With Southeastern Conference play on the horizon for Arkansas (2-1, 0-0 SEC) after its lackluster 37-27 win over UAB on Saturday at Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville, criticism for redshirt junior quarterback Taylen Green continues to grow at a steady pace.
Heralded for his ability to stretch defenses with his deceiving long strides and pocket escapability, Green's main obstacle has been his accuracy. In three seasons at Boise State before transferring to Arkansas, the 6-foot-6, 230-pound signal caller accumulated a 59.7% completion percentage.
That issue — especially across Arkansas' last two games versus the Blazers and at Oklahoma State — has protruded to the forefront enough to give fans some cause for concern ahead of a road game to open SEC play at Auburn next weekend.
Green's less-than-spectacular 11-for-26 (42.3%) day in the pocket nearly led to a UAB upset, and the consistent breeze Saturday afternoon in Fayetteville wasn't to blame, according to head coach Sam Pittman.
"No, I don’t think so," Pittman said when asked if the wind played a factor. "I just think that we didn’t throw it and catch it like we normally would. I don’t think it was a wind problem. Actually that part of practice went extremely well this week, our throwing our catching, our route running, our protections.
"But for whatever reason we were off and again, teams that are good they find a way to win and no matter who you play and fortunately, we found the run game that bailed us out of it, and our defense played a much better second half than they did the first."
Following a 7:27 minute opening drive by UAB that resulted in a 3-0 lead for the road team, Green responded by tossing an interception on a pass intended for wide receiver Andrew Armstrong. That gave the Blazers a short field to work with and they capitalized by extending their lead to 10-0.
Failing to start fast against a UAB team that finished with an 0-6 record on the road last year doesn't spark hope that Green and the Razorbacks will find their footing offensively at Auburn next week, but Pittman said he thinks Green's accuracy issues are correctable.
"I thought it was very unusual and I think it’s correctable and I think he’ll correct it," Pittman said. "Most of the time when that happens, guys are pushing hard. Again, it might go back to your playing at home for the first time, as well.
"That’s the first time he’s ever been in this stadium with fans. He may have pushed a little bit hard. He may have wanted to show out a little bit, play a little bit above what he normally does, which is plenty good."
Another stat sheet eyebrow-raiser in the UAB game was Green's reliance on Armstrong, who was targeted 13 times and made eight catches for 137 yards. Only two other players — Isaiah Sategna and Ja'Quinden Jackson — recorded receptions in the matchup.
What happens when Auburn keys in on Armstrong defensively? Who does Green turn to as a security blanket in crunch time? Those are questions Arkansas has to answer and fast, especially after pass catchers like veteran Tyrone Broden and freshman CJ Brown both had drops in crucial situations against UAB.
"We really haven't had that problem, you know, till today," Pittman said. "I mean, really haven't had that problem. And I can't remember a guy dropping a wide-open pass or whatever. And CJ is young. He'll get better, and he'll learn. I'm glad we had him out there. He'll get better, and he'll catch him."
Up next, Arkansas will travel to take on the Auburn Tigers (1-1, 0-0 SEC) at Jordan-Hare Stadium on Saturday. The game will kick off at 2:30 or 3:15 p.m. CT and it will be broadcast on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2 or the SEC Network.
