Coach Bret Bielema and defensive coordinator Paul Rhoads confirmed what seemed evident during Arkansas’ loss to Alabama: the Razorbacks blitzed more often Saturday than it typically has this year.
Rhoads turned up the heat against the Crimson Tide and Jalen Hurts, a departure of sorts from the philosophy to sit back against running quarterbacks in earlier games this season.
“We were bringing more pressure in this game,” Rhoads said.
Alabama won 41-9 and put together 496 yards of offense, but the Razorbacks did play in the Crimson Tide backfield more than they had in their first five games and more than ‘Bama opponents typically do.
Entering the night, Arkansas ranked 98th in the nation in sacks (8) and 123rd in tackles-for-loss (21). Alabama came in allowing just 1.17 sacks and 3.5 tackles per loss per game, both marks among the top 30 nationally.
The Razorbacks sacked Hurts twice and pressured him several other times, while recording four tackles-for-loss. Both sacks came on third down, a situation Arkansas at times has slid defensive end Sosa Agim to nose tackle in an effort to get more pass rushers and speed on the field.
“Especially third down, we thought it could very positive to us,” Rhoads said of the decision to bring more pressure. “And it was. We brought some other forms of four-man and five-man stunts on first and second down that created some positive, effective plays for us.”
Agim and a blitzing Dwayne Eugene combined to record the first sack on Hurts. Linebacker Scoota Harris cleaned up Hurts for a 12-yard loss after blitzing linebacker Dre Greenlaw forced Hurts to scramble. Harris had two of the four tackles-for-loss, while Eugene had 1.5. The sacks and most of the pressure springboarded a sequence when the Razorbacks forced three straight punts, including two three-and-out possessions.
But don’t necessarily expect more pressure moving forward. Rhoads explained why the ability to bring more pressure was more of a matchup decision and not a philosophical change.
Arkansas had played mobile quarterbacks before Alabama, facing the likes of TCU’s Kenny Hill and Texas A&M’s Christian Mond. The Razorbacks were more conservative against those teams, not wanting to open up running lanes if the blitz didn’t get there. Hurts was able to make some plays with his legs Saturday, running for 41 yards on 10 carries, including 56 on 8 non-sack carries.
“It’s the timing and the ability of the quarterback to run the ball,” Rhoads said. “Alabama’s quarterback run game, in the end, hurt us. Part of it was a different run game than we’ve seen on film, but it wasn’t the zone read and keep based on lack of your lack of discipline type of run game.
“Certain pressures are good for that, certain pressures are used in other situations and that’s why it was a little more prevalent in this Alabama game.”
It sounds like match ups will continue to dictate how much and what kinds of pressure Arkansas will bring on a week-to-week basis. Still, added blitzing paid off at times against the Tide
“We had a plan to bring a little pressure, do some things,” Bielema said. “I liked the way they responded.”