Arkansas players Alexis Tolefree and Chelsee Dungee talked with the media after losing to Arizona State, 88-85, on Sunday night, but they were positive about the team’s play.
Thorne praises Razorbacks’ improvement from last year’s game
Arizona State coach Charli Turner Thorne talked with the media after beating the Razorbacks on Sunday night, but the game was a lot closer than last year’s blowout.
KNWA VIDEO: Arkansas players after loss to Mississippi State
Video courtesy of KNWA
Razorbacks Armon Watts, Dre Greenlaw and Ty Storey talking with the media after the 52-6 loss to the Bulldogs on Saturday in a performance that pleased none of them.
Hogs’ performance against ’Dogs unacceptable to everybody
If your opinion of Arkansas being on the wrong end of a 52-6 tail-kicking in Starkville on Saturday is not acceptable, well, Chad Morris is right there with you.
“Unacceptable in all areas,” a grim-faced Morris started with his postgame comments. “Unacceptable coaching. Unacceptable playing. Unacceptable effort.”
You got the idea watching him this may be an interesting last week of the season.
“Not what we’re about,” he said. “Not what this program’s going to be built on. It’s absolutely not acceptable.”
The reason I got the idea it may be an interesting week is what came next.
“We’re going to find out,” he said. “We’re in a big gut-check time right now.”
The loss is by far the worst-looking performance this Razorback team has had all season. Mississippi State came into the game ranked No. 21 and looked every bit of that, but this team has already played Alabama and LSU without looking quite as inept.
“Obviously, we had some opportunities,” Morris said. “We were unable to execute. That’s the biggest thing. Just a lack of execution. Drops, had guys open and couldn’t get it, had a touchdown, get a touchdown called back, got guys running open … just a lack of execution.”
Morris looked and acted like someone who was completely blindsided by the performance and didn’t see it coming at all.
“Absolutely not,” he said. “Not one time. We had really good workouts, our energy level has been high, our attitude had been great.”
He was asked how he would address it in the postgame and you got the idea he knew, but wasn’t ready to tell anyone else.
“We’re gonna find out,” he said. “it’s a gut-check. It’s going to take a special person to come back in here tomorrow and put their best foot forward. If you don’t have that, it’s okay, but don’t show back up.
“From coaching, to playing, to equipment, to training, it’s everything.”
In the second half, defensive coordinator John Chavis came out of the pressbox to the field.
“More than anything so (the players) could see the urgency in his eyes and his voice,” Morris said.
There were plays open. Quarterback Ty Storey was wide open for a pass, but De’Vion Warren short-armed it, which was just one of the myriad of problems for him all day long as he dropped a wide open crossing route later that would have either gotten a touchdown or pretty close to it.
“You have to make plays at any level,” Morris said. “You have to execute. You get a call, you practice the call, continue to rep it … I don’t think De’Vion said, ‘Hey, I’m going to drop this ball.’ Without a doubt he didn’t say that. But you have to execute and we’re just not executing.”
He said he wasn’t upset.
“I’m disappointed,” he said. “The steps we’ve been taking, this is just unacceptable, you know, in all areas.”
That was the defining word for this game. Morris was asked later about some of the defensive starters coming out before the game to try and exchange information with State’s cheerleaders, but he wasn’t addressing.
“Unacceptable,” was the answer the rest of the way for the last couple of questions.
It does bring up questions about what may be the biggest issue Morris has not been able to overcome this season and it’s a lack of self-discipline within the program he inherited.
Oh, it’s fairly certain that issue will be addressed by Morris and the staff.
After five years of things that you hear about, see and then wonder about, maybe Morris discovered that was the biggest problem of all in this program.
This team hasn’t had a lot of senior leadership. That’s not to say a couple have taken on that role, but it takes more than one or two. There hasn’t been a lot of internal accountability for five years so you didn’t think it would happen immediately, did you?
It hasn’t and that has led to wild swings in what we’ve seen on the field this season. For example, how can a team that looked decent against LSU turn around and stink it up against Mississippi State?
It appears that’s the same question Morris and the staff have, too.
As we said, that may make for an interesting week before closing it out against Missouri on Friday.
It also might be a different-looking team, too.
KNWA VIDEO: Morris after loss to Bulldogs
VIDEO COURTESY OF KNWA
Arkansas coach Chad Morris on “unacceptable” performance against Mississippi State on Saturday in the Hogs’ 52-6 loss.
Hogs find out Mississippi State’s defense as good as advertised
Arkansas won’t win a game in the SEC West this year and it will take a road win on Friday to avoid the worst season in program history after losing to Mississippi State on Saturday, 52-6.
The Bulldogs came in with one of the top defenses in the nation and the Razorbacks’ offense couldn’t do much against it at all.
