What a Pathetic Showing!

The Razorbacks made Houston Nutt’s Ole Miss Rebels look like a team bound for greatness in their 30-17 drubbing this past Saturday. After three weeks of great football by the Hogs, they fell apart at the hands of the Rebels. Here’s AP’s recap of the game:

OXFORD, Miss. (AP)—Dexter McCluster set career highs in rushing and receiving, and Jevan Snead threw for a career-high 332 yards to lead Mississippi to a 30-17 victory over Arkansas on Saturday.

Rebels coach Houston Nutt beat his former team for the second straight year.

Ole Miss (5-2, 2-2 Southeastern Conference) jumped ahead 17-0 and controlled the line of scrimmage throughout. The Rebels could have won by more if not for three turnovers.

Arkansas (3-4, 1-4) pulled to 24-17 in the third quarter when Carlton Salters caught a tipped pass for a 58-yard touchdown, but the Razorbacks couldn’t finish the rally and Ole Miss added two field goals in the fourth.

Story Link

SI – Hogs Ripe for Resurgence

Sports Illustrated’s George Schroeder writes in Inside College Football that Arkansas could potentially finish this season very strong. Read his article here.

Updated Razorback Season Prediction

Midway into Arkansas’ season, I thought it would be good to update my predictions on the rest of the season. I have picked every game with the exception of Georgia (who would have thunk it?). So here’s what I had for my updated season predictions as we go into the weekend against Ole Miss:

Oct. 24 at Mississippi – Arkansas pays Houston Nutt back for last year’s home loss, 35-28. Update: That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!

Oct. 31 Eastern Michigan – Arkansas wins 45-28. Update: That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!

Nov. 7 South Carolina – Tough game all the way around, Arkansas stumbles 28-27. Okay, this one is interesting. I really think it could go either way, but I’m updating my prediction and going with Arkansas, 30-21.

Nov. 14 Troy – Another shootout, but SEC strength brings it home 40-28.

Nov. 21 Mississippi State – Arkansas hits its stride and Mallett has his biggest passing game of the year, 48-21.

Nov. 28 at Louisiana State – Hogs can’t beat LSU three years in the row. Good effort, but lose 34-31.

Final Record: 8-4. Bowl bid secured, Petrino is redeemed and everyone looks at an even better 2010!

It certainly looks to be an exciting finish for the Hogs. Even if they stumble and lose two games against Ole Miss, South Carolina or Mississippi State, the absolute worse record for 2009 is 6-6 and they are still bowl bound!

Go Hogs!

SEC Reprimands Petrino

The Morning News is reporting that the SEC has officially reprimanded Bobby Petrino for comments he made on his TV show about officiating of the Arkansas-Florida game. Here’s an excerpt:

SEC Reprimands Petrino
For Criticizing Officials

FAYETTEVILLE — A day after suspending an officiating crew, the Southeastern Conference turned its attention to Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino.

SEC commissioner Mike Slive reprimanded Petrino on Thursday for publicly criticizing the officiating crew that made several controversial calls that helped second-ranked Florida escape with a 23-20 win over Arkansas in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

“Coach Petrino has violated the Southeastern Conference Code of Ethics,” Slive said in a statement. “SEC Bylaw 10.5.4 clearly states that coaches, players and support personnel shall refrain from all public criticism of officials.”

Read the entire story here.

I did not hear Petrino’s comments, but whatever he said was warranted considering the sloppy calls made at the end of the game at Florida. Actually, I’m surprised he said so little! :-0

By the way, Arkansas is being picked to “upset” Ole Miss on Saturday. I’ve picked ‘em all year to beat the Rebels. Read Jay Holgate at The Bleacher Report for more here.

Recalling the Hog’s Texas Beat Down

As the Florida game approaches this weekend, one can only hope that Arkansas can make a game of it by challenging the Gators at home. It has happened before, such as with Arkansas’ surprising victory over No. 1 ranked Texas in 1981.

Here’s a great blog post reminiscing about that victory. If only something like this could happen come Saturday!

Another Great Win for the Hogs!

Auburn offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn discusses the Auburn offensive problems, the third quarter changes, and the inability to continue the assault in the fourth quarter in their 44-23 loss to Arkansas. Go Hogs!

Auburn’s Malzahn Has Many Ark Connections

Auburn football team has connections
to Arkansas, making Saturday a personal game

By ANDY BITTER
Columbus Ledger-Enquirer

AUBURN, Ala. – It’s hard to get a rise out of Auburn’s straight-laced offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn, even when the topic is returning to his home state of Arkansas.

