FAYETTEVILLE — The seed for the publicity campaign Arkansas will kick off today for its football program was planted in the mind of Zack Higbee, the UA director for football media relations, last fall.
Higbee was traveling back to campus after the Razorbacks’ 42-38 victory over Texas A&M at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, last October, with quarterback Tyler Wilson’s school-record 510-yard passing performance fresh in mind, when it occurred to Higbee, that the Razorbacks’ media relations team needed to be ready to promote Wilson, along with running back Knile Davis, and other key players for honors in the fall.
Arkansas’ athletic program will launch its TD2012 campaign today at 8 a.m., with a Twitter account - @ARKTD2012 - and a plan to put its top players and the team’s achievements front and center in a season of transition under the Coach John L. Smith.
“TD2012 has an obvious football relevance, but it also stands for toughness and determination,” said Higbee, who was part of a committee that hatched the media strategy and had it approved in May by Athletic Director Jeff Long and Smith. “It’s something the fans could latch onto.
Arkansas football has had a rough ride since former coach Bobby Petrino draped the program in scandal when he wrecked his Harley-Davidson motorcycle on April 1 with a female employee of the program aboard, and was subsequently fired by Long on April 10.
Davis and Wilson contemplated early departures to the NFL, but they decided in January to return this season, with knowledge that a promotional campaign was in the planning stages.
“There was definitely talk of that before I decided to come back, but I don’t think that was a factor,” Wilson said. “It was more because I wanted to become a better quarterback, and there were a lot of things at the university I wanted to accomplish.
“Going out and winning games, that’s the bottom line. It just so happens we have a great AD and media relations and they’re really attacking this.”
Wilson was often praised for his resiliency in the pocket last season. Davis’ determination to rebound from a series of ankle and shoulder injuries, including a fractured left ankle that cost him all of the 2012 season, has been well documented.
Wilson and Davis will accompany teammate Tenarius Wright and Smith to SEC media days Wednesday, then embark on a promotional blitz to the Northeast the following week.
Davis and Wilson will visit the offices of Sports Illustrated and CBS Sports in New York City on July 24, then will make the rounds at the ESPN studios in Bristol, Conn., the following day, after SEC coaches complete their two-day appearance there.
“The way it is set up, it ties into our team goal of being a championship program and also allows fans to follow us and show their support,” said Davis, who rushed for 1,322 yards and 13 touchdowns in 2010, through a university spokesman.
Higbee said he simply asked ESPN if it would be interested in a visit from the Razorbacks stars, who are considered contenders for the Heisman Trophy and are two of the more high-profile players in the country.
“We want to get our players in the discussion and keep them there,” said Higbee, who helped coordinate the University of Florida’s successful Heisman Trophy campaign for quarterback Tim Tebow in 2007.
“One of the best things teams can do is make their players available. At the end of the day, voters want to know who they’re voting for. They want to know them personally.”
The committee that hatched TD2012 included Higbee and Derek Satterfield from media relations, associate athletic director for public relations Kevin Trainor, associate athletic director for marketing and licensing Brian Pracht, Razor Vision director Michelle Glover, director of website design and development Jake Brokaw, and Andy Wagner and Mark Robinson from the football program.
Higbee said all of Arkansas’ candidates for postseason awards - a large group based on recent watch list announcements - will be promoted on the Twitter feed. The athletic department will also direct followers how to access the various fan votes that tie in to some college football awards through the Twitter site.
“We will run this similar to a political campaign,” Higbee said, drawing a parallel between Arkansas’ ultimate goal of winning the BCS title and earning the accompanying invitation to the White House and the presidential election. “Same goal. We want to go to Washington and so do they.”
Sports, Pages 13 on 07/16/2012