FAYETTEVILLE — Five observations from No. 25 Arkansas’ 38-10 loss to No. 24 LSU.
— Run defense reverts
Talk about a roller-coaster last month of football. Auburn gashed Arkansas’ run defense for 543 yards, then, after a bye, the Hogs held Florida to 12 yards on 14 attempts. The unit reverted Saturday, allowing LSU to run for 390 yards on 7.6 yards per carry.
It marked the fourth time Arkansas has allowed 250 or more rushing yards this season. In those games, it has given up an unseemly 8.7 yards per carry. After the Florida game, there was thought that the defense had turned a corner. Instead, this performance went a long way toward solidifying these Hogs as the worst run defense in school history.
Florida’s usage of two tight ends allowed Arkansas to use its base 4-3 look last week, getting Randy Ramsey on the field as a SAM linebacker. LSU provided an opportunity for the Hogs to stay in their base defense, but the Razorbacks weren’t nearly as effective. Derrius Guice ran for 252 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries, while Leonard Fournette totaled 98 yards on 17 carries and three scores.
Arkansas allowed big plays to Guice especially, including a 96-yard touchdown run. The Hogs aren't able to get off blocks fast enough and safety Santos Ramirez didn't take a good enough angle, but Guice really just made this play happen with his outstanding speed.
Let's take a look at some of the issues on other big runs by Guice.
Defensive end JaMichael Winston takes the B gap and linebacker Brooks Ellis gets stuck inside, leaving a big hole. Safety De'Andre Coley can't get off a block and cornerback Jared Collins misses a tackle. Big gain.
Defensive end Tevin Beanum gets pancaked, while Ramirez meanders around before being taken out of the play by an LSU receiver. Collins misses a tackle and only a shoestring stop by safety Josh Liddell prevents a touchdown.
Winston again takes the B gap. He and linebacker Randy Ramsey get off their blocks but can't quite make the play. Ellis is again blocked inside and taken out of the play, while Ramirez, playing in the box, whiffs on the tackle.
The Hogs didn’t play sound gap defense, had trouble getting off blocks and playing downhill, all of which resulted in a disheartening step back against the run.
— Safety sequence proves costly
Arkansas held momentum with an opportunity to potentially shift the outcome of the game for a brief moment early in the third quarter after an LSU fumble turned into an Arkansas field goal, cutting LSU’s lead to 21-10.
A penalty backed the Tigers up into a second-and-19 on their ensuing drive, but Leonard Fournette got 17 back on the next play by bouncing outside as Ramirez was sucked inside, leaving an open running lane for the Tigers’ star running back.
Still, LSU faced a third-and-2 on its own 27. The Tigers ran a toss sweep to the left, but Arkansas defended it well. Liddell was in position to make a tackle behind the sticks, but missed, allowing Derrius Guice to scoot free down the sideline for a 38-yard run.
LSU scored four plays later to extend its lead to 28-10. What could’ve been a punt and a chance to cut the lead to 21-17 turned into a three-score game.
— Austin Allen struggles again
Both Bret Bielema and Austin Allen said the junior quarterback was healthy Saturday. But Allen struggled for a second straight week.
He finished 15 of 31 for 210 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions, a night that included a 7 of 19 start. Throws he made with regularity the first eight weeks have been less consistent the last two.
In addition to the picks, both of which were the result of poor reads, Allen’s footwork was inconsistent and his decision making at times a tick too slow.
He just hasn’t been as sharp the last few weeks, albeit against two highly ranked defenses. He’s established himself as a top-tier quarterback in the SEC, but the Razorbacks need him to get back to playing like one if he is in fact 100 percent. It is fair to wonder if that is the case.
— Run game stifled
Freshman running back Devwah Whaley broke an impressive 34-yard run down the LSU sideline in the second quarter, complete with a stiff arm of LSU projected first-round pick Jamal Adams. Seriously, wow on that stiff arm. Neat split back look, nice pull by left guard Hjalte Froholdt and block by fullback Kendrick Jackson, but Whaley made this play happen with his quick cut and finished with an impressive stiff arm.
Junior Rawleigh Williams later had an 18-yard run to set up the Hogs’ third-quarter field goal.
Aside from those two runs, the Razorbacks managed just 29 yards on 22 attempts. The Razorbacks struggled to create running lanes. At times, backs missed holes.
Arkansas struggled on first down. The Razorbacks averaged just 3.4 yards per carry, a number bolstered by an 18-yard run by Williams in the third quarter. Aside from that, first-down runs averaged just 1.8 yards, often leaving them facing second-and-long.
The line largely failed to establish a push in the run game, while Allen regularly had to throw under duress, even though the three sacks allowed were the result of tight end Jeremy Sprinkle being beaten, Whaley missing an assignment and a pocket collapsed as a result of Williams struggling to pick up a blitz.
The Hogs took a step forward last week by inserting sophomore Johnny Gibson at right guard. They went with the same starting lineup this week, but it was less effective against a physical LSU front.
— Turnover issues
Allen threw two picks, one inside the red zone that essentially iced the game in the fourth quarter with the Hogs trailing 31-10.
To sum up the struggles, the Razorbacks had a touchdown on their final drive overturned, then failed to score when Whaley fumbled into the end zone and LSU recovered for a touchback.
Allen has thrown an interception in five straight games and has eight in that span. In the five games, Arkansas has turned it over 12 times and has a minus-four turnover margin. The Hogs need to start playing cleaner.