Part of that’s his personality. Part of that is that he’s done it before.

This weekend will serve as a homecoming for Malzahn, though he has already paid a visit to Arkansas while a member of Tulsa’s staff last season, something he’s glad to have experienced.

“This is more of a business trip,” Malzahn said. “And the fact that I had that experience last year I think will definitely help this year.”

Malzahn hails from Fort Smith, Ark., and was a wide receiver for the Razorbacks from 1984 to 1985 when Ken Hatfield was the coach. He transferred to Henderson State in 1988 for a chance to get more playing time.

Afterward, he didn’t leave the state, building his reputation as an offensive innovator in the high school ranks, first at Hughes High, then at Shiloh and eventually Springdale, where his up-tempo scheme gained attention.

Houston Nutt hired him as an offensive coordinator at Arkansas in 2006, but a personality mismatch and differing opinions about the offense’s direction led to Malzahn leaving for Tulsa after a year.

Despite his departure, Malzahn doesn’t have hard feelings about his time in Fayetteville.

“A chance to represent them, I thought that was pretty special,” he said.

Malzahn’s not the only person in Auburn’s traveling party with Arkansas ties:

— Lee Ziemba was Arkansas’ Player of the Year by some publications coming out of Rogers High in 2007 but chose Auburn over offers from all over the country.

His parents have since moved to Nashville, Tenn., but the offensive tackle still has plenty of friends in his home state. Most of them are Razorbacks fans who already have tickets, so that won’t be a problem. Their rooting interests might be conflicted, however.

“I have some pretty good friends back there,” Ziemba said. “They love their Razorbacks but they love me also. I hope I get to see them because they’re great people.”

— Fort Smith, Ark., native Kodi Burns’ decision for college came down to the Tigers and Razorbacks. In the end, the five-star quarterback chose to leave his home state for Auburn.

“It’s always exciting to go back home,” Burns said. “Each day, it gets closer and closer and you get more anxious to play against your home state and show people that you made the right decision.”

— As the son of longtime football coach Reggie Herring, linebacker Adam Herring moved around a lot in his childhood. But when his dad settled in as Arkansas’ defensive coordinator from 2005 to 2007, Adam called Fayetteville home for 2 1/2 of his high school years at Shiloh Christian.

As an Arkansas native, Herring was allowed to make the trip with the Tigers in 2007, although he didn’t play and ended up redshirting that year. He’ll have a bigger role this time, having gotten the majority of playing time at weak-side linebacker despite being listed as a backup to Eltoro Freeman.

— Defensive line coach Tracy Rocker spent five years at Arkansas on Nutt’s staff, helping turn future NFL lineman Jamaal Anderson into an All-American in 2006. Rocker followed Nutt to Ole Miss last season before coming back to his alma mater this year.

— Safeties coach Tommy Thigpen grew up in El Dorado, Ark., a city in the northwest corner of the state. Still, he grew up an Arkansas fan.

“It’s one of those schools, kind of like Louisiana, in the sense that it’s the only school in the state,” Thigpen said. “Here at least we’ve got Auburn and Alabama as the two big schools. But there it’s just that and I was raised a Razorback until I left.”

Thigpen moved in with his father in Northern Virginia during his time in high school and, despite being recruited by Arkansas, went on to play at North Carolina.

Bleacher Report Picks Hogs

The Bleacher Report is picking the Razorbacks against Auburn in a shootout tomorrow in Fayetteville, 41-35. What’s certain, it will be an interesting and fun game to watch! Starts tomorrow on ESPN at 1 pm Eastern.

Check the article here.

My Preseason Prediction Stands: Hogs 28-21

Before the Arkansas season began and before Auburn started off the season 5-0, my pick for this week’s game was, “Hogs at home equals another win, 28-21.”

That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

However, like last week’s game against Texas A&M, while I think the 7 point spread is still right, I now think the score will be much higher…perhaps like the Georgia-Arkansas scoring extravaganza.

In spite of Texas A&M being a less talented opponent, I saw some improvement in Arkansas’ defense. I believe if the Hogs find any kind of defense this year they will be in most games.

And I think there is another reason why an Arkansas win is pretty likely this year. It’s the fact that Auburn as won in Fayetteville their past three meetings. The Hogs are overdue to beat Auburn at home. Ryan Mallett is due a breakout game this year too.

