Commentary

Bowl, matchup good for Arkansas

The Virginia Tech mascot stands next to a member of the dance team during the first half of the Military Bowl NCAA college football game against Cincinnati, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2014, in Annapolis, Md. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Arkansas’ regular season may have ended with a thud, but it could’ve been worse. At least the Hogs aren’t playing a bowl game in Memphis or Shreveport.

The Belk Bowl is by no means prestigious or in sunny Florida, but it is better than the past two Arkansas bowl appearances – the Texas Bowl and Liberty Bowl. With the upgrade comes a better opponent.

Arkansas had no trouble with Big 12 foes Texas and Kansas State. Virginia Tech, though, enters this game with much better credentials. The Hokies are playing in their 24th consecutive bowl game are ranked under first-year coach Justin Fuente.

Arkansas finished 8-5 last year, but if the Hogs can beat the Hokies to finish 8-5 this season it might have a bit more clout because the bowl win came against a team which played well in the ACC Championship Game against No. 2 Clemson.

The two qualities that make a potential win over the Hokies significant are the defense and quarterback Jerod Evans. Both are legitimate.

When Frank Beamer retired, Fuente retained longtime Hokies defensive coordinator Bud Foster. Virginia Tech’s defense was ranked 19th in the nation in total defense and 13th in pass efficiency. It probably is not quite as good as SEC foes Alabama or Auburn, but comparable to LSU. Still a big challenge.

Arkansas’ offense has been the strength of the team all year, and has had to carry more than its fair share of the load. The Hogs' running game with sophomore Rawleigh Williams and freshman Devwah Whaley will help Arkansas move the ball and put points on the board, but if Tech continues to defend the pass as well as it has all year, Arkansas may not be able to win a shootout against the Hokies.

This is a legit defense coached by one of the all-time greats. If Arkansas lights up the scoreboard it would be an accomplishment.

Arkansas may have to score a lot of points because VT is capable of scoring in bunches. With the Hogs' porous defense, that may be a problem.

Evans emerged as one of the more prolific passers in the country. He has passed for more than 3,000 yards and 27 touchdowns with just 7 interceptions. He will be one of the better signal callers Arkansas has seen this year and is big, strong and athletic. If Arkansas doesn’t make some adjustments during the bowl preparation, Evans could be on par for his biggest outing of the season.

The good news for the Hogs is that while Virginia Tech is a quality opponent, the Hokies aren’t unbeatable, and they aren’t comparable to some Beamer’s dominant teams. The knock on the Hokies is their schedule. The Coastal Division is the less competitive of the two in the ACC, and VT only beat one ranked team.

That was a 34-3 win at No. 17 North Carolina Oct. 8. That was a signature win, as was a 39-36 win at Pittsburgh. The Panthers went on to give Clemson its only loss.

The worst loss for Virginia Tech was 31-17 at hapless Syracuse. Tech also lost to Tennessee 45-24 in a neutral-site game Week 2 at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Tech commands respect, but at the same time, it didn’t have to play Louisville, Clemson and Florida State during the regular season. It also took advantage of an uncharacteristic poor season from Notre Dame and won there by a field goal in November.

Virginia Tech is like most other teams that don’t play in the SEC West. Its record wouldn’t be quite as good if it did, and if Arkansas played the same schedule it would have at least a win or two more.

That’s what makes this game intriguing. With Texas and Kansas State, the games didn’t look great on paper. Many could see that Arkansas had played a superior schedule and had more impressive wins.

That may not be the case here, but the big question is:'How much did Tech benefit from playing a soft schedule?

If Arkansas wins, some detractors will point to that, but that will also be Tech’s motivation. The Hokies want to prove they can play with an SEC West team.

A win over Virginia Tech could go a long way to softening the blow of a disappointing end to the regular season and give the Arkansas staff something to crow about during the recruiting push.