Arkansas Declaws LSU 31-14

found on google images

Arkansas did something this past Saturday that many teams do not. They went into Death Valley at night and dominated LSU. The Hogs were hitting on all cylinders from the moment the clock started until it hit all zeros in the fourth quarter. One of the biggest stats lines of the night is 299-59. Those are the total rushing yards from the night. With LSU having a candidate for the Heisman trophy, it would be easy to make the assumption that the bigger number belongs to the Tigers. Arkansas's defense buckled down and forced LSU to try to beat the Hogs though the air. Fournette did have 91 yards averaging 4.8 yards per carry. However it was a negative 44 by LSU QB Brandon Harris that knocked the Tigers down to a total or 59 rushing yards on the night. Arkansas ran strong behind Alex Collins who finished up with 141 yards and an average or 8.8 per carry. The Hogs secondary bent but did not break allowing Harris to have 271 passing yards, 109 of those went to Malachi Dupre. Arkansas has now won 4 straight games and gone on the road the last 2. The Hogs are currently tied for second place in the West division of the SEC with a 4-2 conference record. Arkansas also clinched a bowl game at the end of the season getting their 6th win to improve to 6-4 overall. Up next for the Hog are the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Razorback Stadium. The Bulldogs are coming off a drumming from Alabama this weekend.

Never Yield Down the Stretch

 After a rough start Arkansas is back above .500 at 5-4 on the season. With three games left for the regular season, Arkansas will likely finish the regular season above .500 and bowl eligible.

 The first of the three games takes the Hogs to Baton Rouge to battle LSU in Death Valley. LSU is coming off a game where they got slapped around by Alabama. LSU is not known for losing back to back games. Arkansas has gone on the road and won SEC games this year( Tennessee and Ole Miss) and records seem to go out the window with the Hogs and Tigers meet. This game is hard to pick because Arkansas is rolling along with confidence and LSU knows that its playoff hopes are on life support. If Arkansas can shut down Fournette and not let Brandon Harris look like a world beater then they have a shot to get a third SEC road win.

 The second game in the final stretch brings the Hogs back home to Razorback stadium to face the Mississippi State Bulldogs. They are 7-2. They will not be a guarantee win for the Hogs. Arkansas does have a slight advantage being at home.

 The final regular season game has the Hogs hosting Mizzou for senior day. Mizzou is not very good. They are coming off back to back seasons of winning the east. This will be the game that Arkansas can almost count on for the bowl eligible win if they drop the other two. Mizzou got the Hogs last year so they should be looking for retribution especially if a bowl game or better bowl game is on the line.

2013 Arkansas Razorbacks Season Prediction

credit: ArkansasRazorbacks.com

It's finally game week. That time of year that all football fans desperately look forward to all winter and summer long. Last season was a major disaster. No one can deny the Razorbacks had talent last year. The biggest thing they didn't have was leadership on and off the field. The players flat out gave up especially after the loss to Louisiana Monroe. You have to go back a few years to win the Razorbacks lost all games at War Memorial like they did last season. Most people would say that the Arkansas Razorbacks are in rebuilding mode. I personally would say the Razorbacks are in redemption mode. The Hogs made a big splash hiring Bret Bielema (Pronounced Bee-la-muh). He hired a top notch staff and even grabbed some big recruits at the end of the recruitment period. It will take a few years to get the players that Coach Bielema and his staff need to fit the style they are bringing to Arkansas. Fans will need to be patient and realize their will be growing pains. But fans can take solace in the fact that along the way there will be things to be very excited and happy about. Last year the Razorbacks won only 4 games but with a better coach they could have easily won 6 to 7 games.

1. Louisiana Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns-------------------------------W
2. Samford Bulldogs--------------------------------------------------------W
3. Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles-----------------------------W
4. Rutgers Scarlet Knights-----------------------------------------------W
5. Texas A&M Aggies -------------------------------------------------------L
6. Florida Gators---------------------------------------------------------------L
7. South Carolina Gamecocks------------------------------------------W
8. Alabama Crimson Tide------------------------------------------------- L
9. Auburn Tigers--------------------------------------------------------------W
10. Ole Miss Rebels------------------------------------------------------------L
11. Mississippi State Bulldogs--------------------------------------------W
12. LSU Tigers--------------------------------------------------------------------L

                I see the Razorbacks going 7-5 and pulling an upset on South Carolina. I can't quite put my finger on why but I feel like the Hogs can get it done against the Gamecocks in Fayetteville. There are other games that really could be a lot closer than people think. If the Aggies don't have Johnny Football then that could be a winnable game. Also Florida at the Swamp has the potential to be an upset. If the Hogs were to get a few upsets along the way I completely feel like it will balance out with a few let downs as that is just a fact of history with the Razorbacks. In my opinion the Razorbacks have the talent to be at least a 6-6 team and go on to a bowl game and likely win it making them just over .500 for the season. 

