A year ago at this time it was as if Kool-Aid was being consumed like cool water on an August afternoon.
Not sure what the prediction for the Arkansas Razorbacks was here, nor do I care to find it. But it was far north of 4-8, but a little south of the BCS national championship.
This year should be better, although the Hogs have the fifth-toughest schedule in America.
Inside today’s paper is our yearly special section featuring the Razorbacks football team, where Tom Murphy has made his predictions for the season. I didn’t see it in advance, and will read it for the first time today. He didn’t see mine, either. Hopefully he’ll read it today.
Like with John Brummett, Tom and I don’t always agree but respect still runs very deep.
Here’s my guess, game by game:
ARKANSAS 27, LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE 17 On a hot, humid afternoon, in front of 65,289, the Razorbacks struggle in the first half and trail 7-6 at intermission. In the second half, Brandon Allen completes 9 of 15 passes for 1 touchdown, true freshman Alex Collins breaks loose for 58 yards and a touchdown, and Jonathan Williams scores on a 9-yard run to cap a 72-yard drive.
ARKANSAS 56, SAMFORD 9 Bret Bielema gets his first glimpse of the War Memorial Stadium Razorfest and enjoys a night of ironing out some wrinkles and getting some much-needed game-time experience for a squad that has depth issues.
ARKANSAS 47, SOUTHERN MISS 0 An almost sellout crowd watches with enthusiasm as the Razorbacks roll over the Golden Eagles, who are coming off a 66-0 loss to Nebraska. Cautious optimism about a bowl game is starting to creep into conversations on talk shows.
ARKANSAS 27, RUTGERS 24 (OT) Zach Hocker’s 27-yard field goal lets the Hogs go 4-0 in nonconference play.
TEXAS A&M 31, ARKANSAS 24 The Razorbacks can’t stop Johnny Manziel but they do slow him compared to last season, and their balanced offensive attack gives the Aggies some problems.
FLORIDA 28, ARKANSAS 27 No bad calls by the officials but no moral victories even though the Razorbacks fight hard in the midst of the toughest stretch of the schedule. The bright spot is Collins, who rushes for 156 yards on 19 carries.
SOUTH CAROLINA 35, ARKANSAS 24 The Gamecocks remain undefeated because Connor Shaw has his best game of the season, passing for 251 yards and three touchdowns. The Hogs hold their own for most of the game and improvement is being seen. Will it be enough?
ALABAMA 42, ARKANSAS 21 Nick Saban is ready, and when the final seconds tick off he says, “Guess Bret will have to wait another year to try and beat us.” The Crimson Tide are No. 1 in the country and looking to go undefeated if they get by LSU on Nov. 9.
ARKANSAS 31, AUBURN 21 After a much-needed week off, the Razorbacks dominate the line of scrimmage and the defense has three interceptions that seem to take the wind out of Gus Malzhan’s offense.
ARKANSAS 23, OLE MISS 17 Three Hocker field goals and the best defensive showing of the season give the Hogs a mild upset on the road and make them bowl eligible.
ARKANSAS 35, MISSISSIPPI STATE 14 War Memorial Stadium rocks, and Williams and Collins roll for a combined 326 yards rushing and five touchdowns.
LSU 35, ARKANSAS 24 The Tigers retain the Golden Boot as the Hogs and Tigers close the regular season against each other for the final time. There are six bowl representatives at the game, three watching the 7-5 Razorbacks. Improvement was seen all season.
Arkansas accepts a bid to play North Carolina State in the Independence Bowl.
Sports, Pages 22 on 08/25/2013