Tigers do pretty much whatever they want to do nearly entire game against Razorbacks, who get chance against struggling Bulldogs.
Ruscin & Zach give their thoughts on the loss to LSU
We recap what went wrong against LSU, admit our mistake regarding the Rutgers fiasco, and DQ has her weekly checkmarks.
Eastside Liquor Halftime Podcast: 10-21-24
Hogs got throttled. Phil and Matt avoid the sugarcoating and state it like it is.
Guests: Mike Irwin, Dr. Charlie Liggett/River Valley Smile Center, Connor O’Gara.
Hogs’ coach Sam Pittman previewing game with Mississippi State
Impressed with Bulldogs’ coach Jeff Lebby and how Bulldogs playing really well, but just not good enough to get wins.
Bud Light Morning Rush Podcast: 10-21-24
Hurt. That’s the only way to put it. After a disappointing weekend for Hog fans, Tye and Tommy try and help you pick up the pieces.
Guests: Clay Henry.
WATCH: Are you HOT after 34-10 loss at home? Join the Morning Rush here on a Hot Take Monday
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CLAY HENRY: Hogs must find their running game
My worst three fears were realized Saturday night.
One and two were in the Arkansas game, a 34-10 LSU victory. The strengths the Razorbacks had come to count on in a 4-2 start did not hold up against the Tigers.
The third fear took place early in the fourth quarter of Georgia’s 30-15 win over No. 1 Texas. The SEC turned spineless the first time it had a chance to stick it to the arrogant Longhorn fans.
Back to the Hogs, the strong suit in year five of coach Sam Pittman’s era had been defense and the ability to run the ball. Those two things had led to superior time of possession, most notably in an upset two weeks ago against Tennessee.
That went up in smoke as LSU’s powerful lines dominated on both sides of the ball. LSU held the ball for 38:53 of the game’s 60 minutes. It was 13:04 to 1:56 in the fourth quarter.
The Hogs had averaged 199 rushing yards — fourth best in the SEC — in their first six games. They made only 38 on 19 rushes against the Tigers. That’s a paltry 2.0 per try.
If you want to point to one area that spells death in college football, it’s the inability to control the line of scrimmage in the run game.
We should have seen it coming. The strength of the UA run game all year has been the bruising slashes of 235-pound Ja’Quinden Jackson, the Utah transfer with the big heart. He’s just one big bruise at this point in the season. A sore ankle gave out after five carries for 26 yards against the Tigers.
Jackson had made 566 on 99 carries with 10 touchdowns in his first six games. He limped to the locker room after an 8-yard carry that did not feature any hard hits by the Tigers. Literally, he just gave out.
Not only did the Tigers not have to worry about stopping Jackson, quarterback Taylen Green was not his usual run threat. After leaving the Tennessee game with a bruised knee on a cheap shot, Green passed up running opportunities against the Tigers.
Green had made 326 yards on 81 carries in his first six games. That includes 175 yards in losses.
Against LSU, Green carried six times for minus 10 yards. He was sacked three times. He was well enough to play, but he clearly wasn’t going to expose his knee with a heavy diet of scrambles. Play caller Bobby Petrino likely reduced the number of his favorite run-pass option calls, Green’s strength.
Travis Williams, the UA defensive play-caller, could not get stops despite seven illegal procedure penalties against the Tigers. The Razorbacks committed penalties that gave up five first downs, a killer against any foe.
The other killer, for the third straight SEC game, the Hogs did not force any turnovers. They committed two that led to 11 points for the Tigers.
Arkansas did not put LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier under any pressure. That’s not altogether a surprise. The Tigers had given up only two sacks all season. The LSU plan against a soft defensive look that seemed to work against the Vols was to drop the ball on short hitches or outs.
LSU did not have a lost yardage play until they ran out the clock at the end of the game. The Tigers consistently faced third and short.
Pittman said Williams did call some zero coverage (with blitzes), but they were not numerous and did not get home. Pittman said defensive end Landon Jackson, often double teamed, did get home with some speed rushes, but it was a step late.
