It's taken some time this season for No. 18 Tulsa to get recognition.

With a schedule many college football pundits view as weak and little history of national success, the Golden Hurricane have been slow to catch on among the national media. That's starting to change with Tulsa scheduled to face Arkansas on Saturday.

Both the New York Times and USA Today have featured the undefeated Golden Hurricane recently

Tulas tops the nation in total offense and scoring offense, while ranking among the Top 10 in both passing an rushing yardage. How's that for balance?

Much of the New York Times article focuses on Coach Todd Graham, the former Tulsa defensive coordinator. Graham is a likely candidate for larger head coaching jobs when the open this season.

Tulsa's dynamism can be traced to Graham, who was hired in 2007 after he coached Rice to its first bowl in 45 years in his lone season there. Before that, he was the Golden Hurricane's defensive coordinator for three seasons under Steve Kragthorpe, who left for Louisville in 2007.

A plastic orange with 14-0 written on it and a Bible turned to Psalms sat on a desk in Graham's office, and "The Art of War" was in a bookcase.

Assistant head coach and co-offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn is featured priominently in both the Times and USA Today article. Malzahn, the former Shiloh Christian and Springdale High head coach would "throw on very down if I'd let him," Graham said.

Malzahn, of course, was offensive coordinator at Arkansas for one tumultuous season. USA Today recounts that right off the top.

Here, Arkansas, is what might have been.

For the better part of 14 seasons, Gus Malzahn turned high school football in that state on its ear. His teams reached five state title games and won three, but it was the way they did it - with a before-its-time, no-huddle spread offense - that drew attention. Malzahn carried the scheme with him to the University of Arkansas, where the yards and points were supposed to keep piling up.

They didn't.

After one frustrating season under then-coach Houston Nutt in 2006, Malzahn gathered up his playbook and moved to Tulsa as assistant head coach and co-offensive coordinator. Not at all quietly. The Golden Hurricane ran the nation's most prolific offense a year ago and have it again this season, starting 8-0 and climbing into the top 20 of the Bowl Championship Series standings.