Arkansas Razorbacks

Arkansas Razorbacks
Last year a new coach and having to replace Darren Mcfadden hurt the Razorbacks deeply last year. Entering the season, I figured Arkansas would end DEAD LAST in the west and they were near the bottom of the conference. This year however, should be a little better. The Razorbacks played so many true freshman and underclassmen that they are one of the MOST experienced SEC units. They return 18 starters from last year and 10 on defense. Bobby Petrino is a winner and should be able to take the Razorbacks back to a bowl game after such a step back last year.

OFFENSE-

Replacing senior quarterback Casey Dick for sophomore Michigan transfer Ryan Mallett should give the Razorbacks an ability to throw farther down the field. Head Coach Bobby Petrino told everyone on SEC Media day that “If we can run the ball better and run the ball more consistently, it should open up our deep passing game and our ability to get the ball down the field.” It wasn’t too hard to replace Darren Mcfadden at the beginning of the year as replacement Michael Smith rushed for 987 yards in Arkansas first 8 games. But being a small back in the SEC caused him to miss time with injuries. The Razorbacks truly struggled with rushing because of such an inexperienced line. The line gave up 46 sacks last year, second most in FBS. This year the Razorbacks return 5 players with starting experience and four players with at least 10 starts. A key to the passing game this season will be junior tight end D.J Williams. Williams was voted first team All-SEC last year and broke the record for catches by a tightend at Arkansas last year. Williams should be a crucial piece to the offense as should the receiving core that has much more experience than a year ago.

DEFENSE

What is impressive for the Razorbacks this year---10 returning on defense. Lookout for the D-Line as four of their top 10 tacklers from last season were defensive lineman and the ALL return next year the linebackers and corners are also much more experienced and should be overall a much more cohesive unit.

SEASONAL PREDICTION

Last year was brutal for the Razorbacks. Having a new coach was difficult, having to replace their star player was even tougher but both of those things were nothing compared to the gauntlet of a schedule the Razorbacks were forced to go through. Following an embarrassing defeat at home to Louisiana-Monroe, Arkansas hosted #9 Alabama, traveled to #7 Texas, and #12 Florida. Those three games left the Razorbacks out of steam, injured, and questioning their season…IT WAS JUST THE FIRST WEEK OF OCTOBER. The rest of the season a MASH unit was forced into action and they struggled throughout. But to end the season, Arkansas did beat their rival LSU and gave hope for this season. Coming into the season Arkansas is one of the MOST experienced SEC teams. They still travel to Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and LSU face Georgia at home but those games are cushioned by winnable games. Look for Arkansas to be MUCH improved and make a bowl game this year.

7-5