There were some tough pills to swallow on the night. Watching the SEC’s two marquee night games side by side on big screens, there was a striking contrast in the way targeting was called.
Georgia lost a player to targeting on a hit that seemed to be in the facemask area. Meanwhile, just a few minutes earlier, a targeting call (made by four officials) was waved off against LSU’s hit to the facemask area to UA receiver Tyrone Broden.
But that paled in comparison to what transpired in the Georgia game after a pass interference penalty was flagged against the Longhorns. It was reversed some 15 minutes later after crews picked up debris hurled from almost all sections of the Texas crowd.
That play is not reviewable, although it turned out that it was just rehashed by the on-field crew of officials, not by anyone in Birmingham.
I’ve long called Texas fans arrogant and malcontents. They proved that in their first big SEC game. Except for the reversed pass interference call, the Longhorns did not appear capable of competing with the Bulldogs.
I’m still unable to comprehend why that SEC crew didn’t flag Texas fans for a penalty. If that doesn’t fit the description of unsportsmanlike conduct, I’ve never seen it.
Does anyone think Arkansas fans would have been flagged for a penalty if they had hurled hundreds of bottles onto the field after the targeting penalty against LSU had been overturned?
I know what they are saying in Austin today. There’s nothing to see here. Move on. SEC commissioner Greg Sankey should do more than issue a scolding. There should be a significant fine.
No one should be surprised at the behavior of Longhorn fans. They were just doing their best to uphold their reputation. It took them all of two SEC games to show their true colors. It’s not really burnt orange, but more shades of puke.
Sorry if it took almost 1,000 words to get to how I really feel about the Longhorns, but there had to be commentary about the loss to LSU first.
That leaves the trip to Starkville to preview. It’s an important game for Pittman. He’s got to figure out a way to make the strengths of weeks one through six the strength of week eight. The Hogs must control the clock against Mississippi State.
The running game must be resurrected. It seems unlikely that Jackson will be a significant force. Can Green torment a State defense that has been porous most of the season? Is he healthy enough to want to run? Is Braylen Russell ready to assume a bigger role? Can Rashod Dubinion be trusted after losing a fumble on what looked to be a routine tackle against LSU?
Just as crucial, can the Hogs win the turnover battle the same way they did on their last trip east? They feasted on Auburn mistakes in their first SEC victory.
MSU’s defense has been a leaky vessel. It might be just what the doctor ordered for the Razorbacks to inch closer to bowl eligibility. The Hogs should be licking their chops, but I fear another dose of uneven work by SEC officials.
Hog Reaction presented by Bud Light : Hogs get dominated at home by LSU 34-10
Presented by Bud Light
SEC Roundup: Texas goes down, but so does over-rated Oklahoma
For those of you new to the SEC, we are often a conference of surprises. Just within the past year we have seen both Oklahoma and Texas leave the Big 12 to join our ranks, John Calipari left Kentucky for Arkansas, and Vanderbilt beat a No. 1 ranked Alabama team in football.
Week 8 of 2024 football was actually kind of an “as expected” weekend, especially in comparison to what we have experienced in the weeks leading up to this point.
There was, however, some hostility, the usual disappointment, and even calls for coaches to be fired throughout the mass we call social media. We will look at some of these as we go through our SEC Wrap-up for Week 8.
Three Takeaway Games
(5) Georgia 30, (1) Texas 15: All we have heard for weeks is how a decent amount of Texas fans wanted to see Freshman quarterback Arch Manning take the starting spot from veteran Quinn Ewers who was returning from an abdominal strain. This group of Manning campaigners finally got their wish when Texas Head Coach Steve Sarkisian temporarily benched a struggling Ewers. For two offensive series, we verified what most of us already knew: Manning may be as good, but he is not better than Ewers at this point.
Sarkisian put Ewers back in, and Texas did everything they could to make a game of it in the second half; however, this game proved to be simply another validation of what we all knew. Georgia is by far the better coached and more talented team. Troy Aikman in his prime could have suited up for the Longhorns, and the outcome would have been pretty much identical.
