Arkansas Football: 5 Reasons To Believe Hogs Can Upset No. 1 Alabama

The Arkansas Razorbacks are off a big road win against the Georgia Bulldogs and now set their sights on the #1 team in the country.

Arkansas looked as though they were going to lose the game, as Georgia rallied to tie things up late in the game.  Then Ryan Mallett took over. Mallett is a front running Heisman Trophy candidate and he showed why, when with less than 30 seconds left he hooked up with Greg Childs for a 40 yard touchdown to win the game.  The Razorbacks hope to harness the energy and momentum from the big win and use it in the biggest game of the week against the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Even the oddsmakers are giving Arkansas little chance to win this game as BetPhoenix has listed Alabama as 7 point favorites in this game.

Here are five reasons to believe that the Hogs can upset No. 1 Alabama.

Ryan Mallett

Ryan Mallett is the heartbeat of this Arkansas team and if the Hogs beat Alabama, he will be the no. 1 reason. He just put up 380 yards and the game winner in a big game against Georgia, removing a stigma on how he plays on the road against the SEC. He has 1081 yards on the season with 9 touchdowns and just 2 interceptions. Mallet understands that this is the biggest game of the season and a win will go a long way for his team (not to mention the Heisman trophy).

Every defense he faces knows that he is the focus of the offense yet they can’t seem to stop him. If Alabama can’t find an answer for Mallett, it will be a long day for the Crimson Tide defense.

Home Sweet Home

Home field advantage is something special in the SEC. The fans are crazy, loud, and proud. With the hype that will be surrounding this game it will be no different and the stadium will be packed with fans ready to see their beloved Hogs pull of the upset.

The fans will be dressed in their Saturday best and be ready to take on the Tide.They will be ready early but don't expect ESPN Gameday to be there. ESPN Gameday announced they will be at the Boise St vs. Oregon St. game this Saturday and not in Fayetteville Arkansas.

What are they thinking?

Turnover Battle

Arkansas had issues with turnovers to start the season, but when they were in the big game against Georgia they did not give the ball up once.

Alabama is still having problems turning over the ball. They turned the ball over three time against the Duke Blue Devils. What might be more disturbing is that the turnovers for the Tide seem to happen in the red zone. In the first game they had one turnover in the end zone and in the second game they had two turnovers in the red zone.

The Hogs defense will be grabbing at the ball all day in hopes of taking advantage of this weakness.

Wear Out The Defense

Alabama has an unbelievable defense that will be ready to take on the Hogs, but their stamina may come into question. In the game against Duke, the Blue Devils used a no huddle and that gave the Tide’s defense problems and wore them out.

"I think we got tired defensively in the second quarter," Alabama coach Nick Saban said. "They went no-huddle against us. We practice against it all the time. It's not really something we anticipated in this game. ... I was a little disappointed in the way we executed. ... We looked sluggish and tired.

They will have some time to get ready for another quick offense but will have to make adjustments before halftime if they want to keep Mallett and Co. in check.

Bobby Petrino’s Play Calling

Love him or hate him Arkansas head coach Bobby Petrinio likes to make things exciting.  He has had this game circled on his calendar since before the season kicked off and knows how important it is.

"We said in the preseason if you go out and win at Georgia, we really get to make it a big game back in Fayetteville," Petrino said.

Petrino has made a point of saying in almost every press conference that he is keeping his offense somewhat vanilla until they meet Alabama so they will unveil plays that the Tide have yet to see. Petrino will test a defense that has had a bend to break philosophy that has worked well for them.

There is no telling what Petirno will have in store for this game on Saturday, but one thing for sure, it will be fun to watch.

Matt Regaw is a B/R Featured Columnist and the founder of BookieBlitz.com, your one-stop shop for sports articles, previews, and predictions. Feel Free to contact Matt at [e-mail]