No one went into Saturday's game thinking it was the first step toward an SEC championship for the University of Arkansas.
Not after coming off the first 10-loss season in school history.
Perhaps many didn't believe the Razorbacks would cover the 27-point spread.
However, most should have expected them to score more than 20 points.
The 20-13 final score against Portland State was not satisfying. It was more disappointing than anything.
Give the Vikings credit: They played their hearts out on every down. Holding the Hogs to 395 offensive yards was a great effort by the visitors.
Every drive the Razorbacks had of more than 50 yards led to a score, but they only had four of those. Six times, they got into the red zone.
Still, Portland State is an FCS team from the Big Sky Conference, and SEC teams generally win those games by large margins, especially at home in front of a wildly enthusiastic crowd.
Perhaps the Vikings now will go undefeated and win the FCS championship. Or perhaps Saturday was their season.
Either way, Razorback fans have a right to be frustrated with a one-touchdown win over a team that last year had losses of 53, 48 and 51 points.
The Vikings next face a team named Simon Fraser.
It was obvious after the game that Coach Chad Morris was not pleased, and he said the Hogs need to build off the game.
That's a great attitude and the only thing a team can do.
The game didn't answer many questions. Although Morris said he didn't want to reveal too much to Ole Miss, this is his second time through the league, so most teams are going to be familiar already.
Saturday's game left a lot of folks asking why quarterback Nick Starkel played only seven snaps.
Ben Hicks, as Morris said, managed the game and didn't make mistakes. But the fans saw in a glimpse of Starkel a quarterback with a quick release who can hit a receiver down field.
A guess here is that Hicks knows the entire playbook, having played for Morris for three years at SMU. Starkel didn't get on campus until the summer, and he probably is limited in his knowledge of the offense.
He will learn more, and fans will see more of him.
The biggest question is how much improvement did the fans really expect from season one to season two.
The program wasn't bankrupt when Morris got to Arkansas, but it wasn't far off. Not one of the offensive starters Saturday started in the season opener last season.
True freshman wide receiver Treylon Burks stood out. He had the most receiving yards (52) on just three catches. He's long, lean, fast and has great hands.
Sophomore De'Vion Warren will excel as a kickoff returner, but he also ran the ball on three end arounds for 37 combined yards. He has speed.
Finding more speed is what Morris thinks about on a daily basis.
The Hogs' defense was a plus, holding the Vikings to 230 total yards -- 75 of which came on one fourth-quarter drive when the coaches started getting experience for second-team players.
That drive took 14 plays. The Vikings also had an 11-play drive for a field goal in the first quarter, but no other drives surpassed eight plays.
None of this really clarifies whether the Razorbacks are ready to ride into Oxford on Saturday and get a win against Ole Miss. There are still too many unknowns.
What it means is the Razorbacks are better than last season and need to improve with every game like good teams do. These Hogs appear to have the pride and character to want to get better.
Sports on 09/04/2019