ATLANTA -- It has been more than seven months since Gus Malzahn flirted with the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville Razorbacks.
It was a ploy, that went back and forth. Super Agent Jimmy Sexton didn't invent it, he just perfected it.
He once got Houston Nutt's name mentioned for the Auburn job. No one had contacted Nutt, but Ole Miss took the bait, opened their checkbook and made Nutt wealthy.
So Sexton dangled Malzahn in front of Arkansas, probably spoke of a great homecoming, and the Razorback powers pow-wowed and scraped up as much money as they felt they could pay, which was more than the Fort Smith native was making at Auburn, but not as much as Auburn was willing to pay, at least for now.