Arkansas Razorbacks Regroup with Road Win over Tennessee Volunteers
By Cory Thone
For the first time since 1992, the Arkansas Razorbacks won a game in Neyland Stadium. The Hogs were able to hold the Tennessee Volunteers to only 3 points in the second half, and held on for a 24-20 win over a struggling UT squad. Struggling or not, this win is huge for the Razorbacks, for many reasons. As Matt Jenkins said earlier this week, a win in Knoxville keeps the Hog’s bowl game chances alive. It also give the team a much needed injection of confidence heading into Tuscaloosa next weekend. Also, the win gets the road game monkey off of Bret Bielema and Brandon Allen’s backs.
Oct 3, 2015; Knoxville, TN, USA; The Arkansas Razorbacks celebrate after beating the Tennessee Volunteers at Neyland Stadium. Arkansas won 24-20. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
But more than anything else, this win goes to show the character and determination of this gritty Arkansas Razorbacks team. Despite what some currently suffering from post ass-kicking flower child had to say, the Razorbacks have yet to go down without a fight. The Hogs have lost their 3 games by 4 points, 11 points, and 7 points. Those are close games, and a couple of them were altered by very ill-timed mistakes and penalties that Arkansas committed. Close losses, especially in games that you should probably have won, can destroy a teams confidence and drive.
But not this team. Not these Razorbacks. If nothing else, hardships seem to make Bret Bielema teams fight harder, which is a testament to the entire team and staff. Think back to last year. An overtime loss to A&M (ugh), a 1 point loss to Alabama, a whipping by Nick Chubb and the Georgia Bulldogs, that terrible second half against Auburn in week 1, and the 7 point loss to #1 Mississippi State. 2014 was heartbreaking for the Razorbacks. This team had plenty of reasons to quit. And yet, Arkansas went into a bye week and recovered, and came out winning 3 of their last 4 games en route to a 7-6 season. The 2014 Razorbacks were nothing if not resilient, and their continuous hard work paid off in the end.
The 2015 season has given Arkansas multiple opportunities to roll over. The loss of your #1 running back. The loss of your #1, #2, and #4 receivers. The loss of your #3 running back. 3 straight losses, including an overtime loss to A&M (ugh). I’m very confident in saying that the majority of teams would not be able to recover from the amount of rotten luck and national scrutiny that Arkansas and Bret Bielema have faced this season. But just like last season, this team refuses to go quietly into that good night. Even when trailing 14-0 early to Tennessee in front of 100,000 screaming, orange, hill people.
Don’t listen to the naysayers, Hog fans. That includes Tennessee folks, who are so despondent that they cannot be comforted. (I used to live in Nashville, I have lots of Volunteer friends. They literally can not anymore.) They’ll tell you how bad UT is, or they’ll point out that the Hogs didn’t score in the 4th quarter AGAIN. They will also point out how dumb our playcalling was in the redzone, especially when it comes to fake field goals.
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Just counter back with how improved our defense has looked since Texas Tech, holding A&M to 21 regulation points and Tennessee to only 20 points. Talk about how we limited the big plays in the second half, and how we held the best scrambling QB in the conference to 7 total rushing yards. Tell them about the time of possession, or how we had a true freshman rush for 100 yards, more than any other individual rusher for Tennessee. Finally, let them know that we only had 3 penalties for 20 yards. The Razorbacks have improved across the board, and it finally came to fruition for them against a talented Tennessee team that has struggled with the same problems that Arkansas has. No identity, poor second half execution, and costly mistakes.
The difference is, the Razorbacks are improving week by week in their problem areas, and Tennessee is not. I’m not letting Coach Bielema off the hook for how the Hogs started the season. But if the team that showed up against A&M had been the team the started the season against UTEP, Arkansas would be ranked right now, with maybe 1 loss. I guess losing so many guys on both sides of the ball led to an identity crisis that cost us huge early in the season. But just like in 2014, we’re seeing visible improvement in all areas. With other teams in the division struggling early as well, the Razorbacks just might be able to salvage this season. And like we said all week long, the season could only be saved with a tough road win in Knoxville, and the Hogs got it done.