Hogs consistently inconsistent

Arkansas senior middle linebacker Brooks Ellis lines up during the Arkansas-LSU game Saturday, Nov. 13.
Arkansas senior middle linebacker Brooks Ellis lines up during the Arkansas-LSU game Saturday, Nov. 13.

FAYETTEVILLE -- Arkansas' football team can't get on a roll, but the Razorbacks don't keep getting rolled, either.

The Razorbacks have alternated victories with losses in their past eight games that have included:

• Their first SEC victory over Florida, 31-10;

• Their most-lopsided SEC loss, 56-3 at Auburn;

• Their 10th consecutive loss to Alabama, 49-30;

• Their third consecutive victory over Ole Miss, 38-34;

Arkansas continued its inconsistent ways Saturday night when LSU beat the Razorbacks 38-10 at Reynolds Razorback Stadium.

"We hate losing," Arkansas junior linebacker Dwayne Eugene said. "Not being able to pull off back-to-back wins is real frustrating."

LSU was the fifth consecutive ranked opponent Arkansas (6-4, 2-4 SEC) has faced, so strength of schedule has factored into the Razorbacks' struggles.

Being in the SEC West adds to the Razorbacks' degree of difficulty. Florida is the only SEC East team Arkansas has played while going 1-4 against its West peers.

Arkansas was among five SEC West teams going into Saturday's games that were ranked in the College Football Playoff committee's top 25.

"We all know what the SEC West is all about," Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema said. "I get it. That's the world we live in.

"It's not going to do anybody any good to worry along those lines. I think we have to worry about taking care of our own house."

The Razorbacks were feeling confident after beating Florida last week and were going for their third consecutive victory in the LSU series after beating the Tigers 17-0 and 31-14 the previous two seasons.

"We had a great week of practice," Arkansas senior linebacker Brooks Ellis said. "We prepared well. Everybody was on the same page.

"We felt good coming into it and we just didn't execute. That's all it comes down to."

Ellis said he didn't believe playing a fifth consecutive ranked opponent had taken a toll on the Razorbacks physically and mentally.

"That's what you're asking for when you play in the SEC," he said. "That's expected. We have to play better. We should be used to it by now."

Arkansas may be able to win back-to-back SEC games to close the regular season. The Razorbacks are finishing on the road at Mississippi State (4-6, 2-4) and Missouri (3-7, 1-5).

Alabama beat Mississippi State 51-3 Saturday while Missouri broke an 11-game SEC losing streak with a 26-17 victory over Vanderbilt.

The Razorbacks are bowl eligible, so they have three games remaining.

"Through adversity, you've just got to keep on moving forward," Ellis said. "You just go back to practice next week and work as hard as you can and be the best player you can be.

"That's all it comes down to. You can't take this loss and let it get you down. We still have three games left to play and that's a lot of games."

Sports on 11/14/2016

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