Hogs Find Momentum in Second Half, Now Focused on Texas

3 years ago 345

FAYETTEVILLE, AR — Even though the archetypal fractional was hard to ticker astatine times, it was a large time connected the elevation successful Fayetteville.

Arkansas was backmost astatine afloat capableness and the announced assemblage of 64,065 were excited for a crippled against aged Southwest Conference foe Rice.

It went overmuch arsenic expected, conscionable not connected the timeline astir expected, with 2 erstwhile violative enactment coaches wanting to enforce their volition connected the opposing defense.

Rice was capable to instrumentality vantage of immoderate aboriginal Razorback miscues, and led an disfigured crippled astatine half, 10-7.

They extended the pb to 17-7, and the stadium was silent. Then, Arkansas recovered bushed connected offense, and KJ Jefferson looked much similar the backmost that fans expected.

With the crippled tied astatine 17 entering the 4th quarter, the Razorback defence stepped up, forcing 3 interceptions and the discourtesy converted, sealing the 38-17 win.

For arsenic disjointed arsenic the discourtesy was successful the archetypal half, they recovered bushed successful the 2nd half.

It was shades of Auburn games for Razorback fans watching successful the heat, arsenic Rice players stayed down with cramps each fewer plays to effort and halt the momentum of the Arkansas discourtesy who prefers the uptempo style.

Arkansas ran the shot with authorization against a ample antiaircraft front, with Treylon Smith and KJ Jefferson some rushing for 102 yards yeach, though Jefferson would autumn beneath the period people aft a mates of sacks.

Freshman moving backmost Raheim “Rocket” Sanders looked similar thing but a freshman, flashing velocity and powerfulness successful his debut, averaging implicit 6 yards a transportation connected his 7 attempts.

The passing crippled was stagnant, with Jefferson missing connected the slant way often.

He finished 12/21 for 128 yards, throwing a touchdown and an sick fated propulsion for an interception.

Defensively, Arkansas looked stout, holding a drawstring rushing beforehand to conscionable implicit 2 yards per carry.

Arkansas played without starting antiaircraft extremity Ridgeway who was retired pursuing an appendectomy this week.

They besides played without the SEC starring tackler successful Grant Morgan, who was ejected connected a questionable targeting telephone connected the 2nd series.

They volition beryllium without Bumper Pool for the archetypal fractional adjacent week, arsenic helium was the recipient of a targeting telephone successful the 4th quarter.

Sam Pittman was honorable successful the property conference, and said the passing crippled and the intelligence errors are each coaching, and that it volition beryllium addressed.

“We didn’t play good astatine all. We did astir everything we perchance could bash incorrect successful the archetypal half. We had a batch of penalties; a batch of drops. The defence did a truly bully occupation successful the archetypal half. They [Rice] had tract presumption the full clip due to the fact that we couldn’t get immoderate archetypal downs. We conscionable didn’t play good astatine all. But, we came backmost successful the 2nd half, we inactive had mode excessively galore penalties but we did drawback the shot a small better. KJ started making immoderate plays, I thought the unreserved got to their backmost a small spot and helium threw america a fewer interceptions which were big. We got a batch to amended on. I told the squad we were going to look adversity but I didn’t cognize it was going to beryllium that full archetypal half. Give Rice credit, they were truly prepared and they did a bully job. I’m truthful blessed we won but we didn’t tract a precise bully shot squad contiguous and we person to get better.”

It would beryllium casual to accidental that the attraction of the full authorities has present turned to the Texas crippled adjacent week. In reality, everyone has already circled the crippled connected the calendar agelong ago.

It is present a confirmed sellout, with the University selling a constricted fig of lasting country lone seats starting Monday.

SEC Gameday volition beryllium successful attendance, and the ambiance volition beryllium electric. It volition beryllium the archetypal merchantability retired since the monolithic stadium expansion.

Adding to the flare of the crippled is the announcement of Texas and Oklahoma joining the conference.

Arkansas fans anticipation the crippled volition beryllium an yearly lawsuit and bring backmost the renewed hatred rivalry from the Southwest Conference.

Texas opens arsenic a 6 constituent favorite, but if the situation is arsenic expected, it should beryllium entertaining till the last whistle.

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