FAYETTEVILLE — For one half Saturday, Arkansas looked like a team capable of playing with any other team in college football.
The Razorbacks led No. 4 Georgia 7-5 at halftime in a score that more resembled a game between the schools’ great baseball programs than what was expected of their football teams.
The score resembled what Vegas oddsmakers had predicted by the end of the game, though. Georgia, a 28-point favorite, scored 32 unanswered points and won 37-10.
Arkansas’ second half wasn’t so much a collapse as a reflection of the talent and depth that separate the Razorbacks’ from the SEC’s best teams. The speed and physicality of Georgia’s defense suffocated Arkansas for most of the game, but especially after halftime.
The Bulldogs’ defense set up multiple scoring opportunities for the team’s struggling offense. Georgia scored 14 points off two second-half turnovers — including a pick-six — and also scored a touchdown following a blocked punt that set up a short field.
Arkansas simply made too many mistakes to have a chance in the fourth quarter, and by then its defense had worn down against a team that was bigger and more physical.
Still, playing a good opening half against a team of Georgia’s caliber is a sign of progress for the Razorbacks under its new coaching staff led by Sam Pittman. Consider that last season when Arkansas lost by 41, 41 and 36 to SEC elites Alabama, Auburn and LSU, it trailed by 41, 17 and 22 at halftime.
The Razorbacks’ games usually felt over by some point during the second quarter a year ago. In their two most recent on-campus games before Saturday, Arkansas trailed Mississippi State and Western Kentucky by halftime scores of 38-10 and 35-7 last November.
Because of that, a two-point halftime lead over Georgia was notable, especially given that the Razorbacks had no nonconference warm-up games to knock off the rust.
There are no moral victories following Saturday’s loss, but there are some positives to build on.
Other observations
• The addition of a special teams coordinator did not appear to help the Razorbacks much in the opener. Georgia had two big kickoff returns totaling 91 yards and blocked a punt that led to another touchdown. Thanks in part to special teams, the Bulldogs’ average starting field position was their own 45-yard line. There was also a key delay of game against Arkansas that wiped out a 54-yard field goal attempt by A.J. Reed late in the second quarter.
• Cornerback Jerry Jacobs passed the eyeball test on several occasions. The transfer from Arkansas State was playing in his first game since suffering a season-ending injury against Georgia last September. He was understandably amped up for the game and appeared to play well. He finished the game with seven tackles and contested a couple of passes that were caught on great individual efforts by Georgia receivers, including a third-down catch by Jermaine Burton in the red zone that set up a touchdown on the Bulldogs’ next play.
• Trick plays didn’t go the Razorbacks’ way. Georgia scored a safety when T.J. Hammonds fumbled through the end zone after a reverse deep in Arkansas territory that was sniffed out. One of the Bulldogs’ three interceptions came on a double pass by receiver Treylon Burks.
• In part because of several penalties, the first 17 minutes of game time took 64 minutes to complete.
Key moments
• There was no bigger moment Saturday than when Georgia replaced starting quarterback D’Wan Mathis with Stetson Bennett in the second quarter. Playing in his first college game, Mathis was rattled by the Razorbacks’ defense. He threw an interception in the red zone in the first quarter and let a snap go off his hands to kill a second-quarter drive. Bennett didn’t have immediate success, but he did move the offense well enough to create a field goal attempt at the end of the first half and played an efficient position after halftime.
• A sequence at the end of the first half turned what could have been a 10-2 Arkansas lead into only 7-5. Georgia was flagged for running into Arkansas punter George Caratan, which advanced the ball to the Bulldogs’ 37. Arkansas elected to try a field goal by A.J. Reed but had a delay of game penalty, and Arkansas had to punt again. A series of short passes to the sideline moved Georgia into field goal range moments later. Pittman had two timeouts and used both. On the first Georgia was unable to get off a snap, but on the second kicker Jack Podlesny got a practice try and kicked the ball off the right upright. Podlesny made the most of his mulligan, nailing a 38-yarder to send the Bulldogs into the locker room down just two points.
• Arkansas’ failure to score a touchdown after having first-and-goal at the Georgia 6 felt like a turning point in the game. Mike Woods had key catches of 15 and 11 yards on the drive, and Trey Knox had a 3-yard reception to the 3. The inability to run against the Georgia front was evident on the next three play calls, all pass plays that resulted in an incompletion, a 3-yard competition and a sack for a loss of five yards. Reed’s short field goal extended Arkansas’ lead to 10-5, but Georgia scored a touchdown to take the lead less than three minutes later and never looked back.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story stated Arkansas' A.J. Reed made a field goal near the end of the first half. The kick appeared good from inside the stadium, but TV replays appeared to show Reed's kick was wide left. The officials on the field never signaled because of a pre-snap penalty.