Alabama Football: 10 Bold Predictions for the Arkansas Showdown
The biggest game in the SEC and one of the biggest in the nation is the defending national champion Alabama Crimson Tide traveling to take on Arkansas in primetime.
The Razorbacks are sporting Heisman candidate Ryan Mallett while the Crimson Tide have defending Heisman winner Mark Ingram. There's plenty of talent on both sides with an offensive minded coach in Bobby Petrino taking on defensive mastermind Nick Saban.
There's a lot to break down in this matchup, but I went through and made 10 bold predictions about this week's game.
No. 10: Julio Jones Used Early
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With all of the focus on Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson coming into this game, don't forget about wideout Julio Jones.
I think that we may get some run looks from the Crimson Tide but then run Jones around on an end around and try and catch Arkansas' defense over-pursuing to the ball.
It's a great way to keep the Razorbacks' offense honest and I think Saban will set them up with the run for a bit before breaking it out on them.
Jones is a playmaker and Alabama would be foolish not to use him in every capacity imaginable.
No. 9: McElroy Is a Gamechanger
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While Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson have been getting all of the headlines in Tuscaloosa, don't forget about Greg McElroy when looking at the Alabama offense.
McElroy has thrown nine touchdowns while only throwing one pick this season, and I think he's going to make some huge plays in the passing game for Alabama this week.
He's going to get chances to make plays down the field with Arkansas' defense keying on stopping the run and not letting the Crimson Tide's fearsome rushing attack get started.
If Arkansas makes a mistake in coverage, McElroy will take advantage.
No. 8: Arkansas Becomes One-Dimensional
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While Ryan Mallett is the heart of the Arkansas offense, he can't do it all by himself, not this week at least.
The Razorbacks aren't the best rushing team, and it's going to have serious, serious trouble finding room to run against the Alabama defense.
It's a fast, mean, tough defense that's always around the ball. The Razorbacks' leading rusher is averaging less than four years per touch and it's going to go down after facing this defense.
Once the running game has been rendered non-existent, the Crimson Tide can play back and make Mallett throw into coverage to beat them.
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No. 7: Alabama Tries To Go Deep on the First Series
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While you might think that Alabama might try to impose its will on Arkansas from the first series out, I think the Crimson Tide are going to be bold in their game plan, at least for the first series.
I wouldn't be shocked to see Alabama try and catch the Razorbacks napping and hit them over the top for a big play in the passing game.
The best way to try and win on the road is hit your opponent in the mouth early and if the Crimson Tide can do that, it's going to put Arkansas on its heels for the rest of the night.
If that happens, it could be a long night for the Razorbacks and their fans.
Just keep an eye on Julio Jones on a deep ball early on in the first quarter.
No. 6: Alabama Easily Wins Time Of Possession Battle
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I think that Alabama is just going to try and suck the life out of the Arkansas offense the best way possible, by never letting them see the ball long enough to do any damage.
The Crimson Tide will pound the ball over and over again, moving the chains and keeping Ryan Mallett on the sidelines where he can't hurt them.
Alabama will just kill the clock and wear the Arkansas defense down. The Crimson Tide certainly have the horses to do it and it would just swing the entire game in their favor.
Although, if Alabama just breaks off huge plays in the run game, it could shift it from a slugfest to a blowout in no time.
No. 5: Arkansas Commits Multiple Turnovers
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While people have talked about how young and inexperienced Alabama's defense is after having to replace a couple of starters after last year's national championship, you can't forget that despite that, they're playmakers.
The Crimson Tide will get after Ryan Mallett early and often.
Last time the two teams faced, Arkansas' offense was flustered and I think we're going to get a similar result this week. Nick Saban is one of the best defensive coaches in the country and he's going to be throwing plenty of looks at the Razorbacks' offense.
Blitzes will be coming from every angle and it's going to pay off.
Look for Alabama to turn the tide of this game on a big defensive play.
No. 4: Alabama Quiets Crowd Early
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The best way to win on the road is to take the crowd out of it early, and Arkansas' crowd will be jacked up for this game on Saturday night.
It's a primetime game and they're going to let the Crimson Tide hear it from the kickoff.
From being in college crowds at a big time program in Penn State, in my experience, once the other team scored and things looked a little bleak, the crowd was never the same.
If you can get the crowd exchanging nervous looks with each other, it's going to change the dynamic of the game and I think Alabama is going to get on the board early with a score and take the crowd out of this game before the seats are warm.
No. 3: Ingram and Richardson Go 100+ Each
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Last year against Arkansas, the Crimson Tide's rushing attack was totally shut down to the tune of 134 total yards and holding eventual Heisman winner Mark Ingram to 50 yards on the ground.
I don't see that happening this week.
I just think that Alabama is going to find ways to get space for its running backs in the open field and it's going to create havoc for the Razorbacks' defense.
Ingram looked amazing last week considering how short it had been since surgery and while Arkansas isn't Duke, I think that when you throw in Richardson, it's a deadly duo to try and stop.
While Ingram will be effective, I look for Richardson to really steal the show this weekend.
No. 2: Ryan Mallett Will Be Slowed Down
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The last time these two teams met, Alabama completely took Ryan Mallett out of the game.
Mallett finished 12 of 35 for 160 yards as the Crimson Tide won the game easily.
I don't think we'll see the same performance from the quarterback this time because it isn't the same defense, but I fully expect Mallett to be frustrated at times during this game.
Alabama will get to Mallett often and force him into mistakes in the passing game. Arkansas will make some plays through the air but it won't be enough to get the job done.
No. 1: Alabama Wins Big
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The last meeting between Alabama and Arkansas went heavily in the favor of the Crimson Tide as they rolled to a 35-7 victory in Alabama.
I think we're going to get more of the same this week as well.
Alabama is going to frustrate Ryan Mallett and there won't be enough threat in the running game to keep the Crimson Tide honest on defense.
While Alabama couldn't get the run going last year, I think there will be a couple of big runs on offense for the Crimson Tide and they're going to jump out on the Razorbacks early and never look back.
I like Arkansas as a team, but I don't like them this week. Originally I liked this game to be a little closer, but the Crimson Tide have sold me with their performances so far this year, even if it wasn't the top competition.
Although, I hope I'm wrong and we get a great game.
The fans of both programs deserve that.
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