Georgia should be at least No. 2 in the Top 25, Texas will probably drop to No. 5. Both are primed to meet for the SEC Championship and both will most likely make the playoffs.
(7) Alabama, (11) Tennessee 24: Bama fans are not happy, and they have their first two losses before the end of October since 2007. Add to that, they barely escaped South Carolina last week. Crimson Tide faithful Rob posted Alabama’s issues fall on “Mainly discipline. Saban had these dudes coached to the point of being robots. Now there [are] penalties and blown plays every series.”
Rob is not alone. Others are screaming new Bama coach Kalen DeBoer has lost the strict leadership of which those in Heart of Dixie have become accustomed.
Take nothing away from Tennessee. They are on a mission to get back to their winning ways since their upset loss at Arkansas. Only one of these teams will make the playoffs, and this game is probably the deciding factor.
(8) LSU 34, Arkansas 10: Razorbacks coach Sam Pittman’s seat moved back up on the thermometer, not because the Hogs loss, but because of how badly they loss. Even though we had mentioned this game would be decided by the coordinators, the head coach is ultimately responsible. Even though he is beloved, there are pleas for his time at Arkansas to come to an end. Keith Jackson (no, not that one – a guy who goes by ChiefKJackson) wrote on ‘X’: “Can Sam Pittman please move to Lake Hamilton for good and ride off into the sunset as the man that tried his best and liked a loud jukebox and a cold beer once in a while?”
On a plus sign for the Hogs, their fans showed they can be extremely loud and disruptive, creating countless false start penalties against the Tigers.
LSU has a solid road victory to put on its resume as an SEC Championship and playoff berth both remain in their crosshairs. The Tigers control their own destiny, and a win over A&M next week will leave them as the lone undefeated team in conference play. After that, they play a down Alabama team and a handful of “should-wins”.
Remaining Results for Week 8
(14) Texas A&M 34, Mississippi State 24: Despite a 1-6 record, with Jeff Lubby being in his first year at Mississippi State, a coaching dismissal in not even a possible mention.
The reason this game ranks 4th in relevance this week is, like LSU, the Aggies are in the driver’s seat for an SEC Championship. Their match-up against the same Tigers next week will leave the SEC with only one undefeated conference team. The difference is, A&M will still have a very tough game against Texas to close out the season.
Auburn 17, (19) Missouri 21: Closer than expected, but the challenge of having to make a comeback at home might have been a good test of guts and dedication for the Missouri players. Missouri is about where they need to be in the rankings, and, with just one loss, they are still in contention for an SEC Championship and a playoff berth.
Daylan Carnell from Missouri had one of the hardest hits I have ever seen on Auburn receiver Rivaldo Fairweather. Carnell also had a complete moment of classlessness when he taunted an injured Fairweather. Carnell had no idea the extent of the injury. Kids, this is not a knock on the good people of Missouri, it is a call for sportsmanship to be put at the forefront of a “look at me” generation.
Ball State 14, Vanderbilt 24: Closer than expected? Yes. A good non-conference test for a Vandy program on the rise? Probably not. A win closer to bowl eligibility? Yes. No matter how you categorize this game, it is good to see the progress of the Commodores as they try to leave the label of “perennial cellar dweller”.
South Carolina 25, Oklahoma 9: “They are who we thought they were,” has almost come across as cliche in the sports world since Dennis Green uttered his frustration through those words. Speaking for me, I have stated multiple times Oklahoma has more often than not come into a season overrated. The Sooners also rolled into their inaugural SEC campaign completely unprepared.
Many of the Sooner faithful state they would not fare well in any conference. Others are putting blame where they feel blame lies, and that is in the hands of coach Brent Venables’s staff. Gunner Hathcock stated on ‘X’, “Give him a year to hire an OC. If this is the same product next year, let him go.”
Kentucky 20, Florida 48: It is possible some see the lopsided victory of this game a surprise, but given the way the Wildcats have played like up-and-down like a cheap wave pool, it was probably expected by a decent minority.
Check back here next week for more SEC Wrap-up.
