Arkansas Business

This story is from the archives of ArkansasSports360.com.

This football season marks the 21st for the Razorbacks as members of the SEC. Having completed two decades in the league it seemed worth reflecting on how far the program has come. Which victories over the last 20 years were the sweetest? Were there losses that hurt more than others? What coaching decisions still have folks scratching their heads? ArkansasSports360.com assembled a panel aimed at answering these questions. We have our list and we'd love to hear yours.

No. 6 on our moments we'd love to forget ...

Razorbacks Go 0 For October
When It Happened: 2003 and 2004
Who We Remember: Houston Nutt, Matt Jones, George Wilson, Tony Bua, Cedric Cobbs, Shawn Andrews
Why We Want To Forget:  How does a team ranked No. 7 in the country and loaded with eight NFL draft picks among its upperclassmen (not including undrafted future NFL veterans Jason Peters and George Wilson) fall to a berth in the Independence Bowl?  It’s a sad story.

Excitement was high for Razorback football going into the 2003 Auburn game.  At the time, it was the largest crowd in Razorback Stadium history. The Hogs were in the Top 10 for the first time since 1998 after road victories against Texas and Alabama, and the tough part of the schedule was thought to be complete.

Unfortunately, Arkansas could only muster a field goal as the Tigers escaped with a 10-3 victory.  The most agonizing moments of that game were two holding calls against the wide receiver Wilson, which wiped out a 68-yard run by Cedric Cobbs and a 78-yard, fourth-quarter touchdown run by quarterback Matt Jones.

The next week, Ron Zook led his unranked Florida team into Razorback Stadium, and it was ugly for the Razorbacks. The Gators scored 33 consecutive points to claim a 26-point lead midway through the fourth quarter. 

But the game wasn’t over. Jones threw three touchdown passes in a four-minute stretch to cut the lead to five points. Chris Leak then threw an interception to Sam Olajubutu, giving the Hogs a shot at winning the game, but Tony Bua was flagged for roughing the quarterback and Florida ran out the clock. 

The Razorbacks still found themselves in the polls after the Florida game, checking in at No. 21, but they then went to Oxford, Miss., and laid an egg against Ole Miss. The Razorbacks were now 4-3, unranked, and essentially out of the SEC West race. The Hogs eventually  settled for the Independence Bowl and defeated Missouri.

Arkansas would go 0 for October again in 2004, leading to a 5-6 record. It was the first time the Razorbacks were not bowl eligible since 1997.

Up Next: Fourth quarter fumble ...

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Doc Harper is the editor of ArkansasExpats.com and is a regular contributor to ArkansasSports360.com. You can email him at heydocharper@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @doc_harper.