Here’s CBS Sports’ preview of the game:

Arkansas vs. Auburn

Auburn’s hiring of Gene Chizik in December was a surprise move given his lack of success as a head coach, but he’s quickly winning over the Tiger faithful.

Chizik and No. 17 Auburn look for the school’s first 6-0 start in five years when they visit SEC rival Arkansas on Saturday.

The Tigers (5-0, 2-0) went 5-7 last year, capping off the disappointing season under Tommy Tuberville with a 36-0 loss to conference foe – and top-ranked – Alabama. It was the school’s first losing season since 1999 and ultimately led to Tuberville stepping down just four years after he led the team to a perfect season.

To replace Tuberville, who went 85-40 in 10 seasons, Auburn hired Chizik, who was the Tigers’ defensive coordinator in 2004.

Chizik, who also was a coordinator at Texas, was coming off a 2-10 season in 2008 and a 3-9 campaign in 2007 with Iowa State, though.

So far, doubts regarding Chizik’s qualifications have been quieted with an impressive start, although it’s the offense that has keyed Auburn’s fast start. A 26-22 win at Tennessee last Saturday propelled the Tigers into the top 25 for the first time since halfway through last season.

“I guess it’s a good thing but it really doesn’t matter to be ranked,” cornerback Walt McFadden said. “It’ll put a smile to our face but we can’t let that get to our heads.”

After five games, the Tigers rank fifth in the nation in yards per game at 521.3 and are second in points scored with 207 – one shy of their total from all last season.

Ben Tate has been a major contributor to that success. He’s the SEC’s No. 2 rusher with 108.0 yards per game, and had 128 yards and one touchdown on 25 carries against the Volunteers.

Quarterback Chris Todd has been equally effective. Coming off offseason shoulder surgery, Todd appeared in seven games in 2008, throwing for 903 yards and five touchdowns with six interceptions. The senior was 19 of 32 for 218 yards and one score against Tennessee, giving him 12 touchdowns and one interception this year. His 1,230 passing yards lead the SEC.

Tennessee came into last weekend ranked eighth in the Football Subdivision in yards allowed with 233.0, but the Vols gave up 459 yards to Auburn, which had the ball for almost 10 minutes longer than Tennessee.

“That just lets everyone know that we’re for real,” Tate said. “It kind of gives us confidence in ourselves too. They are one of the best defenses in the country with one of the best defensive coordinators in the country. That just shows us that our hard work is paying off.”

The Razorbacks (2-2, 0-2) are coming off a 47-19 victory over Texas A&M last Saturday. After back-to-back losses to ranked SEC foes Georgia and Alabama, Arkansas scored 23 second-quarter points against the Aggies and cruised through the second half. Ryan Mallett finished 17 of 27 for 271 yards with four touchdowns and one interception.

Mallett, a transfer from Michigan, has thrown 11 touchdowns this season. Arkansas begins the week ranked seventh in the FBS in passing yards per game with 329.0.

“He’s an extremely good quarterback,” Chizik said. “He is what makes their passing game go. They also have some great receivers for him to throw too. … We have to work on our open-field tackling.”

Arkansas is trying to avoid losing its first three SEC games since 2007. The Razorbacks have given up 87 points and 955 yards of offense in their two conference losses, allowing eight passing touchdowns.

“(Auburn is) undefeated and we are going to be on national television,” Arkansas offensive coordinator Paul Petrino said. “It’s a big game and we’re going to do everything in our power.”

The Tigers have won three straight at Fayetteville.

Copyright 2009 by STATS LLC and The Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and The Associated Press is strictly prohibited.

Texas A&M Must Win for Arkansas

I’ll be blunt. With a horrendous schedule still ahead in 2009, tonight’s Texas A&M game becomes a “must win” game for Arkansas if Bobby Petrino hopes to finish strong with seven or eight wins. That’s if Arkansas wants to use 2009 as a springboard to re-emerge in the national college football conversation.

Last weekend’s match-up against Arkansas revealed a team that has a long, long, way to go before coming anything close to be a national contender. As Hog fans, we can only hope that Petrino, his coaching staff and players are learning from excellent SEC teams like Georgia and Alabama as the year progresses.

But my concern is only learning from loses, but whether or not Arkansas has the personnel needed to compete with the better SEC teams.

I’ll go ahead with my pre-season prediction of Arkansas 30-21, but I now think the scoring could be much higher. However, if Arkansas loses today, I may have to seriously look at revising my season predictions.