The game actually wasn’t as close as the final score indicated.
State put up 475 yards of total offense, including 287 on the ground in completely dismantling the Hogs’ defense.
The Bulldogs led 3-0 at the end of the first quarter before pulling away to a 17-3 halftime lead.
Connor Limpert had a pair of field goals for the only Arkansas scores on the day.
In the third quarter, State ran away completely, building a 38-6 lead before coasting home in the final period playing mostly backups.
The loss drops the Hogs to 2-9 overall and 0-7 in the SEC. They will finish the season the day after Thanksgiving at Missouri.
Can Hogs pull off road win against cowbells, Mississippi State?
Ah, cowbells. Everybody loves them, especially when you have 58,000 fans ringing them in unchoreographed unison. Love Mississippi State or hate them, Arkansas must make its way into Starkville Saturday to face their SEC West foe, the Bulldogs.
Before I go further, please permit me to extend prayers to Arkansas fanatic “Eddie from Clarksville” and his family. Sometimes we forget what is truly important upon this Earth, and all of our thoughts are with them at this time.
Back to business. The Razorbacks see this as a winnable game despite the fact that they are going up against one of the top defenses in the nation.
Mississippi State sees it as a trap game.
I see it as a reason to point out three aspects as to why the Hogs need to leave Davis Wade Stadium with a “W.”
• Arkansas has never lost 10 games in a single season. Winning one of the last two would eliminate this possibility. Of course, the Razorbacks have never lost nine in a single season before either, so a winning streak at the end prevents this new low.
• Recruiting. No matter what one says to rebuttal my beliefs, SEC losses always damper recruiting even in the smallest amount. This game can only assist with any future targets east of our friendly borders.
• Let’s be honest, Mississippi State is not on the same level of our hatred with Alabama, Auburn, and Ole Miss, however, we despise losing to the maroon clad university that fully eliminated our dwindling hopes of national achievement in 1998.
Arkansas can win this Saturday, yet I feel we must treat it as though the future of the program is at stake.
Ty Storey needs to start and play the entire game, and we do not need to finish this season in spring practice mode. A 4–8 season will feel and look leaps and bounds better than 2–10.
To top it off, Bulldogs coach Joe Moorhead made the generalized statement of Arkansas being better than their record. Let’s prove to him the accuracy of his statement.
Finally, despite my being mathematically all but eliminated from defeating Andy Hodges in this season’s “HitThatLine.com SEC Picks” contest, the conference rolls on, and pride is still on the line.
But I’ll roll with the Hogs pulling off the upset to win it, 34-17.
- The Citadel at (1) Alabama – Tide by… Good night, do I even really have to put this prediction in writing. Only Jack Crowe would pick Alabama to lose.
- Idaho at (13) Florida – The Gators vandalize Idaho by 31.
- Middle Tennessee at (17) Kentucky – Wildcats by 21.
- Missouri at Tennessee – Vols by 6, but only because they are at home.
- UMass at (5) Georgia – Bulldogs are happy to dominate by 24.
- Liberty at Auburn – What is this, Homecoming Week in the SEC? Tigers by 34.
- University of Alabama – Birmingham at Texas A&M – Easy win by 30 for the Aggies.
- Rice at (7) LSU – The Owls will lose by a rough 22.
- Ole Miss at Vanderbilt – The only other pure SEC match-up sees the Rebels defeat the Commodores by 7.
- Chattanooga at South Carolina – Gamecocks by 27.
Go HOGS!!!
Find me on ‘Twitter’: @PeterMorganWPS
Hogs’ season ends in double overtime at Virginia Tech
CARY, N.C. — Arkansas had to battle through an aggressive match into overtime with Virginia Tech Friday afternoon in its second-round match of the NCAA Tournament.
Unfortunately, it was the Hokies that found the golden goal in the 107th minute, ending Arkansas’ season with a 1-0 defeat in double-overtime.
Virginia Tech’s goal came in the second overtime period with four minutes left until both teams would decide with penalty kicks. The Hokies were granted their fifth corner kick of the match and Jordan Hemmen attempted a header in the middle, sending it in at the far post.
“I thought we created enough chances to win,” Arkansas coach Colby Hale said. “Virginia Tech was incredibly direct. It’s a testament to our press and players. Soccer can be cruel. It was a good season and another step forward for this program.
“I’m gutted for this group of players and this senior class. I wanted it for them. They have been courageous in helping us build this to national prominence. They will be missed, but their legacy will last forever.”
Junior Stefani Doyle and sophomore Taylor Malham were the main offensive weapons for the Razorbacks, contributing to 85 percent of Arkansas’ shots being on target. Malham and Doyle came into Friday’s match with six and three goals on the year, respectively.