Open Letter to Razorback Nation

The College Football season is just around the corner. The SEC Media Days are going on and Coach Bret Bielema did what coach does best and stole the show. He has high hopes for the season and the future of the program. The Petrino era has spoiled the fans. Fans have been very high on the Hog for the last couple of years. Last season was a big disappointment for all involved with the U of A. Coach Bielema is already making headway with some recruits that fit his and his staff's styles better. Fans are just going to have to be patient for the next few seasons as adjustments are made and players are brought in and developed. Just look to the NFL and see how some of the most recent guys that have played for Bielema are doing. JJ Watt is considered one of the best defensive players in the league and he is only beginning his career. Russell Wilson was good at NC State but finished his development at Wisconsin and then went on to be one of the top QB's in the NFL as a rookie. There were several players drafted this past season including Dallas Cowboys first round pick Travis Frederick. Coach Bielema has a proven track record. Give him and his staff time. They will make Arkansas respectable again and hopefully bring them to the promise land. Bottom line please give the coaches time to do their jobs. We are fans which is short for fanatics but you still have to have realistic expectations for just a short while. Believe in the Hogs and support them no matter if they go 14-0 or 0-12. WPS! Never Yield! Go Hogs! Be Uncommon!

From the Outhouse to the Penthouse: Bret Bielema is new Head Hog

Bret Bielema from Wisconsin is the new Head Coach at Arkansas. Bielema has had a pretty good career at Wisconsin. He went 68-24 and led the Badgers to three straight Rose Bowls including this season. Coach Bielema likes to play hard nose defense and that will be a big factor in whether or not he is able to get the Hogs competitive quickly. His teams are also a run first style team. Bielema was a lineman when he played at Iowa. He knows how to focus on the run and recruit the players that can do that. It may take a couple of seasons for him to really get the players that he needs to play his style. I hope the Razorback fans will all get on board and give the guy a chance and lets see what he can do. I agree with most analysts that he is a solid coach and knows how to win games but only time will tell if he is that home run hire that everyone expected. Doing a quick twitter poll (you can follow me on twitter @rzrbckmaniac) A lot of Hog fans seem to be excited. Some are excited because the search is over. Some are excited because of the smash mouth style he likes to play. Some of the ones who are not excited are upset because he is not that sexy hire that everyone has expected. I am taking a wait and see approach. I am excited that the coaching search is finally over and the Razorback football program can finally move on from the Petrino debacle. Coach Bielema will instantly become a rock star in the state because of the entire state's focus on the Razorback program. To me it doesn't matter who the coach of the Razorbacks ultimately is because I will always bleed Razorback Red!

2012: Year of the Hog

The stars seem to be aligning for the Arkansas Razorbacks to make a run at a SEC title and National Championship. Knile Davis has decided to stay at Arkansas at least one more year to give his all to Razorback Nation. Knile could have left for the NFL and started his career but choose to return to see how he could help the Hogs. Another piece of the puzzle decided to stay at Arkansas as well. Tyler Wilson will return to lead the Hogs. Colbi Hamilton and Chris Gragg also decided to stay. The offensive line should only improve. The defense showed promise in the short time with new defensive coordinator Paul Haynes. The Hogs are losing a lot at the wide out spot. All world receiver Joe Adams, Greg Childs, and Jaruis Wright all are gone to the NFL. Even with all those losses the Razorbacks have the players ready to step up in their place. Hogs are also chasing a major recruit in DGB. He is a guy that would be able to come in and play immediately as a freshman in the SEC. Even if DGB doesn't choose the Hogs they still have the weapons compete for the SEC and National Titles. 2012 should be the Year of the Hog. I am going to start a twitter campaign using the hash tag #2012YearoftheHog. If you agree use the hashtag to get the word out.

