College Bowls 2000


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Nutt to make decision on situation soon
Associated Press

LAS VEGAS -- Arkansas coach Houston Nutt made it clear Friday that he was upset about a sideline confrontation between player Derrick Johnson and defensive line coach Bill Johnson.

Nutt said he would make a decision about the player's status when the team returns to Fayetteville.

The incident occurred Thursday night during the final minutes of Arkansas' 31-14 defeat against Nevada-Las Vegas in the Las Vegas Bowl, and Johnson was eventually ordered off the field by assistant coach Chris Vaughn.

Derrick Johnson and some fans had been exchanging words after it became obvious that Nevada-Las Vegas would beat the Razorbacks. The fans chanted the score, 31-14, in a taunting sing-song fashion.

UNLV punted with less than three minutes to go and Johnson failed to take his spot on the return team, which prompted an exchange between the player and the assistant coach. The player had to be restrained by a couple of his teammates.

"The one thing I won't have ever is for a player to talk back to a coach," Nutt said. "I won't have that.

"I'd say just stay tuned to that deal. I'm going to address that when I get back. We'll just leave it at that. As soon as we get back, we'll know what happens."

Nutt said he didn't see the player-coach confrontation, but "I've got a great feeling about it because it's a pattern."

"We've tried to help this young man for a long time and he doesn't want to be helped," Nutt said. "He doesn't want to be part of something that's very special. It's a privilege to be a Razorback and he knows that. That's the bottom line. When you don't follow through, that's very, very disappointing."

Johnson is one of the Arkansas players who is often animated on the field. For instance, wide receiver Boo Williams started dancing during the bowl game when somebody cranked up, "Who let the Hogs out."

"I don't like dancing on the field and those things," Nutt said. "Boo did it a little bit. He gets fired up. When they start dancing, he starts dancing. He's a competitor. At least he backs it up, I can live with a little bit of that if he backs it up."

Johnson is a junior from Duncan, Okla., who played in 10 games during the regular season and was in on a total of 24 tackles.

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