Arkansas coach Eric Musselman talked after the 79-64 win over the Trojans about what he liked, what needs improvement and the unveiling of Nolan Richardson Court.
Joe, Cylla recapping Hogs’ 79-64 win over Little Rock on Sunday
Razorbacks players Isaiah Joe (25 points) and Jeantal Cylla (13 points) talked with the media after downing the Trojans in the exhibition opener Sunday.
Walker on Trojans’ poor free-throw shooting, playing against Hogs
Little Rock coach (and former Razorback) Darrell Walker talked after Sunday’s exhibition game about the honor of being back for unveiling of Nolan Richardson Court.
Richardson on being honored with naming of court at Bud Walton Arena
Former Arkansas coach Nolan Richardson talked with the media at halftime of the exhibition game with Little Rock on Sunday about the honors he has received in retirement.
Auburn’s 51-10 win over Hogs points out glaring talent gap Morris faces
If you think all of the problems with Arkansas football is in the coaching, Saturday’s 51-10 loss to No. 11 Auburn raises the alternative.
It may be as glaring of a talent differential as anything seen with the Razorbacks in modern history.
Especially on the offensive and defensive interior.
When Hogs tackle Dalton Wagner was knocked backwards into running back Rakeem Boyd to blow up a sweep that should have gotten your attention.
The Tigers’ seniors and juniors just simply overwhelmed Arkansas’ linemen … on both sides of the ball. The best comparison that comes to mind is watching a junior varsity team with 9th and 10th graders playing a state championship-caliber team.
To a certain extent that’s the hand Chad Morris is trying to play in the SEC West.
Oh, sure, there are questions about the coaching. It’s starting to be a valid question about the mess at quarterback Morris has somehow not been able to figure out for two seasons now.
Morris doesnt want to put freshman K.J. Jefferson or redshirt freshman John Stephen Jones on the field in what would amount to a no-win situation.
A valid argument can be made for that.
Don’t throw Bo Nix at Auburn or some of these other freshmen quarterbacks that have had success recently. They were playing with four and five-year offensive linemen and others.
Which brings up the whole problem with the Razorbacks. The previous regime basically quit bringing in or developing linemen on both sides of the ball in SEC-type numbers about 2015.
It has had a ripple effect throughout the rest of the team. Let’s face it, if you’re not very good inside the box, you’re going to have a heckuva time being good outside of it.
You simply can’t develop the linemen that quickly, especially on offense.
And if you think play-calling is going to make that big of a difference you’re wrong. That’s the most over-rated part of football that fans think is such a big deal.
“We’s just got to executive better,” Morris said in the post-mortem Saturday.
That’s coach-speak for, well, the other team was simply better. Calling the right plays doesn’t count for squat if it’s not executed correctly or the other tam has the talent to just blow the play up before it can get going.
“We ran a lot of RPO’s today,” Morris said. “We gotta make sure we execute them right.”
For a fan base that is exhausted with mediocrity that has lapsed into futility, they want somebody to blame. Patience is in short supply, along with an increasing lack of interest.
Saturday’s ticket distribution was 54,619 and quite a few of those didn’t bother showing up. The rain early didn’t help and the dark cloud hanging over the problem probably sealed the deal for a lot of fans who had other things to do and a television that worked.
This was a physical mismatch combined with ridiculously poor timing for the Hogs. The Tigers were coming off a bye week following their loss to Florida and were completely prepared.
It wasn’t so much the Razorbacks weren’t prepared as they simply couldn’t do anything about it.
“We knew they were very big and physical up front,” Morris said.
And fast. Morris has talked about how they’ve got to get more speed and you either have it or you’re chasing it and the Hogs were chasing Saturday.
Yeah, there may be coaching issues, but it’s anybody’s guess how much of that is caused by the talent gap.
Remember, the last time Auburn had lines with this much experience and the talent, the Hogs put 43 points on the board and still got beat by 22 with The Great Playmaker in charge.
Great coaching doesn’t beat better talent very often. That will be on display again next week against Alabama.
That’s not good news but it’s playing the hand you’ve got.
“The young men in the locker room are gonna stay in the fight,” Morris said Saturday. “The only thing you can do is go back to work. You keep developing and you recruit.
“I knew the league was tough. We’d played against some of these teams. But I keep saying it’s not who we play, it’s how we play.”
Which, I guess, is about all he could say Saturday.
Morris on team having to go back to work after loss to Auburn
Arkansas coach Chad Morris said his team can only “go back to work” after a 51-10 loss to the Tigers with yet another fourth-quarter collapse.
Hicks, Agim recapping Arkansas’ loss to Auburn on Saturday
Razorbacks quarterback Ben Hicks and defensive tackle McTelvin Agim talked about the strength of the Tigers, plays during the 51-10 loss on Saturday.
Knox, Pool recapping Razorbacks’ loss to Tigers on Saturday
Razorbacks wide receiver Trey Knox and linebacker Bumper Pool talked after the 51-10 loss to No. 11 Auburn on Saturday.