Troy at Arkansas Prediction

Week 3:

According to EA Sports this is how the game will turn out.

Final Score: Hogs  44 Troy 17
Hogs Rank after game: 13
Total Offense: 469
Passing Yards: 352
Rushing Yards: 117
Total Yards: 570
Player of the Game: Jericho Nelson, Tkl, TFL, 4 ATK
Heisman Leader: Andrew Luck-Stanford

My prediction:
This game will be the first real test of the season. Troy isn't a scrub but they are no powerhouse either. Hogs should cruise comfortable in this game. Get a little more tuned up for the big match-up next week with the Crimson Tide. The important thing for the Hogs in this game is not completely overlook Troy. They are good enough that they could surprise the Hogs if they are not ready. With that said this is a Bobby Petrino coached team and he always has his teams ready for that weeks opponent. Probably see the starters go a little longer to make sure they are in football shape for the next game. 

My score:
Hogs 35 Troy 7

Next Game:

at #2 Alabama

Missouri State at Arkansas Season Prediction

Ok so a week later I am finally getting to my first season prediction blog. EA Sports doesn't have Missouri State on the game but they are listed as some generic team. According to the EA Sports sim the game stats are as follows for the Hogs:

Final Score: Hogs 50 Missouri State 10
Hogs Rank after game: 16
Total Offense: 575
Passing Yards: 328
Rushing Yards: 247
Total Yards: 668
Key Stats: 4 total turnovers.

My prediction:
This game is nothing but a glorified scrimmage. The stats probably wont be impressive because the starters wont play the whole game. Should be an easy win. The hope for this game is that the starters get some good reps and no one gets injured.

My score:
Hogs 42 Missouri State 3

Pryor proves NCAA can no longer let schools police themsleves

Terrelle Pryor has helped add further proof that the NCAA needs to change many policies. Pryor was set to be suspended for the first five games of the upcoming season. By leaving school he will not have to serve that suspension or have to answer to the NCAA on any an all violations that he had. The NCAA could have and should have suspended Pryor and the rest of the violating Ohio State players before the Sugar Bowl. I was in the group of people that did want them to play so if the Hogs had won we could have said we beat them at full strength with no excuses. However as a fan of the Hogs I knew it was a risk for the guys to play because they would be able to leave school for the NFL Draft before the season, but they promised their coach and school they would be back and serve the suspension.
 Fast forward six months and Terrelle Pryor and Coach Jim Tressel have both moved on from Ohio State. By going to the NFL both can avoid any punishment from the NCAA. More and more information keeps coming out. The latest is Pryor getting paid to sign memorabilia for large sums of money. The slip up came by payment by check. To find out more about violations just Google Pryor, Tressel or Ohio State.  This OSU debacle is just another proving that the NCAA can no longer allow schools to police themselves. OSU should and most likely will be more severely punished than USC. Its not a matter of when will it happen again but a matter of who will it be. Auburn, I am looking your direction.

Where are they now: Corliss "Big Nasty" Williamson

Corliss "Big Nasty" Williamson was a major part of bringing the University of Arkansas their only NCAA Championship in basketball in 1994 beating Duke. In his junior year,1995, he help lead the Hogs back to the championship game only this time to lose to college powerhouse UCLA. Williamson had a great career at the UofA. He is easily considered one of the top 10 players ever at Arkansas. Corliss spent 12 years in the NBA. He was drafted by the Sacramento Kings at 13th overall in 1995. He was traded by the Kings in 2000 to Toronto Raptors. Raptors traded him in later that season to the Detroit Pistons. With the Pistons Williamson won a World Championship. In the 01-02 Corliss won the Sixth Man of the Year Award.  During the 04-05 season he was traded to Philadelphia before being traded back to Sacramento. Corliss finished his NBA career with the Kings, retiring in 2007. Corliss started his coaching journey in 2007 as an assistant with Arkansas Baptist. Currently Corliss Williamson is the head basketball coach at the University of Central Arkansas. He isn't having a great season at a current record 5-23. With all the basketball experience that he has there is no doubt that "Big Nasty" will have UCA competing very soon.

Sugar bowl starting to Sour?

