The Good

• “Balanced offense” and “win all three phases — offense, defense and special teams.”  These are two things that we’ve heard Coach Petrino say numerous times.  But Saturday was really the first time that both of those things have happened in the same game since Petrino arrived in Fayetteville.  It’s definitely a winning combination that this team needs to learn how to repeat.
• Gus Malzahn must have nightmares about Dennis Johnson.  Just like last year against Malzahn and Tulsa, a big kickoff return by Johnson helped swing the momentum back after Auburn had closed the gap to 11 points in the third quarter.
• Welcome back Michael Smith and D.J. Williams!  As Chris Bahn wrote in his post-game column, if anyone thought that opposing defenses had ‘figured out’ how to stop Smith and Williams…think again.
• Overall, the secondary play was improved, with safety Elton Ford and cornerback Andru Stewart shining on Saturday.  Even though Ford had to sit out part of the game with an injury, he still had nine total tackles, including seven solo.  Stewart had his best game as a Razorback, with a season-high seven solo tackles and a forced fumble that led to the Hogs’ third touchdown of the day.
• And speaking of turnovers, the Hogs did a nice job capitalizing on their opponent’s mistakes, scoring 17 points off Auburn’s three turnovers.

The Bad

• Very disconcerting news about Joe Adams suffering a ‘mild’ stroke earlier in the week.  All Hog fans wish him the best for a speedy recovery.  Adams, who was on the sideline and apparently feeling better on Saturday, watched as Greg Childs (85 receiving yards, TD), D.J. Williams and Lucas Miller helped pick up the slack in his absence.

The Ugly

• Not much ugly on Saturday except for a botched extra point attempt and the third quarter defense against Auburn.  The Tigers racked up 20 points and 207 rushing yards in the quarter, including a 60-yard jaunt by running back Ben Tate.  Safety Anthony Leon had a shot to make the tackle, but took one of the worst angles we’ve seen this year and failed to even get a hand on Tate.
• We’re absolutely sure that the talent level it takes for pianist Jura Margulis to play “Stars and Stripes Forever” is something that only a few people in the world can do.  But can we maybe save that virtuoso performance for halftime of a ‘big game’ like, say…Eastern Michigan?  We’re thinking Jura won’t care.  And instead, we replace Jura on the halftime program with…hmmm…maybe ‘Thunderstruck’ by AC/DC blaring over the loudspeakers?

Walking on Sunshine also contributed to this post.

Defending SEC and national champion Florida Gators had a league-high 12 representatives on the 2009 All-Southeastern Conference Media Days Football Team, while defending Western Division Champion Alabama had eight total selections in a vote of media attending the 2009 SEC Football Media Days, held July 22-24 at the Wynfrey Hotel in Hoover, Ala.

Media	SEC West	SEC East
1.	Alabama	Florida
2.	LSU	Georgia
3.	Ole Miss	South Carolina
4.	Arkansas	Tennessee
5.	Auburn	Vanderbilt
6.	Mississippi State	Kentucky

All-SEC Teams	Media	Coaches
Michael Smith	1st Team Offense	1st Team Offense
D.J. Williams	1st Team Offense	2nd Team Offense
Mitch Petrus	Not Selected	3rd Team Offense
Malcolm Sheppard	2nd Team Defense	2nd Team Defense

Also:

• SECsports.com: SEC Coaches Preseason All-SEC Team Announced
• ArkansasRazorbacks.com: Razorbacks fourth, three named preseason All-SEC

ArkansasRazorbacks.com: Smith rolls through Blue Grass but Razorbacks fall

Mike Hartline’s two touchdown passes in the final five minutes rallied Kentucky to a 21-20 victory over Arkansas in Southeastern Conference action on Saturday.

Also:

• ArkansasRazorbacks.com: Game Stats (PDF), Post-game Notes
• ESPN.com: Kentucky’s wild rally leads to first win over Petrino
• ArkansasSports360.com: Kentucky Rallies Past Reeling Razorbacks, Secures 21-20 Victory, Two-Minute Drill

Razorback Central

• Alex Abrams: Bluegrass Madness
• Robbie Neiswanger: Defensive Collapse Dooms Razorbacks
• Nathan Allen: Without Smith, Hogs Can’t Finish
• Kurt Voigt: Wildcats Complete Improbable Comeback
• Harry King: Too Much Time For Hogs

WholeHogSports.com

• Tom Murphy: Lexington letdown
• Bob Holt: Arkansas’ defense gets its signals crossed late, Instant replay
• Rob Keys: Without Smith, wheels fall off
• Wally Hall: Hogs run out of Smith just before finish line
• Nate Allen: Self-inflicted wounds

Other Sites and Blogs

• Lexington Herald-Leader: Wildcats show some Hartline, Story: Hartline picked fine time to step up, Clay: Cats scratch ‘back
• The Courier-Journal: Cats pig out late, stuff Hogs, Crawford: Cats’ season is salvaged in a few minutes

Updated 10/19/08 11:30 a.m.

The Good

• Where would this team be without the play of running back Michael Smith?  The 5-foot-7 junior had 182 all-purpose yards on Saturday and showed a toughness and determination that impressed everyone.  After the game, Paul Petrino said Smith is giving “everything he’s got,” while Urban Meyer made a point of calling Smith “a heck of a player” in his post-game interview.
• For three quarters, the defense and tackling were better.  Simplifying the scheme looks to have helped the Hog defense execute faster.
• Along those lines, Wendel Davis was back at middle linebacker and tallied 11 tackles on Saturday.  Moving Davis allowed Jerry Franklin to slide over to outside linebacker…a position he looks more comfortable playing.
• The hurry-up drive right before halftime was going great…until the interception.  Still, the mere ability to execute a decent two-minute offense is something we’ve begged for on this site for years.  (And the catch made by Joe Adams during that drive was spectacular.)

