Arkansas coach Sam Pittman said Monday at that moment the numbers for the Tigers’ game had not improved, but there are more tests set.
SDS’ O’Gara says LSU’s offense had plenty of time to prepare for Hogs’ defense
Arkansas’ defense was playing short-handed against the Tigers last week, but Saturday Down South’s Connor O’Gara said LSU had good plan.
Murphy on Smith not getting chance at touchdown in Hogs’ loss
The Democrat-Gazette’s Tom Murphy thinks Hogs running back Trelon Smith had a good chance at getting into end zone … if he’d gotten the ball.
Bud Light Seltzer Morning Rush Podcast – Missed chance to bring Boot home
Tye & Tommy on what led to the Arkansas loss, Tom Murphy joins and more!
Yurachek coming to defense of Catalon after SEC blows another replay
Saying the incorrect ejection of Jalen Catalon cost Arkansas the game against LSU on Saturday is making an excuse for the failure of the offense to get first downs.
Especially on third down.
No, Catalon should not have been ejected. In my opinion it should not have even been flagged. The fact that the SEC’s league office tries to run things like a third-world dictatorship on comments about it makes it worse.
This is not an indictment of the on-field officials. That’s a job I have never (and would never) attempt to do. I have been on the sidelines and seen how fast those things happen and I know what I thought I saw didn’t really happen when I saw it on film later.
It’s almost impossible to see everything and be right on every single call, but replay was supposed to change a lot of that.
Sam Pittman said about what you’d expect from a coach after the 27-24 loss to the Tigers in a game that wasn’t particularly well played by either team.
“I’m not going to answer that stuff,” Pittman said later when asked about it. “It costs me money and it’s over with. You saw it.”
Catalon did not lead with his helmet into LSU receiver Kayshon Boutte. He was leading with his shoulder to the chest, then Boutte tried to duck and Catalon’s shoulder got a glancing blow to the helmet.
“It looked to me (Catalon) was trying to get his head out of there, trying to avoid the receiver’s helmet as well,” Pittman said later.
Replay clearly showed that as well.
SEC Network analyst Matt Stinchcomb, an All-American offensive lineman at Georgia, was mystified by the call, too, especially after seeing the replay.
“I don’t know how that call can possibly be confirmed,” Stinchcomb said. “I also don’t know how you can play defense if you are not able to make a play that looks like that. He turned his entire body sideways. I didn’t even see any head or neck contact.”
Arkansas athletics director Hunter Yurachek stepped up on social media, which may be as good to see as anything.
I cannot change the outcome or any of the other missed calls, but I will work with the appropriate SEC Officials to make sure that this “targeting” call does not cost Jalen Catalon our next game. My student-athletes deserve better. pic.twitter.com/vGEd20u0FB
— Hunter Yurachek (@HunterYurachek) November 21, 2020
This has been a problem that has jumped into the main storyline of games across the league this season. Arkansas fans think it’s all about the Hogs but it’s a league-wide problem.
Commissioner Greg Sankey prefers to double-talk with politically-correct releases instead of addressing the problem head-on … and taking money from coaches and administrators who publicly question things.
For Hog fans, though, the ejection of Catalon (or the fumble Arkansas clearly recovered despite replay not being able to see that, either) did not cost them the game.
The offense going 0-for-10 on third down had much more to do with that, in my opinion. That was a combination of poor execution and bad luck more than anything else.
Catalon’s ejection is another matter completely. Because it happened in the second half of Saturday’s game that makes him ineligible for the first half of the next game against Missouri this week.
The SEC can’t change anything that happened after the replay call was made.
There is precedent, however, to fix the incorrect part of a bad decision that CAN be fixed. Catalon should be allowed to start and play against Missouri.
That’s the easy decision.
The harder one should be Sankey or somebody with some guts taking a serious look at the replay, inject some common sense (yes, I know that’s in short supply at times in Birmingham) and get the replays fixed.
Let’s see what they do.
LSU takes home ‘Golden Boot,’ even though Tigers fans don’t care
Shaped like the two border states, we all know the Golden Boot trophy is awarded annually to the winner between Arkansas and LSU and it’s headed back to Baton Rouge now.
But do know all of the following facts (mingled with thoughts)? Take a look:
Made out of 24-karat gold the Golden Boot is slightly over 4-feet tall.
Arkansas has a trophy case in Bud Walton Arena which holds the rivalry trophy following the years in which the Razorbacks are the victor.
Chad Morris never won the Golden Boot.
LSU leads the “rivalry award” series 16 – 8.
The game was played for several seasons as the last regular season game for both teams the day after Thanksgiving.
After the change, LSU picked up Texas A&M and Arkansas was slated to face Missouri as “rivalry” games the last week of the season. Neither of those forced enmities seem to have the same steam as the Tigers and Razorbacks.
It’s probably the coolest rivalry trophy when compared to others across the NCAA.
Arkansas and LSU never played for the award in Fayetteville, Arkansas, until 2012. Up to that point all Razorback home games in the serious had been held in Little Rock.
It’s heavy. In fact, many fans get nervous watching as the winning team hoists the precarious 175-pound award.
