NO. 1 ALABAMA AT NO. 16 ARKANSAS

Hogs must zero in against No. 1 Tide

Arkansas running back Kody Walker is tackled by Alabama linebacker Reggie Ragland during a game Saturday, Oct. 11, 2014, in Fayetteville. The Crimson Tide won its last game at Arkansas by a final score of 14-13.
Arkansas running back Kody Walker is tackled by Alabama linebacker Reggie Ragland during a game Saturday, Oct. 11, 2014, in Fayetteville. The Crimson Tide won its last game at Arkansas by a final score of 14-13.

FAYETTEVILLE -- The veterans on Arkansas' coaching staff know a few things about knocking off highly regarded and heavily favored teams.

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Coach Bret Bielema's 2010 team at Wisconsin returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown and beat No. 1 Ohio State 31-18 en route to the first of three consecutive Rose Bowl appearances. The victory over Ohio State was Bielema's first after three losses to the Buckeyes.

TAKING ON NO. 1

• Arkansas’ game against Alabama on Saturday will mark the 22nd time the Razorbacks have played the No. 1-ranked team. Arkansas has a 4-17 record in the previous 21 matchups — including 0-4 against Alabama — with its last victory coming in a 50-48 triple-overtime decision at LSU in 2007.

YEAR;RESULT;SITE

1957;Texas A&M beat Arkansas 7-6;Fayetteville

1961;Alabama beat Arkansas 10-3;New Orleans (Sugar Bowl)

1962;Texas beat Arkansas 7-3;Austin

1963;Texas beat Arkansas 17-13;Little Rock

1964;Arkansas beat Texas 14-13;Austin

1965;Arkansas beat Texas 27-24;Fayetteville

1969;Texas beat Arkansas 15-14;Fayetteville

1970;Texas beat Arkansas 42-7;Austin

1973;Southern California beat Arkansas 17-0;Los Angeles

1981;Arkansas beat Texas 42-11;Fayetteville

1996;Florida beat Arkansas 42-7;Fayetteville

1997;Florida beat Arkansas 56-7;Gainesville

1998;Tennessee beat Arkansas 28-24;Knoxville

2005;Southern California beat Arkansas 70-17;Los Angeles

2007;Arkansas beat LSU 50-48 in 3 OT;Baton Rouge

2009;Florida beat Arkansas 23-20;Gainesville

2010;Alabama beat Arkansas 24-20;Fayetteville

2011;LSU beat Arkansas 41-17;Baton Rouge

2012;Alabama beat Arkansas 52-0;Fayetteville

2013;Alabama beat Arkansas 52-0;Tuscaloosa

2014;Mississippi State beat Arkansas 17-10;Starkville

Defensive backs coach Paul Rhoads was involved in two memorable upsets -- Pitt's 13-9 victory over No. 2 West Virginia in 2007 and Iowa State's 37-31 double-overtime victory over No. 2 Oklahoma State in 2011.

No. 16 Arkansas (4-1, 0-1 SEC) faces perhaps an even more difficult task on Saturday when facing No. 1 Alabama (5-0, 2-0 SEC), the defending national champion.

Alabama is a 14-point favorite to win its 18th consecutive game overall and its 10th in a row against Arkansas.

"One thing Alabama doesn't do is they don't beat themselves," Bielema said. "They play very consistently. They play very smart. They are very well coached and they have very good talent. So that makes it hard to defeat them."

Coach Nick Saban, who has won four of his five national championships at Alabama, is 4-0 in Fayetteville.

"To have Alabama come to town No. 1, first give a lot of credit to Alabama, their coaches, their players," Bielema said. "Everybody's really good. Everybody that's going to fly over here is one of the best in the business."

Arkansas is 4-17 against No. 1 teams, including a 2-5 mark at Reynolds Razorback Stadium. The Razorbacks' last victory over No. 1 at home came 42-11 over Texas in 1981. Alabama has a 2-0 record as the No. 1 team at Razorback Stadium.

Rhoads said he told Arkansas defensive players after Tuesday's practice that it takes a certain mindset to knock off a top-ranked team.

"You've got to be wired in," he said. "And it's not game day alone. You've got to be wired in every meeting, every walk-through, every drill. You've got to thoroughly know exactly what you're doing so you can go out there and execute it on game day."

Rhoads was defensive coordinator on a 5-7 Pitt team under Coach Dave Wannstedt that was a four-touchdown underdog before knocking No. 2 West Virginia out of the 2007 national championship picture.

"I referenced a couple of things from the West Virginia game back in 2007 that had occurred," Rhoads said. "If our preparation hadn't been such, what took place on that Saturday night wouldn't have taken place."

Arkansas' coaches and players stressed that what makes Alabama so tough is it doesn't beat itself.

"They play four full quarters of football and they have very few lapses and mistakes," cornerback Jared Collins said.

"I learned a long time ago that the No. 1 way to win a football game is not to lose it," Rhoads said. "And they don't lose many football games."

Arkansas quarterback Austin Allen said Saban's methodical instruction pays off on game days.

"He always has them in the right spots," Allen said. "They rarely have a mental bust on film. They're a great team with a lot of great athletes all over the field. They're No. 1 for a reason."

Receiver Drew Morgan said Alabama is No. 1 for a reason, but Arkansas is not intimidated.

"We respect that," Morgan said of Alabama's No. 1 ranking. "They deserve it. But in the SEC, on any given day anyone can beat anybody."

Arkansas offensive coordinator Dan Enos paid his respects to Alabama's defense, overseen by coordinator Jeremy Pruitt in his second stint with the Tide, and of course Saban himself.

Alabama defense ranks ninth in points allowed and eighth in total yards.

"You've got to execute at a high level against a defense like this," Enos said. "You can't ever run plays that don't have a chance structurally, and that's the big thing. We're trying to make sure everything we call and everything we run has a chance structurally."

Alabama's 3-4 defensive front is again loaded with 4- and 5-star players.

"It looks to me like there's first-round draft picks all over that front seven," Arkansas offensive line coach Kurt Anderson said. "They're physical. They're heavy. They've got heavy hands. They shed blocks. ... They do their job very well. And so the theme for us is to do our job."

Asking players to just do their individual jobs has been a theme for the Razorbacks.

"Nothing spectacular," defensive end Deatrich Wise said. "Nothing Superman."

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