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WALLY HALL: New year won't ease sting of Belk Bowl loss

Arkansas football coach Bret Bielema talks with athletic director Jeff Long during Arkansas' game against No. 1 Alabama on Saturday, Oct. 8, 2016.
Arkansas football coach Bret Bielema talks with athletic director Jeff Long during Arkansas' game against No. 1 Alabama on Saturday, Oct. 8, 2016.

Early Friday morning at Gate 24 at the Charlotte, N.C., airport, none of the Arkansas Razorback fans wanted to talk about the loss to Virginia Tech in the Belk Bowl.

Friday night at a Little Rock pizzeria, this was the conversation between yours truly and three acquaintances who were already there:

"You were there, right?" they asked.

"Yes."

"Don't want to talk about it." they said.

"Agree."

The colossal fall from a 24-0 Razorbacks lead to a 35-24 loss will be talked to death in the next few weeks, maybe months. It will continue to be written about and reported on, but this is a day to take a break and think about 2017, so here are a few predictions and resolutions.

Prediction: Arkansas Athletic Director Jeff Long will meet privately with Coach Bret Bielema about the direction of the football program. That is Long's job. He's probably not going to personally fire anyone, but he's the man paid to ask tough questions and demand answers.

Prediction: Selling the new million-dollar suites that are part of the expansion of Reynolds Razorback Stadium is harder after Thursday. Raising money for the Razorback Foundation will be more difficult, as well.

Resolution: This one is personal and a daily prayer. To be a better person.

Prediction: On March 3, during the induction into the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame, one sports reporter will cry. He'll fight it, but it will happen.

Resolution: To try not to cry at the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame induction.

Prediction: The event March 24 in Hot Springs, The Fifth Season celebrating the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame, will be a very tough ticket to get.

Prediction: There may be a metaphor about a young lawyer costing a client thousands of dollars in attorneys fees. Yes, it sounds a lot like malpractice, but it will be sporty somehow.

Resolution: To continue the 38-year practice of answering 99 percent of all mail. The 1 percent know who they are and why they don't get a response.

Prediction: The New England Patriots will win the Super Bowl.

Prediction: The Dallas Cowboys will continue to take a little luck (drafting Dak Prescott in the fourth round) and build a foundation good enough to compete for the Super Bowl for the next few years. It wasn't luck that got Ezekiel Elliott drafted in the first round; that was just smart.

Resolution: After reading the Charlotte Observer almost every day last week, to continue to work hard to put out a great sports section. People who travel see it. The Observer is now a total of two sections, and sports is the second one.

Prediction: Next fall, Alabama will not be a unanimous pick to win the SEC in football, but it will be in the College Football Playoff for a fourth consecutive year.

Prediction: Christyn Williams, a junior at Central Arkansas Christian, will become the most widely recruited basketball player the state has had. She's already got offers from UConn, Baylor, Arkansas and dozens of others.

Prediction: Both times Arkansas State and UALR meet in basketball, men and women, will be great games and worth the price of admission.

Prediction: Conversations about LSU football Coach Ed Orgeron's accent will turn to talk about how hard he works and how much his players love him. He will come close to building a fence around Louisiana when it comes to recruiting.

Prediction: Razorbacks fans will not get over the loss to Virginia Tech easily. And on another note, if a player apologizes for his actions, the statement should include two words: "I'm sorry."

Sports on 01/01/2017

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