.

Arkansas is planning to honor the 1994 NCAA Championship team in a ceremony before the Razorbacks' game against Georgia March 1. It will be 15 years since Scotty Thurman and the Razorbacks beat Duke for the title.

This is quite a development since former coach Nolan Richardson will be there. If you remember, Richardson was fired in 2002 after 17 seasons as head coach. He filed -- and lost -- a discrimination lawsuit against the school and there has been some bad blood between the two sides.

Interestingly, the ceremony will take place seven years to the day that the school announced they were buying out Richardson.

The AD at the time, Frank Broyles, stepped down at the end of last year and was replaced by Jeff Long. While there are still some hard feelings, it seems that Richardson and the school have put that aside so the students, alumni and players can celebrate the pinnacle moment of Razorback basketball.

This one's been whispered about for a few days but is now semi-official. Broyles announced his plans to step down as Arkansas' Athletic Director before a meeting room packed with friends like football coach Houston Nutt, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and the school's basketball and track coaches.

There has been a push of late to nudge Broyles out of the athletic department after the whole Springdale Five situation went national and the upper management at Arkansas was made to look equal parts arrogant, callous and incapable of fulfilling promises and obligations. That's very one-sided of course but two of the main players have left in quarterback Mitch Mustain and receiver Damian Williams.

In the wake of the scandal Arkansas also lost out on the state's top three recruits this year.

There is talk that Broyles will remain at Arkansas in some sort of advisory position but for several days now whispers had increased about people within the school bureaucracy pushing for his departure.

Broyles famously had run-ins with former basketball coach Nolan Richardson, did not retain Lou Holtz as a football coach past 1983 and most recently presided over the Springdale Five mess.

Broyles' coaching legacy is far more secure. He led the Razorbacks to a national championship in 1964 and was cordial with both Alabama coach Bear Bryant and USC coach John McKay during their epic tenures through the 1960's and 1970's. He coached the Hogs from 1958 until 1976 and compiled a 144-58-5 record and just two losing seasons.

Update: Former Arkansas basketball coach Nolan Richardson speaks out.