Whoo Pig . . . Phooey!

However, behind the scenes all was not well.

USC was partly to blame. After the Trojans swamped Arkansas, 50-14, in the opener, Houston Nutt, then the Razorbacks' coach, took a second look at his talented running backs.

"My whole thing was, 'Let's get the football to Darren McFadden at least 30 times a game. Let's get it to Felix Jones 10 to 15 times,' " Nutt told the Tulsa World.

Forty-five rushing plays did not leave much room for a pass-oriented attack. Though Mustain went 8-0 as a starter, he gave way to Casey Dick late in the season and Williams saw fewer chances to catch the ball.

"It was nobody's fault," Williams said. "It just didn't work out the way we expected."

A group of Springdale parents, including the Mustain and Williams families, met with Frank Broyles, then the athletic director, to express their concerns and were publicly condemned for meddling. At the same time, a vocal contingent of Arkansas fans criticized Nutt for abandoning the spread even as he guided the team to a Jan. 1 bowl game.

Then an Arkansas fan filed a Freedom of Information Act request for Nutt's cellphone records, which showed that he had sent more than 1,000 text messages to local news anchor Donna Bragg. Nutt denied accusations of a romantic involvement. The records also included communications with a booster who had sent an angry e-mail to Mustain.

By that time, Malzahn had left to become an assistant at Tulsa and Williams had transferred to USC. Mustain, his friend since kindergarten, would soon follow.

"Both of those guys went through some very tough times," Malzahn said. "We just talked about the things that were happening and what was best for them."

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Surf the web. Check the Arkansas fan sites about the time Williams asked for his release.

Let that momma's boy do some crying . . .

Great parents . . . teach your son to bail out on his brothers . . .

Who cares where this little traitor winds up?

Williams' father, David, recalled: "There were times when it hurt him deeply to see the same fans who had praised him three months earlier suddenly turn their backs on him."

A religious family, the Williamses prayed and looked for another school. When USC expressed interest, Damian liked its recent history of All-American receivers, guys in the NFL. He also watched the Trojans play Michigan in the 2007 Rose Bowl, a game that was tied, 3-3, at halftime.