We’ve waited all year for this.
The fans. The media. And, perhaps, the coaches.
Arkansas freshman forward Marshawn Powell answered the question that has been surrounding the Razorbacks all season on Tuesday.
Simply put, Arkansas has lacked a leader in the huddle, on the court and in the locker room.
That has been apparent during this five-game losing streak, the longest to ever end a regular season in Arkansas’ history. No one has stepped up, but Powell, perhaps the best player on this team, isn’t going to sit aside any longer.
University of Arkansas forward Marshawn Powell tries to drive past Ole Miss defender Murphy Holloway during the first half of Saturday afternoon's game against Ole Miss at Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/MICHAEL WOODS)
“I believe this is my team,” Powell said today, a few hours after he was selected by coaches to the Southeastern Conference’s all-freshman team.
“… I’m taking it and putting it on my back,” Powell explained. “This is what this team needs is a leader and we haven’t had that all year, so it’s my turn to try it, I guess.”
So Powell is stepping up, folks. We’ve seen signs of it during the season and he’s certainly proven his playing ability on the court.
Remember in February after Arkansas dropped a winnable game at Alabama? Upset with his team blowing a 13-point lead on the road, Powell came back that Monday and issued this challenge:
“Hopefully, everybody else is ready to work,” he said. “I’m ready to work and get better, fix what we messed up in the Alabama game.”
Powell delivered the very next game, and scored 26 points in a 92-79 victory against South Carolina. As I wrote in a column after the game, Powell lived up to his own words.
“I just feel like I delivered. I feel like I did what I was supposed to be doing for a long time,” Powell said after the victory Feb. 18.
Powell, the only Razorback to start in all 31 games this season, averages 15.1 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.3 blocked shots. Only two Razorbacks (George Kok and Scotty Thurman) have averaged more points as a freshman in the school’s history.
Powell made sure to preface his comments Tuesday afternoon, saying he wasn’t taking anything away from seniors Stef Welsh, Michael Washington and Stephen Cox.
But the time is now, and Powell is ready to step up.
The question now is whether this is truly a turning point. We’ll see folks, but one thing is certain — Arkansas has lacked a leader this season and Powell is more than willing to fill that void.
Arkansas opens its postseason in the SEC Tournament against Georgia in Nashville on Thursday. The tip time is scheduled for 8:45 p.m.
Make sure to check out WholeHogSports.com and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for more coverage. You can also follow us on Twitter for breaking news updates with @bmarcello and @wholehogsports.
Great read. It’s about time someone stepped up in an effort to return this program to its storied past. Fortson seems to be more of a distraction than anything else, in my opinion. I would sure love to see Ricardo Ratcliffe teamed with Marshawn next year, in addition to the talented incoming recruits.
I hope he knows what he’s doing. It’s great for the fans to hear this, but how much does this disrupt the hierarchy of the team?
Marshawn is just great. He will lead that team next year and will also have more points and rebounds..