The Sports Xchange
NCAAF Team Report – Arkansas – INSIDE SLANT
Arkansas senior quarterback Tyler Wilson was stuck on the sidelines on a rainy afternoon watching Alabama dismantle his Razorbacks 52-0, and what he saw he didn’t like.
Wilson, who was still showing lingering effects from a head injury he sustained the week before in the shocking loss to Louisiana-Monroe, made an emotional appearance at the post-game press conference.
And he minced no words.
“Do I feel that we, at times, gave up out there?” he said. “Yeah, absolutely.”
He vowed to change that.
“As a leader, you’ve got to look forward,” he said. “There’s been a lot of people jumping off this bandwagon.
“It’s my responsibility as a leader to keep everybody in this organization and in that locker room together. I’m going to make sure of it going forward.”
Just how active a role he will take on the field, however, remains a question. Coach John L. Smith said Wilson will play when medically cleared, but that for now, he is day-to-day.
Smith acknowledged he and his coaches knew early in the week that Wilson wouldn’t play against Alabama, though that was kept quiet.
“In our heart, we held out thinking there is some hope, some hope,” Smith said. “But realistically as coaches, we said he’s not going to play this week.
“You had to face that music early on.”
Wilson actually was in pads and went through pregame warmups but never stepped on the field when the game started.
That little bit of subterfuge didn’t have any more effect on Alabama’s game planning than the equivocating throughout the week.
“Doesn’t look like it now,” Smith said.
———————————————–
NCAAF Team Report – Arkansas – NOTES, QUOTES
WHAT’S AHEAD: Arkansas will finish a four-game homestand by hosting Rutgers, which is 3-0 coming off a victory at South Florida. The Scarlet Knights will have a couple of extra days to prepare, having last played on a Thursday night. The Hogs, who are 1-2 overall and 0-1 in SEC play, get back into SEC play at Texas A&M; to finish the season’s first month.
–Redshirt freshman Brandon Allen and junior Brandon Mitchell, who had been moved to wide receiver in fall camp, shared quarterback duties against Alabama in place of the injured Tyler Wilson. Neither was that effective. Allen was 10-of-18 passing for 60 yards with two interceptions, one on a deflection off the hands of veteran WR Cobi Hamilton. Allen lost 19 yards on three sacks. Mitchell was only 1-of-8 passing with a 19-yard completion. He netted 18 yards on six runs.
–The shutout was the first against Arkansas since LSU did it in 1995, ending a streak of 202 games for the Hogs with at least one score. It is the first time the Hogs have been shut out in Fayetteville since a 7-0 loss to Baylor in 1966.
–The 52-point margin of defeat was Arkansas’ worst loss since a 70-13 whipping by Southern California in the third game of the 2005 season.
KEEP AN EYE ON: The quarterback position bears watching. Coach John L. Smith hinted after the loss to Alabama that the Razorbacks could use the option game more with Mitchell running the show. Smith said he liked what he saw of the option against Alabama.
LOOKING GOOD: The most positive statistic to come out of Arkansas’ loss to Alabama was senior P Dylan Breeding’s 44.0 average on five punts. He had a long of 57.
STILL NEEDS WORK: The true answer is lots of stuff. The Hogs managed only 137 yards in total offense, gave up 438, and had a bad snap on a punt that lost 31 yards and gave the Tide an easy early score. The Razorbacks fumbled eight times, though they lost just three.
QUOTE TO NOTE: “He’s going to be OK. He just wasn’t OK for this game.” — Coach John L. Smith, on Wilson’s future.
———————————————–
NCAAF Team Report – Arkansas – STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL
PLAYER NOTES:
–Junior RB Knile Davis was held to 59 yards on 20 rushes and was responsible for two of Arkansas’ three lost fumbles.
–Senior TE Chris Gragg led Arkansas in receiving with just three catches for 33 yards.
–Redshirt freshman S Rohan Gaines led all tacklers for the game with 11 stops.
–Senior LB Alonzo Highsmith had 10 tackles.
ROSTER REPORT
–Junior C Will Coleman took over as the long snapper for senior Alan D’Appollonio and the results were disastrous. Coleman’s first snap sailed over P Dylan Breeding’s head and set up an easy Alabama touchdown. Coach John L. Smith said he decided to make the change earlier in the week. “I do not blame that young man,” Smith said of Coleman. “I blame myself for putting him in that position.”
–Senior QB Tyler Wilson remains in limbo when it comes to playing against Rutgers with Smith calling his availability “day-to-day.”
==
———————————————–