Doyle led all Razorbacks with five shots in the match, four finding the frame in 104 minutes. Kayla McKeon, Haley VanFossen and Taylor Malham each added two shots of their own.
Arkansas also won the corners game, 9-5, four coming in the second half.
Some of the Razorbacks’ best chances to break the scoreless tie came off corners, including a 96th minute chance by Doyle in the left portion of the box, but Virginia Tech’s keeper Mandy McGlynn made one of her nine saves of the match.
The Razorbacks’ season was successful, once again, reaching its third-straight SEC Tournament final and third-straight NCAA Tournament appearance in Hale’s seventh year at the helm.
Arkansas also unseated No. 2 Texas A&M earlier in the season, earning its first win over the Aggies since 1993. The win also was the fifth result over a top-10 team since 2016, which is more than any other SEC team in that time frame.
For only the second time in school history, Arkansas won 10 games at Razorback Field, but this year marked the first time in school history that the team went unbeaten at home (10-0-1). The 10 wins matches the win total from 2016, which was a school record.
???? Friday Halftime Pod — featuring Jerod Morris
Phil & Tye discuss Wes Johnson leaving for the Twins, FOMO Friday, plus Jerod Morris of Assembly Call!
No one expecting Razorbacks to down Bulldogs as season winds down
The football season that has turned into a nightmare for many Arkansas fans is coming to a conclusion and finding anyone looking for a win in Starkville on Saturday is difficult.
In the modern era that I define from 1970 forward, this is easily the worst season in program history. We’re not going to go into all the of the how’s, why’s and whatever … we have an entire offseason for that.
You get the feeling Chad Morris didn’t think coming in it was going to be like this in his first season. In my view, a lot of people didn’t realize the lack of buy-in from some players who waited until the season started to play a couple of games before quitting.
No, this team should not have lost to Colorado State, North Texas, Ole Miss or Vanderbilt. Those are the four games that baffled me. From watching Morris’ body language and his tone, he was, at times, everywhere from baffled to downright ticked off.
Win those four games and we’re sitting here at 6-4 and the mood is different. Consider they were within a touchdown of LSU and Texas A&M and, well, the fan base would be downright giddy right now.
But they didn’t win any of those, which leaves things right where they are.
As coaches have said over the years, you are what you are and this team is what it is.
They still have a shot at getting some positive momentum for 2019. For fans that may mean getting a win. It could mean, simply, steps forward in a season that hopefully will be viewed as the bottoming out of one era and the beginning of another.
The biggest problem is we won’t know that until we’re looking in the rearview mirror a few years down the road. Hindsight is usually 20-20.
Coaches have done their best to focus on the next game and only that each week since the wheels fell off. That’s what they always say they’re doing. They know the schedule, though.
Before Arkansas came into the SEC in 1992, the Hogs never met the Bulldogs. They did play the Aggies once (1916) and the Maroons (1939), losing both times. When the Mississippi legislature changed the nickname to Bulldogs in 1960, the two teams didn’t meet until 1992.
And it took the Hogs four years before getting a win. After that, Arkansas was 12-1 against State before Bobby Petrino lost in 2008, getting out-coached by Sylvester Croom and Woody McCorvey (nobody saw that coming).
The Razorbacks won four in a row before losing five of the next six. Bret Bielema found creative ways to loss to Dan Mullen’s teams, including having a chipshot field goal blocked (2015) and in overtime in 2013, 24-17 in a precursor of what was coming.
Now the Hogs are struggling through a two-win season while Mississippi State is sitting at a disappointing 6-4. Their fans were hoping for more this year with a new coach in Joe Moorhead, who is battling some of the same problems Morris is at Arkansas.
Moorhead’s offense is a passing offense. Nick Fitzgerald is the best running quarterback in the history of the SEC, but not that great as a passer. The result is an offense that was stymied by Kentucky and Florida.
They’ve gotten to 6-4 mainly with a defense that is the best in the league in some respects. They only allowed 20 points or more twice … to Kentucky and Alabama.
Exactly how the Hogs will generate any offense is maybe the best storyline to this game.
This game may be ugly if offense is your thing.
Mississippi State 13, Arkansas 9
With two weeks left in our picks contest, Peter Morgan is going to have to hope for a couple of wild weekends with upsets running rampant. My record is 69-14 while Peter is seven back at 62-21.
Easy Pickings
These games likely won’t be close: Alabama over The Citadel, Florida over Idaho, Kentucky over Middle Tennessee, Georgia over UMass, Auburn over Liberty, Texas A&M over Alabama-Birmingham, LSU over Rice and South Carolina over Chattanooga.
Any upsets in these games will be front-page news.
-6.5 Missouri at Tennessee
Jeremy Pruitt is actually having more success than a lot of first-year coaches and got a big win over Kentucky last week (although Georgia probably managed to beat the Wildcats twice).
