By Steve Brawner, © 2018 by Steve Brawner Communications, Inc.

The University of Arkansas athletic director has two must-accomplish responsibilities: first, keep the money flowing, and second, keep the fans happy by winning football games. Hunter Yurachek knows as well as anyone he’ll have to succeed at both.

Yurachek, who was hired last December, spoke Monday before a capacity crowd at the Little Rock Touchdown Club. His predecessor, Jeff Long, spoke to that same group nine times before being fired because he succeeded only at the first responsibility.

A day earlier, Yurachek, who said he starts each day with a cup of coffee and a devotional, had tweeted a picture of a sunrise without comment. The inference was that the sun had risen the day after the Razorbacks’ embarrassing home loss to North Texas, which probably is a very good football team. A week earlier, the Hogs had blown a second half lead at Colorado State, which isn’t.

So far, the Razorbacks are 1-2 during Yurachek’s first season. It also is the first season under new head football coach Chad Morris. Morris inherited a team with limited talent and is trying to install an up-tempo style than is vastly different than previous coach Bret Bielema’s.

Not surprisingly, neutral observers picked the Hogs to finish last in the division this year, and even passionate fans knew there would be growing pains. But few expected the Hogs to be 1-2, and the schedule gets harder now that conference play is beginning.

Yurachek is the third athletic director anyone my age or younger remembers. Frank Broyles held the job 34 years from 1973 until 2007 after coaching the football team to a version of the national championship in 1964. Broyles succeeded at both the major responsibilities and more. As a result, the Hogs play on Frank Broyles Field, while the athletic department is housed in the Broyles Athletic Center.

Broyles wasn’t born in Arkansas – he was born in Atlanta – but he got here soon enough and spoke with a Southern accent. Long, an Ohioan, built on Broyles’ financial success. The university is one of less than 25 nationwide where the athletic department sustains itself; in fact, it donates money to academics. Much of the credit belongs to Broyles. He built the program and made the foresighted decision to join the Southeastern Conference, where it’s raining money. But many people have blown inheritances, and Long didn’t during his 10 years. Instead, he successfully raised support for a $160 million expansion to Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. Recently, Forbes magazine ranked the Razorbacks as the nation’s 13th most valuable college football program.

Moreover, last year Arkansas finished 16th in the Learfield Directors Cup, which takes into account the won-loss records of all the universities’ athletic teams. The department had an 80 percent graduation rate, up from 68 percent in 2008. Long deserves some credit for that.

Long was successful in almost every area except hiring a football coach. His first, Bobby Petrino, improved his record each season and was 21-5 in his last two. Then there was that infamous motorcycle wreck of which plenty has been written. In the next six seasons, Arkansas’ won-loss record was 33-42, and only 13-35 in SEC play. As a result, both Long and Bielema were fired.

At some point, failing in the second responsibility – keeping the fans happy – makes it harder for an athletic director to succeed in the first. With the expansion, Reynolds Razorback Stadium now can seat 76,000, but only 62,255 tickets were distributed Saturday, and only 44,306 tickets were scanned. By the second half, some fans were booing, and by the end the place was cleared out. Yurachek needs them to return in order to pay off that $160 million expansion he inherited.

Graduating players ought to be more important than beating North Texas, but college athletics is a business, and business is better when the football team wins. Still, as Yurachek pointed out, the sun comes up even after a loss. He also in his speech said fans have a right to boo, but he asked them to consider how they would feel if those boos were directed at their child or grandchild.

All of those things should be kept in mind this week when Arkansas travels to play the Auburn Tigers. They’re better than both North Texas and Colorado State.