Razorbacks vs. Volunteers: A Tale of Two Halves
The Razorbacks took on the Vols in a tale of two halves on Saturday; with both teams being hungry for a win it was clear it was going to be a battle.
The Razorbacks were able to move the ball and have a few break away plays but failed to score throughout the entire first half. This wasn’t due to poor play calling or even inability to make plays. The Vols ate away at the clock through the first quarter taking up 12:39 of the first 15:00; this made it hard for the hogs to get anything going offensively.
The defense did a good job applying pressure to the massive Tennessee offensive line but failed to do any real damage until the second half. The Vols weren’t dominating the Razorbacks but the slow pace of the game as well as the score at the end of the first half definitely put flashbacks of the Hogs previous seasons in the back of all of Razorback Nations mind.
The Razorbacks looked to finally figure out the offensive scheme of the Vols towards the end of the second quarter and in the second half they shut it down completely. The first half ended with the score being 13-0 with the Vols on top; shutting out the Razorback offense, but by the end of the game the Razorbacks flipped the script on Tennessee completing a shutout of their own in the second half and taking the win 24-13.
The Razorbacks came out of half time mad and hungry for the win despite being down.
The Razorbacks showed out in the third quarter demanding respect for their offense by throwing 3 touchdowns along with a 48-yard field goal to top it off. Sam Pittman got the proper adjustments made at the half and hit the Vols defense on the chin coming out into the third quarter.
There were glimpses of life left in the Vols towards the end of the game on both defense and offense alike. The defense at one point in the game hit Feleipe Franks with a couple of sacks late game and the offense made a drive down field with time running out that ultimately led to an interception for the Razorbacks.
Overall, this win was a cakewalk for this Razorbacks team; they just had a slow start offensively. The Razorbacks are now 3-3 and look to take on the Florida Gators in the Swamp next Saturday and it should be a game to watch out for. The Gators are 4-1 and just defeated Georgia this past Saturday. If the Razorbacks can manage to take a win on the road against a team like Florida it could be time to start mentioning their names in the bowl game talks. Keep an eye on this hungry Hogs team! Turn up that Jukebox!
