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Razorbacks set for PK80 Tournament
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HD VIDEO: Bielema & Coordinators
Arkansas faces Missouri Saturday in the Battle Line Rivalry, and last year’s game marked the beginning of Arkansas’ downward turn.
Up 24-7 at halftime, the Razorbacks surrendered 21 unanswered points and fell to the Tigers 28-24 on Black Friday, 2016. Arkansas was a 7-4 team looking to improve its bowl destination heading into that game. Missouri was 3-8 and only had more misery ahead.
The roles are reversed this season. The Hogs are 4-7 and out of bowl contention while the Tigers have a chance to improve their situation at a bowl eligible 6-5. The Tigers have won five games in-a-row over Idaho (68-21), UConn. (52-12), Florida (45-16), Tennessee (50-17) and Vanderbilt (45-17).
But here’s the kicker, not a one of those teams will have a winning record this season. Idaho and UConn. have each won three games while Florida, Tennessee and Vanderbilt have only won four and are all at the bottom of the Eastern Division. If they beat the Hogs on Saturday, that’ll be six-straight wins over sub-.500 teams. And their other win this season came in the opener to Missouri State, a 3-8 squad.
Reflecting on last year's loss to Missouri
Despite the records of the teams they have beaten, one thing Arkansas coach Bret Bielema always says rings true; winning is contagious and so is losing. As stated, things weren’t that bad at Arkansas – and certainly not for the head coach – until that collapse last year and the chain reaction that followed. It led to a collapse in the next game and a collapse over the first five Power 5 games this year.
