Arkansas’ turnover woes prove costly in loss

By Jason Pattyson

Stillwater, Ok. – Miscues and untimely penalties led to a heartbreaking loss Saturday as Arkansas fell to Oklahoma St. 39-31 in double overtime at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater. 

The Razorback offense had a definitive idea to set the tone from the outset of the game: pound the rock and establish their physicality in the trenches. Unfortunately, the second half was a juxtaposition of the first. 

The offense ran smoothly, and blocks opened holes that fans saw last week against an undersized UAPB team. It looked as though the Razorback offense was the real deal. Now, they might still be moving forward in the season, but the second half derailed those thoughts. 

The offense didn’t score for two full quarters after senior running back Ja’Quinden Jacksons’ score with 5:05 left in the second quarter. To that point in the game, he had scored 91 yards on eight carries and scored three times.

Junior quarterback Taylen Green was gashing the defense with his legs and arm, accounting for 241 total sack-adjusted yards. The faucet was turned off in the third and most of the fourth quarters. Arkansas was able to gain yards, but fumbles and penalties killed what momentum they had carried into the second half.

The offensive play calling shifted a little, with 26 run plays in the first half, 17 in the second half, and six in overtime. The Oklahoma State run defense adjusted its scheme after giving up 114 yards on the ground in the first quarter and just 118 yards in the second half and overtime. 

The ball security issue was not so much a problem in week one, but it cost them the game on the road. The one stat that this team, or any team on the road, can’t overcome is losing the turnover battle. 

Arkansas fumbled the ball four times and lost two of them, and tacked on an interception that’s impossible to overcome, not to mention the bad snaps during the scoring drought. It’s funny how those stats correlate, no matter how many yards the offense musters. 

“The disappointing thing is we couldn’t hang on to the football.  We had four turnovers hard to overcome against the 16th team in the country,” Sam Pittman said after the game. “The bottom line of the ballgame was the turnovers.  I feel terrible for the kids because they played so hard. We just gotta hang on to the football.”

Oklahoma State head Coach Mike Gundy felt that his team was in better physical condition, which is why they were able to get back in the game in the second half. That has some credence when you look back at what transpired in the third and fourth quarters and overtime. 

The passing game was hit-and-miss, literally in the stats column. The first and third quarters were terrible, totaling 7-13 for 108 yards and a pick-six. But, it was quite the opposite story in the second and fourth quarters, 17-29 for 296 yards and a score to Luke Hasz. 

“I mean, I felt like our chemistry didn’t fall off. Credit to him. He’s been in the training room, you know, Monday through Sunday,” Green said postgame about (Andrew) Armstrong being back. “Every single day, he’s been working, and he looked really good out there on the field. I’m extremely proud of him, how he fought through. Dealing with a hamstring, it’s a lot of mental toughness that goes through that. I felt like our chemistry was second to none out there.”

Armstrong had a great game and was Green’s best friend. He looked like a guy ready to make some noise in his first game of the season. He had 10 catches for 164 yards, and Pittman was pleased with his performance,

“I thought he was really good, had a lot of yards after he caught the football, made some guys miss, ran extremely hard, played hard, blocked well,” Pittman said. “Ten catches for 164 yards. I thought he had a really good day. Of course, protection and the thrower had something to do with it as well, but he got open. I was pleased to get him back out there.”

Transfer kicker Kyle Ramsey missed two of three field goals, and one wasn’t even close from 45 yards out, but he redeemed himself. He snuck a 45-yard try as time expired after the missed 41-yard try. He missed the final try from 46 yards out, which would have given Arkansas the win after Logan Ward missed his try in overtime. After the performance today, Pittman was asked if the kicking job had opened back up. 

“Yeah, I think so. I mean, it’s always a competition, but I think so. I hate it. I hate it for him,” Pittman said postgame. ”I know he missed a couple, but he also made the one that put us into overtime, and if we played a little bit better, maybe that wouldn’t have come up. But their kicker missed, as well, to put us into overtime 2. But yeah, that competition is always up; it certainly is now.”

The miscues in the running game would have taken care of the theatrics at the end of regulation and overtime. In order for Arkansas to get back on track offensively, the turnovers have to be resolved, and the  

The final drive sealed the victory for the Cowboys after Green took the snap on fourth and four, the Hogs last chance to score to force triple overtime. He ran the ball over the right side and cut back to the middle of the field trying to run for the first down. He came up just a half of a yard short and that play had worked all game gashing the State defense at will. 

“It was one of our concepts that we ran, one of our bread and butter. I just saw a lane,” Green said about the final play of the game. ”If I’m going to take off, I have to make sure I make the first. That’s what I learned, whether it’s 4th and 4, you know I’ve got to put my shoulder down and get the first, no matter what.”

Arkansas hosts UAB in Razorback Stadium, their first of 2024. The game can be seen on the SEC Network, and kickoff is set for 3:15 p.m.