She was in her late teens, maybe early 20 s, wearing flannel pajamas and pink house shoes.

When she stepped on the elevator Sunday morning in the Tupelo, Miss., Courtyard by Marriott hotel, she was still upset.

“Why did we try to pass on third down ?” she asked.

With 2: 31 to play and leading 38-34 Saturday in Tuscaloosa, Ala., the Arkansas Razorbacks faced third-and-12 from their 35. The pass was incomplete and stopped the clock.

After the game, Lou Holtz would ask the same question on ESPN as the young lady.

By now, everyone knows the answer was Casey Dick had the option to run, although he had not one run from scrimmage the entire game.

Running backs Felix Jones and Michael Smith were left out of the play.

While checking out of the Courtyard minutes after the first conversation, a man who was leaving turned and questioned the officiating on a third-and-9 from the Arkansas 28.

From the press box, the pass to Keith Brown appeared uncatchable, over his head, yet the yellow flag for pass interference meant the official thought Kevin Woods had too much contact or the ball would have been caught.

Both were keys to Alabama’s miraculous come-from-behind, 41-38 victory.

Of course, both teams also had passes intercepted, fumbles and passes dropped, and those factor in, too.

The Hogs got 17 points after turnovers, while the Crimson Tide tallied 10.

Some will even question why Reggie Herring blitzed almost every down on the Tide’s winning drive, but in his defense, no pun intended, the Razorbacks have to put pressure on the quarterback for their coverage to have a chance.

They didn’t cover or pressure in the first quarter and spotted Alabama a 21-0 lead.

If you were an Arkansas fan, you apparently came away with the feeling you were cheated, either by the interference penalty or by the third-down pass.

If you were an Alabama fan, it was a glorious effort and game.

If you were just an average fan watching on ESPN, it was a great game that wasn’t decided until there just eight ticks left on the clock.

Now, Houston Nutt has to refocus his team on the future and not the past.

There is a lot of football to play, and the Hogs didn’t go on their run last year until after they lost a game.

And with Kentucky coming to town, Nutt has a chance to break a small jinx he has had as the Razorbacks coach.

In his first nine seasons, every time the Hogs lost to an SEC opponent for the first time, they lost the next game against a conference foe. (Now, other coaches may have the same jinx. )

Plus, only once has that second loss come at home.

In 2003, after beating Texas in Austin and coming from behind 31-17 in Tuscaloosa for a 34-31, two-overtime victory, the Razorbacks came home and lost first to Auburn then to Florida.

If Darren McFadden is 100 percent — or even 90 percent, for that matter — look for that jinx to end.

Yet, the end of the Alabama game should have left a concern for the Razorbacks.

If the situation had been reversed and it was Arkansas getting the ball at its 27 with 2: 13 to play and trailing, could it have driven the length of the field for the victory ?

Granted, a couple of interference calls help anyone, but if the Razorbacks are going to get back on course, they need to work on a two-minute offense.

Last year against LSU, they had a final shot but put up four Hail Mary passes instead.

There will be a time this season when the Hogs will need a last-minute drive for a field goal or touchdown to win.

If McFadden is out for any reason, they need to be able to control the clock and the field with a passing attack.

It doesn’t have to be all that vertical, it just needs to be effective, and it doesn’t need to be an option that Dick can run.

There’s plenty of practice time left to take care of those details, and that would make everyone happy.