The Tigers beat Florida on the road two weeks ago, then had to put together a comeback for the ages last week against Vanderbilt to get a win.
They may not need a comeback this week.
Missouri 31, Tennessee 24
Ole Miss at -3 Vanderbilt
In betting lines, the home team usually gets three points, so effectively this a pick ’em game in Nashville.
The Rebels are able to score points, but the defense usually rises to the occasion and allows as many as they can score.
The Commodores have a running game again, which could keep Ole Miss’ defense on the bench more than it wants to be. That tends to cause the Rebels to panic a little and leads to problems.
Going out on a limb and trying to help Peter out a little in the hole he’s in, I think the Rebels can figure out a way to win this one.
Ole Miss 42, Vanderbilt 38
Hogs, Hoosiers in same boat after firing longtime Hall of Fame coaches
Arkansas and Indiana are meeting on the basketball court two decades too late.
Can you imagine former Hoosiers coach Bobby Knight invading Bud Walton Arena to tangle with former Hogs coach Nolan Richardson at Barnhill Arena in 1990 during the Hogs’ Final Four season or at Bud Walton Arena in 1995 as the Hogs were defending national champions?
Talk about epic.
I wonder what the over-under on technical fouls would have been. Somehow the tradition-rich programs never met during their heydays. In fact, Sunday’s meeting with the Hoosiers is just the third all-time and the first in Fayetteville.
Arkansas lost at Indiana in 1949. The Hogs beat the Hoosiers in the 2008 NCAA Tournament.
Neither team is ranked in the Top 25 entering Sunday’s game. Arkansas hasn’t advanced to the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 since 1996. Its lone national title came in 1994 with a loss to UCLA in the 1995 title game.
Indiana has had slightly better recent success reaching the 2002 NCAA National Championship game under former coach Mike Davis, and earning Sweet 16 bids under former coach Tom Crean in 2012, 2013 and 2016. Knight guided the 1976 Hoosiers to an undefeated title in 1976 and added two more in 1981 and 1987, respectively. Knight’s final Final Four appearance came in 1991.
The tale of the two programs is very similar. Each has struggled to regain prominence following the end of two legendary coaches who were fired amid controversy close to the same time in the early 2000s.
Davis Led Indiana to an improbable Final Four run in 2002 in his second season succeeding Knight, but he lasted just three more seasons before he was fired in favor of Kelvin Sampson.
Sampson enjoyed two successful seasons in Bloomington but was forced to resign after two seasons amid NCAA violations.
Marquette’s Crean took over before the 2008-09 season and endured four straight losing seasons. The Hoosiers finished 29-7 in 2012-13 and 27-8 in 2015-16, but IU fired Crean after an 18-16 finish two seasons ago.
Former Dayton Coach Archie Miller is in his second season at IU after finishing 16-15 last year.
Indiana’s coaching carousel following Knight is all-too-familiar to Hog fans. I don’t have to review the gory details of the Stan Heath and John Pelphrey Eras or the one-day tenure of Dana Altman.
Current Hogs coach Mike Anderson is 70-54 in his eighth season. He’s done just enough to keep his seat from heating but not enough to satisfy fans who long for the days when he sat next to his former boss, Richardson.
Few marquee wins, lost big-time recruits and three NCAA Tournament appearances never advancing past the second round. It’s not what former Hogs AD Jeff Long expected when he plucked Anderson from Missouri where he had enjoyed success.
And that brings us to Sunday’s game. While this may not be a marquee win for either team, it could help boost a resume in March. Indiana already has momentum starting the season 3-0, including a 96-73 blowout win against No. 24-ranked Marquette.
Arkansas lost in overtime to Texas at Fort Bliss, Texas, and routed UC-Davis Monday at home. A win at Bud Walton Arena may push the Hoosiers closer to a Top 25 ranking which would be big for Miller as he tries to move the program back to prominence.
Anderson is still trying to get a feel for his team whose only returning contributors form last season are sophomore superstar Daniel Gafford and junior Adrio Bailey. He’s less concerned about the nonconference than he is getting prepared for the Southeastern Conference slate which is all of a sudden rugged with revitalization of Auburn and Tennessee to go along with perennial power Kentucky.
However, if Arkansas wins this game, it could run through the rest of the nonconference unscathed with home tilts with mid-major UT-Arlington and ACC member Georgia Tech as the biggest threats to that run. A successful nonconference may increase the young, athletic team’s confidence.
Richardson may be in the building Sunday supporting his former pupil but Knight will not, and we can only dream of what might have been if the two had squared off when their programs were relevant and in their prime. Maybe by the time the two teams meet next season in Bloomington they will at least both be ranked in the Top 25.