The Bad

• The key drive of the game was after the Hogs intercepted Tim Tebow late in the third quarter.  After an ill-advised deep ball attempt to London Crawford on first down, two passes were completed short of the first down yardage.  As hard as the defense had played up to that point, they really needed the offensive players and coaches to produce more than a quick three-and-out.
• The Razorbacks are still looking for that elusive first quarter score.  They trail their opponents 41-0 collectively this season after one period of play.

The Ugly

• This team is not good enough on either side of the ball to overcome being penalized as much as they were on Saturday.  And speaking of not scoring in the opening quarter (see above), if you look at the Hogs’ first quarter drives on Saturday, they both stalled out after false start penalties.
• Unlike the rest of the team, special teams took a step back on Saturday.  In particular, the short kickoffs, blocked field goal and muffed punt.  (Luckily, a kickoff returned by Florida for a touchdown was called back after kicker Jeremy Davis took a block in the back ‘for the team.’)  After five games, Arkansas has not played a team this season that hasn’t had a superior special teams unit.

Walking on Sunshine also contributed to this post.

The Good

• The ‘Studs‘ did their thing: Casey Dick throwing for 323 yards; Michael Smith running for 157 yards; and D.J. Williams receiving for 124 yards and two TDs.  Tight end Williams showed he had another gear when he nearly outran the ULM secondary on his huge 76-yard catch in the fourth quarter.
• The catch made on the fourth-and-1 play by Warren freshman Chris Gragg was a tremendous play.  Certainly a memorable moment for his first collegiate reception.  And after only two games, it’s already very apparent that Bobby Petrino will roll the dice when he thinks he can surprise the opposing defense.
• The two extra points made by backup kicker Shay Haddock split the middle of the uprights and were the difference in the game.  Other than that, see “The Ugly” below.

The Bad

• To say that the first pay-per-view experience of the Jeff Long era had a few ‘technical difficulties’ is an understatement.  To start the game, many viewers had video…but no sound.  (Does that cost extra?)  After that was corrected midway through the first quarter, half of the second quarter was marred by a corrupted video signal that caused the picture to look like a bad impressionist painting.  On the bright side, that issue kept Hog fans from having to watch ULM block a punt.  Which leads us to “The Ugly”…

The Ugly

• Overall, special teams were very ugly.  Poor execution and bad decision making have been the norm so far this season.  Having said that, it’s been a while since we’ve seen a kicker implode like Alex Tejada did on Saturday.  Two missed field goals, a missed extra point and then a delay of game on the ensuing kickoff before kicking the ball out of bounds, giving ULM the ball at the 45-yard line.  Ouch.
• The biggest ugly of all?  The remaining schedule.  We may soon be referring to these first two games as “the good ole’ days.”

Walking on Sunshine also contributed to this post.

So how can a team rebound after losing that kind of talent?  Enter stage left…the Class of 2008.

With Razorback players officially reporting August 3rd, the buzz around Fayetteville is all about the incoming skill players in this freshman group.  And after seeing the offensive and defensive systems put in by Bobby Petrino this spring, there are three positions that will need help immediately.

Wide Receiver — It’s hard to recruit wide receivers when kids can tell you don’t really know how (or want) to throw the ball effectively.  Let’s be honest…what the former regime left us is a stable of quality possession receivers and virtually no playmakers.  There is no ‘Percy Harvin‘ in the barn.

You can tell Coach Petrino is hoping for help in this area, especially from Joe Adams (6-0, 175, 4.4, CAC) and Jarius Wright (5-11, 180, 4.4, Warren).  These guys have the speed and quickness to play right away.

Some compare Adams to former Razorback Gary Anderson.  Looking at his highlight video, I can’t argue with that comparison.

Joe Adams Highlights

Linebacker — The most glaring question mark on defense is the lack of size and experience at the linebacker position.  After some transferred and others found themselves in trouble, the lines are painfully short here.

Speed is not a problem, as returning players Elston Forte, Freddy Burton and Jerry Franklin can hit hard and run like the wind. Bringing some much needed size, though, will be Tenarius Wright (6-3, 231, 4.6, Memphis Whitehaven).

Injured almost half of his senior year, Wright was a steal and signed with the Hogs over Miami, North Carolina and Memphis.  With the reduced numbers at linebacker, Wright could help out immediately.

Running Back — In the spring, starting tailback Michael Smith showed that he’s ready.  With elusive speed and quickness, Smith will be a very important part of the offense.  But at 5-7, 173, can he ‘tote the rock’ 25 times a game and hold up?  Not a chance.

De’Anthony Curtis (5-10, 211, 4.4, Camden Fairview) will be option ’1A’ before season’s end.  The sixth-ranked high school running back in the nation (Rivals.com) has the size and speed to share the load with Smith.

Several teams in the SEC employ a running back tag team due to the physical nature of the conference.  And judging by these highlights, Curtis looks ready to move up the Hogs depth chart quickly.

De’Anthony Curtis Highlights

It’s hard for freshmen to come in and contribute right away…but the elite ones can do it.  Expect these former Friday night stars to step up and play a prominent role on Saturdays for the Razorbacks this season.

Trey Biddy wrote yesterday about the threesome (subscription required) as well.

Also:

• Hogwired.com: Freshmen Impress at Practice
• Trey Biddy: Wednesday practice cool for Razorbacks (subscription)
• Dudley Dawson: Wednesday UA Grid Report, 8/10 (subscription)
• Bob Holt: Razorbacks Football Report

Updated 8/10/05 10:45 p.m. – Updated Hawgs Illustrated link.
Updated 8/11/05 9:35 a.m. – Added additional links.
Updated 8/11/05 10:15 p.m. – Updated Hogwired.com link.