SOUTHAMPTON, England -- Claude Puel ended his 17-year coaching stint in the French league on Thursday by taking over as manager of Southampton, ushering in a new era for the English Premier League club following the departure of Ronald Koeman.Southampton announced the hiring of the 54-year-old Puel on a three-year deal, making him the clubs third manager in barely two years. Puel led Nice to a fourth-place finish in the French league last month before leaving unexpectedly.Mauricio Pochettino and Koeman were poached from Southampton by Tottenham in 2014 and Everton last month, respectively, and many of the teams top players -- Nathaniel Clyne, Luke Shaw, Adam Lallana and Morgan Schneiderlin among them -- have also left St. Marys Stadium over the past two years.Puel could be at the helm of another rebuilding job, with Southampton having already sold midfielder Victor Wanyama to Tottenham in the offseason and expecting interest in more of its players.Claude has a track record of improving the situations he has been presented with, Southampton executive director of football Les Reed said, and we are confident he can repeat this at Southampton.Before his four-year spell at Nice, Puel also coached French teams Monaco, Lille and Lyon, which he led to the Champions League semifinals in 2010.However, his three-year stint in charge of Lyon was a largely unhappy one and he often clashed with president Jean-Michel Aulas.Puel, who considered Aulas to be regularly interfering on team selection issues, was released before the end of his contract and the pair were embroiled in a bitter compensation dispute.As a tough-tackling midfielder, Puel spent 17 years at Monaco before starting his management career there and winning the French title in his first season as coach.As the process eliminated a number of excellent candidates, Claude clearly came out on top of a very impressive shortlist, Reed said, without naming any names.In order to ensure we appointed a manager who would meet our needs as a club, feedback from the dressing room, as well as taking account of our culture, vision and values, was critical in drawing up our criteria for the appointment,Southampton has arguably the best youth system in English football and has earned a reputation for bringing through academy graduates to the first team. Among its best youth-team stars down the years have been Gareth Bale, Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.Puel worked early in his coaching career with a young Eden Hazard at Lille, while Nice says he launched the Ligue 1 careers of 16 players from the clubs academy. He also re-launched the career of winger Hatem Ben Arfa, who joined Nice following an unhappy end to his time in England with Newcastle and then Hull.Under Puels guidance last season, Ben Arfa enjoyed the best form of his career, scoring 17 league goals and coming close to earning a place in Frances European Championship squad. Ben Arfa is now reportedly joining French champion Paris Saint-Germain.Puels biggest task will be keeping his best players at Southampton, and ensure the club continues to overachieve in the Premier League.Southampton finished eighth, seventh and sixth in the last three years, and will play in the Europa League this coming season.Claude has a fantastic platform to work from, Reed said, and is aware that our ambition is to repeat and improve on our performances in the Premier League over the past three seasons. Cheap Shoes Wholesale . It might not have mattered. While the Dodgers are preparing for the playoffs, the Padres showed their future has promise behind two rookies. Wholesale Shoes Cheap China . Listen to the game live on TSN Radio 1050 at 7pm et. 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FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. -- With a taste of early season success for a change, Arkansas coach Bret Bielema wasnt about to let the No. 24 Razorbacks get complacent after a double-overtime win over TCU last week.Especially considering Arkansas two victories entering this weekend had come by a total of four points.Led once again by the emergence of Austin Allen at quarterback and a defensive effort that included the Razorbacks second interception return for a touchdown in as many weeks, Arkansas (3-0) didnt let up. The Razorbacks won for the ninth time in 10 games with a 42-3 victory over Texas State on Saturday night.I knew our guys were going to hear about how good they played last week, and I really put the screws to them about turning the page, Bielema said. I think they did a pretty good job of that, because in this league if you worry too much about what happened yesterday, tomorrow will hit you in the face.Allen threw for 241 yards and a pair of touchdowns before being pulled late in the third quarter, and he was supported by a defense that held the Bobcats (1-1) to 105 yards of total offense.That effort included Ryan Pulleys 25-yard interception return for a touchdown in the second quarter that put Arkansas up 21-0, a play that followed linebacker Brooks Ellis return for a score a week earlier against the Horned Frogs.The defensive performance was one of the Razorbacks best in four seasons under Bielema -- with Arkansas outgaining Texas State 350-26 in total yardage in the first half and holding the Bobcats to 22 yards rushing on 26 carries in the game.The Razorbacks had four sacks in the win, with defensive lineman Jeremiah Ledbetter leading the way with 1 1/2 sacks and a pair of pass breakups.I have to give credit to my defensive line for creating the pressure, Pulley said.Texas State quarterback Tyler Jones, who matched the school record with 418 yards passing two weeks ago in a triple-overtime win over Ohio, finished 11-of-26 passing for 83 yards on Saturday.The Bobcats trailed 35-0 at halftime, and they didnt reach Arkansas side of the field until late in the first hallf -- and only after a Razorbacks fumble gave them the starting field position.ddddddddddddThey were big and physical, just like we thought they would be, first-year Texas State coach Everett Withers said. ... Theyre deserving of a Top 25 spot, I believe.Arkansas running back Rawleigh Williams topped the 100-yard rushing mark for the second straight game, finishing with 121 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries.THE TAKEAWAYTexas State: The Bobcats put together an impressive performance in their season-opening triple-overtime win over Ohio, but they were outmatched against Arkansas. Texas State can look ahead, however, to an easier Sun Belt Conference schedule and count on improvement from the experienced Jones, who made his 33rd career start on Saturday.Arkansas: As convincing as the win was for the Razorbacks, it also came with an element of relief -- particularly after they struggled in a one-point win over Louisiana Tech two weeks ago. Now Arkansas can enter next weeks SEC opener full of confidence, and with thoughts of starting the season 5-0 before its next home game against No. 1 Alabama on Oct. 8.SHORT ON TIMEWith Arkansas ahead 42-3 after three quarters and inclement weather nearing the area, both coaches agreed to shorten the game by five minutes and play only a 10-minute fourth quarter.POLL IMPLICATIONS:Arkansas: A week after returning to the Top 25 following a double-overtime win over TCU, the Razorbacks are all but assured of moving up after their dominating performance on Saturday -- setting up an early Southeastern Conference showdown against Texas A&M next week.UP NEXTTexas State: The schedule doesnt immediately get any easier for the Bobcats, who once again faced a ranked opponent when they host No. 6 Houston next week.Arkansas: The Razorbacks return to Texas for the second time in three weeks when they face the No. 17 Aggies in the annual Southwest Classic at AT&T Stadium.---AP college football website: www.collegefootball.ap.org ' ' '