Like It Is

Questions will linger until Friday, victory

Arkansas running back Alex Collins slips past Mississippi State defender Mark McLaurin for a gain in the third quarter Saturday, Nov. 21, 2015, at Razorback Stadium.
Arkansas running back Alex Collins slips past Mississippi State defender Mark McLaurin for a gain in the third quarter Saturday, Nov. 21, 2015, at Razorback Stadium.

Until the game with Missouri ends this Friday, last Saturday's stunning loss to Mississippi State will be cussed and discussed.

Coach Brett Bielema called it the biggest heartbreak he's had since becoming the head coach of the Arkansas Razorbacks.

Quarterback Brandon Allen set a school record for a single game with seven touchdown passes.

The Hogs scored 50 points without going to a single overtime.

And they lost 51-50.

Fans far and wide are questioning two of Arkansas' 72 offensive plays.

The first was with 1:15 to play in the third quarter, when the Razorbacks faced a fourth and 1 from the MSU 26.

The drive seemed like it was meant to be all hog after an interference call on Jared Cornelius' fair catch of a punt put the ball at the UA 44. Very soon after that, the Bulldogs were called for pass interference, giving the Hogs the ball at State's 35.

Alex Collins already had runs of 6 and 8 yards and a 3-yard pass reception.

For most of the game, the Hogs had trouble establishing a running game, but Collins added runs of 5 and 3 yards before Kodi Walker rushed for 1 yard, setting up the fourth down. Apparently, there was no thought given to trying a 43-yard field goal.

Most expected another run, and that is what is being questioned. A bootleg was called and Allen's pass intended for Hunter Henry was long in the end zone, giving the ball back to the Bulldogs, who drove 74 yards in 11 plays to pull to within 42-38.

The other question came after Mississippi State had gone up 51-50 with 3:05 to play.

Arkansas quickly moved 70 yards on five consecutive completions by Allen to move from its 11 to Mississippi State's 19. Four receivers caught passes and State was struggling.

Arkansas then ran three consecutive dive plays to set up a 29-yard field-goal attempt.

Those three runs took the ball out of the hot hands of Allen, a fifth-year senior, and put it on the foot of redshirt freshman Cole Hedlund.

As everyone knows, the field goal was easily blocked by a Mississippi State player who came up the middle untouched.

For several long moments, the crowd that had braved freezing temperatures and been wildly loud stood in shocked silence.

No one should question Hedlund, who is 8 of 13 on field-goal attempts with a long of 46 yards. He never had a chance.

Obviously, if someone had blocked the defender, Beniquez Brown, and Hedlund had made the field goal, no questions would be asked.

In most ways, it made sense to run the clock and make State use its timeouts so it would have had to go 75 yards in less than a minute with no way to stop the clock, other than an incompletion or spiking the ball.

That's right out of the coaching book, like always choosing to go on defense first in overtime.

Still, Allen was having a very good game and so were his receivers.

And that's what fans have the right to do: Question plays even, if it was just 2 of 72.

Bottom line: Fans feel you should win when your quarterback throws for seven touchdowns and catches a tw0-point conversion, and you gain 479 yards against an SEC opponent.

It was obviously more entertaining for Mississippi State fans, but it was a fun game.

Bulldogs quarterback Dak Prescott, one of the favorites to win the Davey O'Brien Award as the nation's top quarterback, put on a show, passing for 508 yards and 5 touchdowns and rushing for 46 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Not stopping him was why Arkansas lost and why he was named SEC Offensive Player of the Week. As for the questions surrounding 2 of the 72 plays, they will be cussed and discussed, until Friday's victory over Missouri.

Sports on 11/24/2015

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