FAYETTEVILLE -- Many analysts project Arkansas to give the best of the SEC West a great go of it in Coach Bret Bielema's third season because the Razorbacks are considered one of the toughest teams in the country to get prepared to play.
The second half of that analysis might be true, given Arkansas' physical approach on both sides of the ball combined with its throwback, grind-it-out offense.
"I think it's tough to get ready for our style of offense, just because it's kind of rare to see now," tailback Jonathan Williams said before his season-ending foot injury in preseason camp. "You see a lot of those four receivers and spread offenses, so to be able to get ready for a physical, downhill football team is pretty difficult."
Yet, there are obvious hurdles the Hogs must overcome if they are to contend in what has been the nation's toughest division for most of the past decade.
It's borderline impossible to win a conference title if you don't win a conference road game, something Arkansas has failed to do since Oct. 6, 2012, when it won at Auburn 24-7.
The difficulty level in winning a title also increases when you struggle to win close games, as Arkansas has in its recent past, particularly when your style of play lends itself to tight games decided in the fourth quarter.
An additional hurdle is a wicked schedule, triggered by an opening stretch of three SEC games away from home.
Bielema has aired his grievances about "a computer somewhere in Birmingham" pumping out the league schedule, but he knows the degree of difficulty for every team in the SEC West is rough.
"The SEC West, what it has and what it will be in the future is never going to really change that much," Bielema said. "It's probably become tougher since our arrival, I think because of us and because of some other schools, the rise that they've had."
The 2014 resurgence of Mississippi State, which was ranked No. 1 for three weeks late last year, and Ole Miss gave the SEC West an even tougher profile.
Arkansas started gaining respect by playing tight games in losses to No. 6 Texas A&M, No. 7 Alabama and No. 1 Mississippi State. The Razorbacks appeared to turn a corner with a 17-0 shutout of No. 17 LSU, which broke a 17-game SEC losing streak, and that led to victories in three of the Hogs' last four games.
SEC media tabbed Arkansas to finish fourth in the SEC West, but at least one media member said the Hogs could be a factor if all the odd pieces fall in place.
"I really believe that offensively they're going to give a lot of people problems," said Matt Hayes of The Sporting News, who visited the Razorbacks early in camp. "I mean a lot of people problems. It's hard to stop a team when they're physically punching you and wearing you down. So if they can stretch the field a little bit, their run game will be unbelievable.
"It's a big if. Can Brandon Allen be a guy who stretches the field, and does he have the receivers? If they can, it'll be hard for people to stop them."
Arkansas' defense turned into one of the nation's best with a strong stretch run, improving their ranking in total defense to No. 10. The Razorbacks allowed 230.3 yards and and 7 points per game while going 3-1 in their last four games.
"One thing that we have this year that we didn't have last year is coming into the season we have a better understanding of the defense," junior defensive tackle Taiwan Johnson said.
ROAD WOES
The Razorbacks have not won an SEC road game under Bret Bielema. Only one current Razorback, safety Rohan Gaines, played a significant role the last time Arkansas beat an SEC team on the road.
The drought dates to the 24-7 victory over Auburn in the Tigers' final season under Gene Chizik. Dennis Johnson rushed for two touchdowns and Brandon Mitchell threw a trick-play touchdown pass to Javontee Herndon, the first of consecutive SEC victories under interim coach John L. Smith.
The Razorbacks are 0-9 in SEC road games since then, outscored by a combined 313-140 for an average score of 35-16. Only one of those games has been decided by less than a touchdown -- a 31-27 defeat at LSU to close out 2013.
But the Razorbacks finished last fall with seven-point road losses at No. 1 Mississippi State (17-10) and No. 17 Missouri (21-14), games in which Arkansas led or were tied in during the fourth quarter.
Bielema pointed out this statistic while at SEC media days: The last five SEC West champions have gone 18-2 on the road in conference games. Arkansas' SEC road record in that span: 6-13, plus a neutral-site loss against Texas A&M last year.
TOUGH SLATE
No other SEC team plays three consecutive conference games away from home as Arkansas does, and it's the Razorbacks' first three SEC games to boot: the neutral-site opener against Texas A&M at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, followed by true road games at Tennessee and defending SEC West champion Alabama.
Additionally, Arkansas is the only team to have back-to-back road games twice in SEC play. The flip side of that is a few clusters of home games, including ones at the middle and end of the schedule, as well as the three-game nonconference stretch to open the year.
Arkansas faces two of the SEC East's toughest contenders in two-time defending division champion Missouri and up-and-coming Tennessee. For comparison's sake, Texas A&M plays Vanderbilt and South Carolina.
One season after becoming the first college football team to play every conference game against a ranked opponent, the Razorbacks stand a chance of doing it again in 2015.
LOSING TIGHT
There is a reason Trey Flowers was so emotional after last year's 17-10 Arkansas loss at No. 1 Mississippi State.
Flowers knew how close Arkansas had come to posting what would have been major upsets against top-10 teams Texas A&M, Alabama and Mississippi State, and he knew how precious few opportunities remained.
The Razorbacks recovered from that loss to shut out No. 17 LSU and No. 8 Ole Miss on back-to-back Saturdays, turning the program toward what many view as an even better season this fall.
But there could be more frustration in its future unless Arkansas learns how to close out tight games, one of the major themes of the offseason after Arkansas was outscored 67-23 in the fourth quarters of its SEC games last season.
The Razorbacks haven't won an SEC game by less than a touchdown since a 31-28 victory at Vanderbilt on Oct. 29, 2011. The Hogs are 0-8 in SEC games decided by seven points or less since then, and they are 1-10 in all games of that type since nipping the Commodores.
The Razorbacks' lone SEC victories last season came in games in which they shut out opponents not only in the fourth quarter but for the whole game.
Bielema's system, in full gear, wins the fourth quarter after pounding on opponents with low-mistake ball control offense and by keeping fresh defenders on the field for the final portions of the game.
"It's truly a style, and I don't know if people really have an appreciation for how it all fits together," tight ends coach Barry Lunney Jr. said. "Obviously if you're going to be ball control and limit possessions and grind it out you're going to be in a lot of close games. That's just the nature of it.
"If you're going to control the ball, you need good defense. And you saw when we played great defense, obviously it takes a burden off of us offensively. It's a formula that has stood the test of time."
Sports on 08/30/2015