Hogs collapse again in fourth quarter, but not close in loss
Arkansas had another collapse in the fourth quarter against Auburn on Saturday as the No. 11 Tigers put 20 points on the board to run away with a 51-10 win, dropping the Hogs to 2-5 on the season (0-4 in the SEC).
McFadden on being named to football foundation Hall of Fame
Former Arkansas running back Darren McFadden met with the media regarding his upcoming induction into the National Football Foundation’s Hall of Fame,
Auburn blowing out Hogs may be just one of several lopsided games
It’s not a farfetched notion that if Auburn’s team bus gets lost and ends up in Kansas City before the game that many Arkansas fans would still expect a close game.
That is the state of affairs these days with Razorback football.
The Tigers, ranked No. 11 in the country, have only lost to LSU, are starting a freshman quarterback and are a 19.5-point favorite. The ESPN Power Index gives the Hogs just a 6.6 percent shot at winning.
Spare me the memes about “so you’re saying we have a chance.” Please.
As we said, Auburn is starting a freshman quarterback. Arkansas will likely start one of two graduate transfer quarterbacks who have under-performed spectacularly at times this year while the one who put the team in the end zone the most in fall camp and the most promising freshman in years continue to sit on the bench without a second of playing time.
Apparently, Chad Morris’ method of development is to improve in practice, but a lot of coaches who have won games in the SEC have told me over the years there’s only so much you can find out there.
Sooner or later, you have to just roll the dice and put ’em in.
It’s probably not a longshot that Morris simply doesn’t have the whatever to roll that dice, which is why the Hammer Down mantra he proclaimed when hired has become the butt of jokes with many fans.
Has he fallen into the trap of trying to avoid a loss so much he’s killing the chances of winning? You got the feeling the previous coaches fell into that rut, too.
Morris is coaching like someone who has a five-year contract and has been assured by folks who have a vote that he will get that … regardless.
Ignore any comments made by anybody for at least 48 hours. I sat in the press box one time listening to Frank Broyles and and Wilson Matthews fire Kenny Hatfield about six times in a 1989 game. He wasn’t, of course, but left for Clemson just over a month later.
That’s a guess, though. A lot of the big-money folks aren’t going to quit writing a check because their ego won’t let them. Oh, they can say whatever they want, but it’s a good bet when push comes to shove, they’ll keep writing it.
Because of the lucrative money that’s coming in from other places, they don’t have the leverage they once had.
On paper, this one is almost laughable. Maybe not as bad as next week against Alabama will be, but still good for a few giggles.
The only way to change that is for the Hogs to play like they haven’t in years.
And Auburn to help out a little.
Don’t expect either.
Auburn 42, Arkansas 10
In our picks contest, poor ol’ Peter Morgan didn’t make up any ground last week as we both went 3-4 … thank you Mississippi State, Vanderbilt, Georgia and the Hogs.
He probably won’t gain any this week as it’s tempting to put every SEC game into the Easy Pickings segment of this thing. Yes, it’s that bad of a week.
Florida (-5.5) at South Carolina
The Gamecocks won an emotional overtime game last week as much by what Georgia messed up as what they did. The Bulldogs’ kicker missed a field goal in overtime, which hasn’t happened all year.
The Gators put the up the good fight against LSU last week, but folded at night in Baton Rouge against what may be the best team in the country.
Things return to normal this week.
Florida 24, South Carolina 20
LSU (-17.5) at Mississippi State
Bulldogs fans are as upset with Joe Moorhead as a lot of the Hogs fans are with Morris.
The Tigers come in ranked No. 2 in the country, with a quarterback in the running for the Heisman Trophy against a team that has played more quarterbacks than Arkansas and has juggled personnel all year with the NCAA suspensions.
It’s going to be another long day for the ‘Dogs.
LSU 42, Mississippi State 21
Missouri (-21) at Vanderbilt
If the over-rated Derek Mason was anywhere else, he’d be on the hot seat but in Nashville he can skate for awhile.
Let’s face it, seven wins in a season buys you a few years of job security there.
The Tigers are rolling and in a position to actually win the SEC East.
Missouri 45, Vanderbilt 14
Kentucky at Georgia (-25)
Seriously, the Wildcats may not get a score until the second half when the Bulldogs are playing every backup on the team. Nothing like an unexpected loss to get everybody’s attention.
Georgia 42, Kentucky 6
Texas A&M (-6) at Ole Miss
It is sooooo tempting to pick an upset here, but I simply am resorting to feeling like Chad Morris and playing it safe. I don’t believe the Aggies are that good, but I’m relatively certain the Rebels aren’t.
Although it’s interesting to see the second best player in Mississippi last year is starting at quarterback for Ole Miss while the best player hasn’t played a snap at Arkansas.
This may be the best game in the league this week.
Texas A&M 35, Ole Miss 31
Tennessee at Alabama (-35.5)
Nick Saban’s biggest concern in this one will be how many fans are still hanging around after halftime, despite his “rat poison” comments this week and the Vols surprising Mississippi State last week.
Talk about bad luck for Tennessee and former Saban assistant Jeremy Pruitt.
Alabama 51, Tennessee 9
