Arkansas Making the Leap Won't Happen Unless Ground Game Gets Going

2015 began as a season of hope for Arkansas.

2014’s late-year surge to bowl eligibility, capped with a Texas Bowl stomping of old Southwest Conference rival Texas, sent expectations soaring in Fayetteville for Bret Bielema’s third season.

The Razorbacks were a Top 20 preseason pick and an SEC West dark horse, hype that was justified given the return of nine offensive starters, four offensive linemen and a pair of 1,000-yard tailbacks.

But following Saturday’s stunning 16-12 loss to Toledo in Little Rock, it appears to be time to recalibrate those hopes.

While Toledo is one of the best teams in the Mid-American Conference, the Rockets have no business going into an SEC stadium and winning, much less the way they did.

While Arkansas actually outgained Toledo 515-318 in yardage, the Razorbacks managed just 103 yards on the ground and passed the ball 53 times while rushing it 31. That’s a stark reversal from 2014, when the Hogs averaged 218 yards per game on the ground, No. 24 nationally.

It shows just how much Arkansas misses senior tailback Jonathan Williams, who will miss at least the entire regular season with a foot injury suffered in August. While junior tailback Alex Collins also rushed for 1,100 yards last year (just behind Williams’ team-leading 1,190-yard total), Williams’ absence means the entire rushing game rests on Collins’ shoulders.

Saturday, that wasn’t such a good thing. Collins carried 20 times but managed just 54 yards and a touchdown, a paltry 2.7 yards per carry.

Meanwhile, Razorbacks' quarterback Brandon Allen threw for 412 yards. He set career highs for both yards and attempts (he threw 45 times for 296 yards in last fall’s 45-32 loss to Georgia). But such stats go against Bielema’s ethos: i.e., winning with a pounding run game.

A late-game series sums up Arkansas’ run-game issues. With just over three minutes left, the Razorbacks drove inside the Toledo 10 trailing 16-10. This was the exact time for the run game to take over and pound the ball home, right?

Danny Johnston/Associated Press

On 1st-and-goal from the Toledo 4, Allen threw into the end zone incomplete. On second down, he gave it to Collins up the middle, and Collins pushed near the goal line. But, wait: A holding flag.

That pushed Arkansas back 10 yards, nullifying the ground game’s impact. On 4th-and-goal from the 7, Allen targeted Hunter Henry at the back of the end zone, but his pass hit the crossbar, ending the threat with nothing to show for it.

Given Bielema’s history, the series didn’t make a lot of sense, and Arkansas ultimately paid. We’ll see how quickly the offense learns from what is certainly a teaching moment.

Now, the real fun starts for the 1-1 Hogs. Next up? A home game with a potent Texas Tech offense, followed by a matchup against Texas A&M at neutral-site AT&T Stadium in Dallas and road trips to Tennessee and Alabama. There are no gimmes left on the schedule until a Halloween matchup with FCS foe UT-Martin, last seen on the wrong end of a 76-3 blowout at Ole Miss’ hands.

While the league is increasingly pass-oriented, a strong, physical offense, like the one Arkansas displayed in 2014, can still be successful.

The SEC West is one of college football’s best divisions and certainly its most unforgiving. Unless Arkansas gets back to its offensive foundation, the Razorbacks won’t take a leap forward in 2015 and could even take a big step back.