LSU fans do not like the tophy, and they hate how much Arkansas fans like it.
Arkansas and LSU faced off four times in the SEC (with each team winning respectively winning two in a row) before the induction of the Golden Boot in 1996.
LSU won the initial game, and both teams alternated victories for the next six seasons.
Since the SEC split to East and West and introduced the SEC Championship game, the winner has represented the West seven times.
Many LSU fans say they have no natural rival in the SEC, but they “would rather take home the dumb trophy than let Arkansas have it.”
The insignia on the Golden Boot’s plaque simply says “The Boot”.
Unless my math is incorrect, only fifth-year seniors at Arkansas would have ever been on an Arkansas team to hoist the trophy.
It has yet to test positive for covid.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Find me on ‘Twitter’: @PeterMorganWPS
Go HOGS!!!
Hogs come close to capping off chaotic week with huge win that wasn’t
When you consider Arkansas tried to play an SEC game with a bunch of freshmen on the defensive front, LSU’s 27-24 win Saturday shouldn’t be surprising.
It is surprising the Razorbacks actually had a shot to win it at the end.
The fact they had any chance at all is due to the explosiveness of Kendal Briles’ offense. The fact the Hogs didn’t convert a single third down in the game and only had the ball about 30% of the time is, at times, a negative of his offense.
“You go 0-for-10 on third down, I mean, you’re asking for it,” wide receiver Mike Woods said later.
Woods was part of the boom-or-bust nature of the Hogs when they had the ball. Either way it went, they weren’t keeping it for long.
Feleipe Franks’ numbers show all of that. He was 17-of-26 passing for 339 yards, but had a costly interception that led to a Tigers’ score. He also ran for 43 yards, but slipped and tripped himself out of a few more yards there.
Arkansas isn’t good enough to overcome many of those and Saturday they couldn’t overcome that one.
Sam Pittman said it best, though, summing it all up after the game.
“Anytime you lose by three there’s so many points in the game that can go one way or the other …,” he said later.
This is one the fans will agonize over for longer than 24 hours. Coaches and players may be able to let it go after that but a lot of fans are still in agony over the loss to Auburn.
Oh, and the fans’ favorite official, Mark Curls, was wearing the white hat for the game. As expected, there were a few controversial replay decisions that went against the Hogs that will have fans up in arms for awhile.
Not Pittman, though.
“Reviews over the long run usually go about 50-50 when it’s all said and done,” he said.
Which is true. Hog fans don’t want to hear that, but it’s probably the fact of the matter. Arkansas had won a replay on the interception return that was initially ruled a touchdown, but replay put the ball at the 2.
“I could have seen very easily they would have given him that touchdown,” Pittman said.
Agree or disagree, replays and officials weren’t the reason the Hogs lost to LSU. They lost they game because of inconsistency in the interior lines on both sides of the ball.
Let’s face it, the Tigers have high-paid coaches that know what they’re doing, just like the Hogs.
“They schemed and they scheme just like us,” Franks said later. “They had a good couple play calls for ours.”
Arkansas’ offense put up more yards (443 to 419) than LSU, mostly hitting big plays. A 65-yard score to Treylon Burks started it and we discovered T.J. Hammonds is still around with a 51-yard pass reception and a 29-yard run. Mike Woods had another 50-yard reception and added a 35-yarder to go with it.
Sustaining drives was the problem. The Hogs only had 14 first downs in the game (LSU had 24) and that causes issues for the defense eventually. How Jonathan Marshall managed lugging 317 pounds around for every play is beyond me.
No, in the end it was an inability to convert third downs that ultimately nailed the coffin shut.
Pittman was frustrated because it was something the Hogs focused on in practices this week.
“Whether we had focus on it or didn’t I would imagine we would be disappointed in third down,” he said later, clearly an understatement.
No, LSU got players back on the field from some highly-recruited classes in recent years while the Hogs had many of the playmakers on the defensive front sitting at home.
Blame it on covid if you really want to attach the blame on something.
Take the blown replay reviews, covid quarantines and everything else there is still something no fan should be overlooking and it’s sort of obvious to me.
The defending national champions were nearly beat by a team with a depleted roster that went two years in a row without winning a league game and not one single recruiting class in the last five years that cracked the Top 20 in the 247Sports.com composite rankings.
Ed Orgeron may have a bigger problem than Pittman when you look at it that way.
For the Hogs, though, it’s a win that wasn’t.
Pittman not getting into replay reviews after 27-24 loss to LSU on Saturday
Hogs coach Sam Pittman wasn’t going to get into any discussion about the controversial replay reviews that played roles in the loss.
Woods not happy with offense 0-for-10 on third-down conversions against LSU
Hogs wide receiver Mike Woods didn’t like the lack of converting third downs Saturday despite his pair of big catches (4-for-150) in the game.
Franks on fixing problems in loss to Tigers, particularly third-down issues
Hogs quarterback Feleipe Franks talked after the 27-24 loss to LSU on Saturday about the lack of “staying on the field” on third down.
Marshall after playing every single defensive snap with line missing key players
Hogs defensive lineman Jonathan Marshall was the only starter to play against LSU and he can’t remember ever playing that many snaps.
