Protection issues reared their ugly head again for Arkansas (3-1, 1-0 SEC) in its 24-14 win at Auburn on Saturday, but the blame doesn't solely lie with the offensive line, according to head coach Sam Pittman.
"Our protection game is not very good right now, and it’s not necessarily getting beat 1-on-1," Pittman said Monday. "It’s, again, not blocking the five most dangerous in a five-man protection. Not holding up at tight end when they’re in protection, and not blocking well at running back when they’re in protection."
Through four quarters of action, Auburn managed to sack Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green three times. The Tigers also put enough pressure on the still-developing passer to force two interceptions.
"If you’re Taylen Green, you’re back there expecting that these guys are blocked," Pittman said. "So probably the most concerning part of offensive football from Saturday was the way that we did not protect the quarterback."
A perfect example of what Pittman is talking about can be seen in the clip below, which shows the Hogs whiff on a block in the backfield that results in Green going down on a crucial fourth-down play.
As spectators pointed out several times throughout the ballgame, Green put his wide receivers in precarious situations with throws right next to approaching defenders. One memorable play was when Andrew Armstrong got hit hard on a target in the first quarter, resulting in his helmet flying off.
According to Pittman, better protection will help Green's timing and prevent such moments in the future.
"The timing's got to be better on that," Pittman said. "I think when the protection gets better, the timing will be better as well. I think we'll get the ball out of our hands faster, too. I don't know as much, we didn't feel like it was as much route running as just the timing and the pressure in his face to get the ball off."
While running backs and tight ends play a role in protecting the quarterback, the offensive line is responsible for the overwhelming majority of the grunt work. The unit features three newcomers (Fernando Carmona Jr., Addison Nichols and Keyshawn Blackstock) and an underclassman who wasn't expected to start in the preseason (E'Marion Harris), so the natural gelling process is still taking place for the group.
Pittman, who said that these issues will get fixed, went in-depth on why the Razorbacks are failing to give Green time in the pocket.
"One, the offensive line is responsible for five-man protection," Pittman said. "And we've got to block the five guys that are coming. And if they bring six, we've got to block the first five. We're not doing that.
"Two, we have to communicate better to get our backs on the sixth guy in six-man protection. We had way too many missed assignments on that. For the most part, it's not we're getting our butt whipped. We're not doing what we're coached, assignment-wise, and the kids are trying their tail off. I'm not giving an excuse. It was really loud out there, but some of these things are based off that we should certainly pick up, and we did not."
A player's coach at heart, Pittman couldn't go without giving some credit to his offensive line, which has helped give Arkansas the nation's 16th-best rushing offense (240.0 yards per game) and eight-best total offense (524.0 yards per game).
"Number one, I really like our offensive line," Pittman said. "I'm sitting here talking about pass protection and we're running the ball extremely well. We've got to get better at pass protection, but I could say that every single week as well. I'm really, really proud of what Coach Mateos and the offensive line have done, and we are getting much, much better. So, I want to make that very, very clear."
Up next, Arkansas will travel to Arlington, Texas, to face the No. 24 Texas A&M Aggies (3-1, 1-0 SEC) on Saturday at AT&T Stadium. That game will kick off at 2:30 p.m. CT and it will be broadcast on ESPN.
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