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Just Beginning

September 15, 2008 by HogBlogger 

If someone had wanted to bet you that the Razorbacks would post 300+ yards passing in their first two games, would you have taken that bet?

Casey Dick (AP Photo/April L. Brown)It’s become apparent that this team is going to live and die based on its ability to put points on the board early and often.  And it’s been easy to see so far how much potential is there.

But 506 yards of total offense against Louisiana-Monroe should have resulted in more than 28 points.  And I don’t see 28 points getting it done against Alabama or any of the remaining opponents.

I do really like the fact that this team has shown toughness in the fourth quarter.  Late game comebacks, however, will be next to impossible the rest of the way.

The Hogs defense is going to struggle to find its way this year.  Unless special teams gets its act together, the offense is going to have to make up for the other two units by scoring lots of touchdowns.

What we’ve seen from the Hogs so far is a beginning.  It is what it is.  This team is not expected to do well in the SEC, much less contend nationally.  There will be growing pains.  It will not require brilliant observational skills to see these pains.

This is a year to enjoy the process, not evaluate the team as if it should be a BCS contender.  Bobby Petrino’s goal is to build a program that can contend for the National Championship.  I doubt he expects to accomplish that in two games…or even this year.

The old Bobby Knight saying, “we have to get in position to get in position” to win (from “A Season on the Brink“) comes to mind.  Petrino is used to winning games, so I expect us to be competitive.

I expect there will be some pleasant surprises along the way, too.  So far, freshman have not only played, they’ve been given important roles to play.  Most notably, they’ve been sent back into the game after they made a mistake.  Receivers that had drops early made key receptions later in the game.

The postponement caused by Hurricane Ike has only made the task harder for these young Hogs.  The loss of the much-needed open date following the Alabama game will hurt.

These next several weeks will be a stern test of this coaching staff’s ‘all business’ approach to the game.

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Comments

8 Responses to “Just Beginning”

  1. GonzoHog on September 15th, 2008 8:46 am

    This young team need’s reps more than anything else. Until you breed consistantsy, you won’t have the confidence to sucseed. Right now, we have a team full of apprentices, getting hands on training, as they go. That’s the reason Petrino doesn’t hesitate to put a youngster right back into the fire, after he’s made a mistake. Petrino know’s these kids are the future of the program, so if we have to take a few lumps along the way, then so be it. GO HOGS!!!!!

  2. OwassoHog on September 15th, 2008 9:05 am

    It’s obvious that Bobby is building for the future based upon these 2 games. By playing so many freshmen, he is also sending a message to recruits (hopefully those 4 and 5 star ones) that they are needed and valued and will get much playing time.

    The future is bright - very bright!

  3. BlindHog on September 15th, 2008 10:48 am

    The next four games are the crucible. I love the old Darrell Royal quote only I can’t remember exactly how it goes, something like, “If a dog is gonna bite, he’ll bite you as a pup.” These guys have shown some fight but, we have played nothing even close to a complete game. They will settle in over time.

    The season is just beginning. We get Alabama over-confident, looking ahead to UGA, Florida after Tenn and Ole Miss and before LSU, and Auburn is still having offensive issues. We might sneak up on one of them. There is nothing like flying under the radar in the SEC.

  4. Walking on Sunshine on September 15th, 2008 1:51 pm

    Great post. Your statement of “This is a year to enjoy the process” is a perfect mindset to have when watching this young team.

  5. Boyer in the District on September 15th, 2008 4:03 pm

    I would love to think that teams “overlook” Arkansas…but history has shown that’s very rarely the case.

    I have a feeling that any team coached by Bobby Petrino doesn’t get overlooked, ever.

    At any rate, I actually think we should keep it respectable on Saturday.

  6. BlindHog on September 15th, 2008 4:58 pm

    I know you are both right. We don’t have enough talent on hand. We are too young to play to our potential for long enough to beat a quality opponent. It will be great fun to watch step by step, piece by piece, as Bobby and the assistants build a football program before our eyes.

    I do think that the Alabamas and the Floridas and lately Auburn and LSU want to rate Arkansas with Vandy and South Carolina. It was Dale’s only success that he made them pay for that occasionally. I believe it still exists. But, we shall see.

  7. Skywalker on September 15th, 2008 6:06 pm

    Special teams had fixable mistakes on the Saturday before last, and if they hadn’t made them, the final score would’ve been somewhere around 34-13. Look at the stats; we dominated ULM. We certainly won’t be great this year, and maybe we won’t even be good, but we’re not as bad as UA 28, ULM 27 indicates.

    I think these guys have a shot on Saturday. Bama played lights out against Clemson in Week 1; big deal. We played lights busted against an FCS school (wow, whose name I have already forgotten; maybe I really am drinking Kool-Aid); big deal. The Tide are ahead of us right now, but they’re not Top-10 material.

    I think we’ll beat at least two ranked teams this season. Alabama just might be one of them.

  8. Dieing Hog on September 16th, 2008 9:59 pm

    I was down in Austin this past weekend and it was beautiful. I have know clue why they cancelled the game.