There's really only one word to describe the Arkansas Razorbacks' (3-7, 1-6 SEC) 48-10 loss to the Auburn Tigers (6-4, 3-4 SEC) at Reynolds Razorback Stadium Saturday evening: yikes.
Facing an Auburn team that was one win away from bowl eligibility, the Razorbacks had to come out fierce and determined if they were going to win the game and keep bowl eligibility alive for themselves. It's safe to say that they didn't do that. In fact, it was the complete opposite.
"We couldn't handle the edge on defense," head coach Sam Pittman said after the game. "We tried different things out there, but any time they wanted to get on the edge, we couldn't handle the run. We went back to where the protection wasn't any good. Gave up five sacks. Couldn't run the ball. Got stymied running the football."
After totaling a season-high 481 yards in a 39-36 overtime win last week against the Florida Gators, the interim offensive coordinator Kenny Guiton-led offense only put up 255 total yards and 10 points with one touchdown against the Tigers. Third down in particular was a struggle, as the Hogs finished 1-12 on the day in that department.
"It always seemed like we couldn't win first down at all," Pittman said. "Third and long was a problem for us. We tried several different things. Empty, six-man protection, rolling out, nakeds, things of that nature, running it. They were just more physical than us, and really dominated us."
Star backfield duo quarterback KJ Jefferson and running back Raheim Sanders regressed in a big way after combining for 450 yards and three touchdowns against Florida. Through four quarters against Auburn, they recorded a combined 166 yards — all of which came from Jefferson as Sanders netted zero yards on eight carries.
The lone touchdown of the day for Arkansas came from backup quarterback Jacolby Criswell, who was inserted in for Jefferson at the 7:08 mark in the third quarter.
"We're down 41-3 and KJ is getting the heck beat out of him back there," Pittman said. Obviously, I wanted to look at Jacolby, and I talked to KJ. I thought he went in there and played really well. I thought he played like what I thought he would, like how he's been practicing and things of that nature.
"The bottom line is it was seven minutes left in the third quarter, and we're down 41-3. KJ was bloodied up a little bit, and I wanted to see what Jacolby could do."
At the beginning of the fourth, the signal caller ran the ball up the gut for a 60-yard gain before finding wide receiver Isaac TeSlaa in the endzone for a score.
"I’d say the momentum was definitely in their direction, but it’s not like on the sideline we were hanging our heads or anything," TeSlaa said after the game. "We fully expected we were going to go out there and start a comeback. It’s not like we were hanging out heads or anything like that."
Arkansas' struggles weren't just relegated to the offensive side of the ball, though. A Razorbacks' defense that has been surprisingly good under defensive coordinator Travis Williams had its second bad game in a row.
"Well, tackling inside - and we didn't do that particularly well either - but tackling out in space is a whole different story than tackling in space, you know what I mean?" Pittman said. "So, we've kind of gotten exposed the last couple of weeks in space.
"It wasn't because we didn't work on it because we spent most of indies tackling, but we knew we needed to emphasize what we didn't do well last week against Florida. We need to continue to work on it more because we weren't very good at tackling today."
After allowing 394 yards last week to the Gators, the defense gave up 517 to the Tigers through four quarters. Of those 517 yards, 394 came on the ground, an area that Auburn has excelled in all season. The successful rushing attack played in a big role in the Tigers converting 7-12 third downs on the day.
"Well, we lost first down all day on defense," Pittman said. "I mean, all day. It seemed like second-and-three, second-and-two, second-and-four all day. We couldn’t win first down, and they should have pretty good success on third down because they were ahead of the chains it seemed to me like most all of the game."
With the loss, Arkansas is guaranteed to finish the regular season with a losing record. This likely means the Hogs won't be playing in a bowl game, barring them being selected to play as a five-win team due to high APR scores.
"There was a lot of importance to win today, and that was one of them, to keep that alive," Pittman said. "To get to Missouri. Hopefully, you could get to Missouri with that opportunity. We talked to them a little bit afterwards, we’ll kind of see a little bit more on what we’re made of. Are we going to go fight and prepare and do these types of things this week? I have no doubt that we will."
Despite the poor showing this season, Pittman says he isn't worried about his status as head coach of the Razorbacks.
"I'm not, and let me say why," Pittman said. "Because it's never been about me being the head coach. It's been about me and these kids. But, to answer your question, no, I'm not."
Up next, Arkansas will face off against the Florida International Panthers (4-6, 1-6 CUSA) next Saturday at Reynolds Razorback Stadium. The game will kick off at 6:30 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPNU.
