Folks around Fayetteville have been muttering about Arkansas’ football problems after an opening win like you wonder if they lost the game.
The Razorbacks won, 31-14, but folks are more upset about how they looked doing it. Most thought they should have had at least 50 against an FCS team in North Alabama that was clearly out-manned.
Welcome to the land of the Hogs, Ryan Silverfield.
For the record, he wasn’t happy about things, either. For a team that had questions without answers all through spring practices and fall camp, the win last Saturday did absolutely nothing to make anybody feel better.
Quarterback KJ Jackson didn’t exactly look smooth, the offensive line didn’t either and there were fumbles along with dropped passes. Throw in a bunch of penalties and nothing fans were told is a focal point of fixing by Silverfield obviously haven’t been solved yet.
That creates some issues one game into the season.
Now comes a trip to the mountains of Utah to face the No. 20 Utes who are a much better team than North Alabama. Add a start time that’ll be about 9:25 in Fayetteville will create a dysfunctional week.
All they have to do is get ready to face Georgia on Saturday morning next week.
About the only thing fans can do now is wonder when John Calipari’s basketball team starts getting ready for that. It can’t been soon enough for a fan base desperately wanting something to cheer about.
It probably won’t be for at least a couple of weeks.
Utah 41, Hogs 17
(23) Missouri at Kansas – Talk about a team struggling, the Jayhawks over the last 60 years have problems more than success in football. That doesn’t mean they don’t make plays occasionally, just not enough to win very many games and that will probably continue. Tigers by 11.
Arizona State at (10) Texas A&M – There will be some fight from the Sun Devils early because the Aggies aren’t exactly the fastest starters in the world. They will find a way to pull away in the second half, though. Aggies by 9.
(11) Oklahoma at Michigan – Somehow I think all of the controversy around the Wolverines win last week on the Hail Mary at the end hasn’t been noticed by the players. They were focused on looking better as a team and that’s a problem for the Sooners who still may not have their offensive line and problems moving the ball settled. That’s not a great sign. Michigan by 3.
Western Kentucky at (2) Georgia – Does anybody really think this game will be close to competitive? Bulldogs by 50.
(12) Alabama at Kentucky – The Wildcats may be better and, as usual these days around Kalen DeBoer’s time in Tuscaloosa, there still aren’t the best feelings for fans. With Kentucky still having to work on getting things going with a completely new staff this one might be rough. Crimson Tide by 15.
Mississippi State at Minnesota – Fans will want to watch this one for a look at Gophers quarterback Drake Lindsey from Fayetteville who probably should have been a Razorback. He has settled into a solid starting quarterback in the Big 10. Somehow I’m still not a believer of Mississippi State yet. Gophers 4.
Delaware at Vanderbilt – Commodores won’t have any trouble against a team from the state that did more in the Revolutionary War than they’ve done in college football since then. Vandy by 35.
Campbell at Florida – Just one of several games that shouldn’t be close. Gators by 50.
Towson at South Carolina – Here we go again. No problem for Beamer’s Bunch in this one. Gamecocks by 50.
(18) Tennessee at Georgia Tech – This one might be good. The Yellowjackets aren’t a bad team, despite not being able to close out a win over Colorado last week. Meanwhile, the Vols are looking to back up their opener with a solid win. Vols by 17.
Louisiana Tech at (8) LSU – This one might be interesting until after kickoff but it won’t take long for LSU to get the offense rolling. No problem. Tigers by 50.
(1) Ohio State at (4) Texas – This could be a coming out of sorts for Arch Manning early in the season but don’t expect a blowout either way. The Buckeyes have played in big games bfore so the environment in Austin probably won’t be too overwhelming. There’s still something, though, that tells me Texas can find a way to win this game. Longhorns by 2.
Southern Miss at Auburn – The Golden Eagles aren’t really ready for the SEC yet but it’s a fairly close road trip for fans and it might not be too bad of a blowout. It won’t be close, though. Tigers by 19.
Charlotte at (9) Ole Miss – No problem for Rebels who don’t want any complaining about this win. Rebels by 53.