We are only 12 days away from the very anticipated Sugar Bowl. There is now some drama involving Ohio State. 5 players including starting quarterback Terrell Pryor have been suspended for 5 games next season for violating NCAA rules. Pryor sold some of his apparel and a football ring. The one big that sticks out is they will play in the Sugar Bowl. If the players did something wrong worth missing games shouldn't they be punished and not play in a reward for playing well. I agree with lots of Hog fans that want to beat OSU at full power to make the victory that much sweeter. The other big problem that I have is some of if not all will not have to ever serve a suspension. Because all of the affected players are juniors they will be eligible for the NFL draft therefore never getting punished. The NCAA knows this and that is another reason they delayed the suspensions in my opinion. Another reason is because they want the big ten to look good against the SEC. The NCAA is all about money. They want to make every last cent they can off the amateur college athlete.

Arkansas still has a basketball program, Wow

What is that sport that the hogs play in between football and baseball? Oh yeah its basketball. John Pelphery owes Bobby Petrino a very big favor. Arkansas Basketball has been on the decline for years. They only time you hear anything about basketball is when another player gets suspended or some type of trouble. With the success of the football team the basketball team has been able to sorta hide away. The Hogs have put together a decent start to the season. So far they are 6-1. The record can be misleading. The Hogs haven't played a decent team yet. They beat a horrible Oklahoma team and their one loss comes from an ok UAB team. The next Razorback basketball game is against the mighty Mississippi Valley State on December 15th. The only decent teams left on the non conference schedule for the Hogs are games against Texas A&M and Texas. Both of those games are road games for the Hogs. Once the SEC games start we will have a better idea of how this team will fare. My expectations as well as some other sports fans that I have spoken to say a good season would be a .500 record in SEC play. Next year though has already got high exceptions with that talented group of recruits coming in. I will revisit the Razorback basketball team after a few SEC games to give an update on how they are doing. What are you thoughts on the bball hogs?

Hogs vs Buckeyes in Sugar Bowl, How sweet it is.

Its finally official the Arkansas Razorbacks will meet the Ohio State Buckeyes in the 77th Annual Allstate Sugar Bowl on January 4th, 2011 in New Orleans, Louisana
For everything Sugar Bowl click here to go to the official Sugar Bowl website
For Hog fans this will be a great treat to end a great season. Before the season started Razorback fans had high hopes for this season. Lots of people said a National Championship was possible. Others said getting into a BCS bowl and winning the SEC was possible. No matter what you thought you have to be happy that the Hogs ended up in the Sugar Bowl. The Razorbacks made history by getting accepted into the game. This will be the first ever BCS game for the Hogs. The Hogs have played in big name bowls before. The Razorbacks actually played in 5 Sugar Bowls according to Hog Database. The Hogs are 1-4 in those games. All opponents in those games are current SEC teams. Arkansas would make another milestone for the program with a win. A win in the Sugar Bowl would give the Hogs back to back wins in a bowl game for the first time in history. This game should be very exciting. Most people will being eying the big name quarterbacks Terrel Pryor from Ohio State and Ryan Mallett from Arkansas. No matter which team you root for Jan 4th can't get here fast enough.

Hogs declaw the Tigers

The Arkansas Razorbacks finished off the regular season with a big win over 5th ranked LSU Tigers 31-23. Arkansas is 10-2 and 6-2 in the SEC.  Big plays were the name of the game today. Ryan Mallett had two touchdown passes for 80 yards or more. Both of those passes were to Cobi Hamilton. Hamilton has stepped up big time in place of the injured Greg Childs. Knile Davis did what he does best gaining 153 yards on 30 carries. DJ Williams played like the best TE in the country. Jericho Nelson and Tramin Thomas played like men possessed for the defense. Special teams wernt very specail  they bended quite a bit but didnt fully break. Alex Tejada had a few game saving tackles. Overall the Hogs played a great game and now sit back and wait to see what bowl they will play in. If Auburn wins the SEC they will play for the BCS National title and the Razorbacks would be the second best team in the SEC and should get a bid to the Sugar Bowl. If Auburn loses then South Carolina would represent the SEC in the Sugar Bowl and the Hogs should be looking at Capitol One. The Razorback fans are starting to taste the sugar. Hog fans need to root on Cam Newton and Auburn next week in the SEC Championship.