Arkansas, OSU: The Bad

By Jerry Meadows

FAYETTEVILLE — Last Saturday morning, the Razorbacks came to Stillwater, Okla., to show the fans that this year’s version of Arkansas football would not be an extended rendition of the 2023 season.

At the end of the first quarter, by all appearances, Arkansas was on its way as the Razorbacks had a 14-0 lead over the Cowboys of Oklahoma State. Arkansas would have five plays of over 15 yards in their 2nd and 3rd drives of the game.

On their fourth drive, Arkansas moved the ball 55 yards in 10 plays in hopes of a 21-0 first-half lead. Then, everything changed. On the 11th play from scrimmage, Taylen Green’s pass to Isaiah Sategna gets tipped, and Kale Smith for OSU returns the interception 73 yards for a touchdown. Suddenly, it’s 14-7 instead of 21-0. Arkansas comes right back though with a 75-yard 7-play touchdown drive giving Arkansas a 14-point lead again. Both offenses stalled in the next four possessions and the first half ended with Arkansas holding on to a 14-point lead, 21-7.

In the first half, Arkansas’ offensive numbers that resulted in so few points was the initial disappointment of the game. However, what was to follow would become a series of unfortunate events.

#1. The first thing that looked bad was the efficiency of the Arkansas offense in the first half. Bobby Petrino’s offense generally scores quickly, usually less than 4 to 5 minutes per drive. The Razorbacks had the ball for almost 21 minutes in the first half and only scored 21 points while amassing 351 yards of total offense. With that many yards, Arkansas should have scored 30 to 35 points by halftime.

#2. The lack of adjusting to a four-man front in the second half compared to a three-man front in the first half effectively disrupted the Arkansas offense’s rythum and timing.

#3. Arkansas had no sacks and only (3) tackles-for-loss, while OSU had three sacks and 10 tackles-for-loss. In other words, the Arkansas defense had no answer on how to pressure QB Alan Bowman of OSU.

#4. The Arkansas running backs could not handle the OSU blitz in the second half and the two overtime periods.

#5. As the game progressed, the Arkansas players did not look as fresh in the 4th quarter and the two overtime periods as the OSU players.

#6. Several low snaps from the center plagued Arkansas from the second quarter to the end of regulation.

Although losing to Oklahoma State was a bad loss, it is not the end of the season for Arkansas. One popular podcaster in Oklahoma, Cody Stovall said: “The last team that shut down Ollie (Gordon II) was Texas. I did not think that ya’ll had the same athletic advantages that Texas had. I will gladly say that I was wrong. And ya’ll play Texas so late in the season, they should be very very concerned. And, by the way, I got $200 bucks right here right now that ya’ll beat Auburn. Cody went on to say: ”How many teams is Arkansas better than? You guys very well could be better than ‘Bama’. I think that you’re dang sure better than Notre Dame. You’re easily better than Oregon. You’re easily better than most everybody in the Big 10. Way better than Michigan. The fact that they (Michigan) are even ranked is absolutely preposterous. You’re better than most of the Big 12 schools. I think that you guys played like a top 15 team, that you are a top 15 team and after you beat Auburn and beat A&M you will be a top 15 team.”

Now, think about what Cody said about the Arkansas Razorbacks. What did he see that many Razorback fans can’t see right now? Talent. At almost every position, Cody recognized what Mike Irwin, Otis Kirk, and a few others had been saying for weeks: that Arkansas looks like a pretty good football team this year.

Although Saturday was a bad loss, this Arkansas team gave the college football world glimpses of just what they are capable of doing. The Razorbacks had a QB pass for 416 yards, a receiver who caught 10 passes for 164 yards, and a running back who rushed for 149 yards, all against the 16th-ranked team in the nation.

The Arkansas offense is now the 2nd ranked offensive team in college football behind Ole Miss. I believe Cody is right, Texas should be concerned.