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Texas got a taste of SEC life on Saturday night.
The future SEC member was crushed by Arkansas at Fayetteville in the teams’ first encounter since 2014. Arkansas ran for 337 yards in the 40-21 win as the Texas No.15 was helpless to stop the Arkansas offense and couldn’t find anything against the Arkansas defense until the game was out of reach.
Texas were down 16-0 at halftime and things kinda got worse from there as the game was 33-7 after the third quarter. Starting QB Hudson Card was benched after averaging four yards per pass and the Arkansas defense grabbed RB Bijan Robinson and didn’t let him do much damage.
Card struggled so hard he was replaced in the second half by Casey Thompson. Thompson scored a TD in the second half but it was of little use as Texas were still down 19 after their score and Arkansas immediately scored again after the TD.
The game was Texas’ first trip to Fayetteville since 2004 and it will be a regular trip the Longhorns make once they join the SEC in 2025 (or sooner, according to lawyers). Texas is leaving its lavish Big 12 life where it has its own television network and a penalty for opponents mocking the “Horns Up” gesture of Texas fans for a league where the Longhorns won’t exactly be pre-favorites. -season on a regular basis.
But hey, the money promises to be good, so Texas is heading to the SEC. And let’s go for more games like this against Arkansas and teams like LSU and Alabama and Auburn over the next few seasons.
Arkansas balanced rush attack
The Razorbacks rushed over 300 yards despite no player rushing over 100 yards on their own. Trelon Smith had 12 carries for 75 yards and QB KJ Jefferson had 10 carries for 73 yards. Three other players scored a touchdown as Texas simply had no answer for Arkansas’ running game.
Arkansas defensive coordinator Barry Odom had an answer for Texas coach Steve Sarkisian, however. Odom’s defense kept Sarkisian’s offensive in Alabama (relatively) under control in 2020 when no one else could. On Saturday night, Texas could not do anything against the Arkansas defense. The special teams were also a disaster. The UT missed a basket and a volley kick led directly to a blocked kick.
Recalibrating Texas Expectations
It wasn’t a Longhorns team that was going to fight for a national title in 2021. While Robinson entered the season as a dormant Heisman contender, Texas just didn’t have the top-down talent to. the list to be considered the big 12 favorites, let alone a team that could potentially make the playoffs.
Losing Saturday night is not a sign of failure. But the way Texas lost is a big sign of concern. Arkansas dominated Texas up front on both sides of the ball. And the Hogs don’t look like a team that will end up in the top half of SEC West.
This is not an article to say how good the SEC is compared to everyone else. But if Texas wants to be the best of the best, they can’t be dominated by mid-level teams in the conference they’re looking to join in a few seasons.
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