Arkansas Business

This story is from the archives of ArkansasSports360.com.

Why Arkansas Lost
This will sound familiar. Arkansas couldn’t make stops on defense, giving up 716 yards to Texas A&M. Top offensive players turned the ball over. Despite loads of offensive yards between the 20s the Razorbacks couldn’t put points on the board. Injuries hurt an already thin secondary and the Aggies came up with 498 yards through the air. Coaches were a step or two behind on adjustments far too often and what was once a 10-7 Arkansas lead turned into one of the worst defeats in Razorback history.

Turning Point
When the Razorbacks held Texas A&M to field goals on consecutive possessions it looked like the game was headed in the right direction. Arkansas trailed just 13-10 and appeared to be driving for — at worst — a field goal to tie the game. Tyler Wilson was intercepted by Steven Terrell. It took three plays for the Aggies to go 50 yards and push their lead to 20-10. All momentum seemed to shift to A&M from there.

Player Of The Game
Defensive coordinator Paul Haynes was concerned with how the Razorbacks might fare against A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel. Mobile quarterbacks had been problematic for Arkansas this season and Haynes saw Manziel as the best his team had faced so far. Haynes had every reason to be concerned. Manziel set Texas A&M records for passing yards (453) and total offense (557). His 557 yards were also an SEC record.

Turnovers
Hanging onto the football has been an issue this season and Arkansas entered the game last in the country in turnover margin. That won’t change after Saturday’s three-turnover performance.

Tyler Wilson was intercepted twice. Knile Davis lost a fumble.

Those sort of costly mistakes made it difficult for the Razorbacks to score despite 515 yards of total offense.

Huh?
Down 44-10 late in the third quarter the Razorbacks — for whatever reason — decided to try a field goal. It turned out to be even more of a head-scratcher when Zach Hocker missed the 38-yard attempt.

Another Injury
If there’s one area Arkansas can’t afford injury, it’s in the secondary. And, once again, the Razorbacks took a hit there as Kaelon Kelleybrew left the field after a hit in the first half. Kelleybrew became ill on the field after the impact and did not return.

Davis Shows Spark
Knile Davis looked more like the player Arkansas expected him to be with his first-half performance. He turned a screen pass from Wilson into a 64-yard touchdown that tied the game at seven with 6:45 left in the first quarter. He had 60 yards rushing at halftime on 14 carries. Davis ended with 65 yards.

Another Big Day
What did Cobi Hamilton have for an encore after last week's record-setting 303 yard outing against Rutgers? It wasn't quite that good, but he had a strong night. Hamilton caught 11 passes for 162 yards and a touchdown.

Speaking Out
“They’re going to continue to throw it. That’s what they do. It’s not their job to keep the score down. It’s our job. I’ve never ever criticized anybody for what some might call running the score up. … We have to be man enough to stop them.” —Arkansas Coach John L. Smith when asked if he was surprised Texas A&M continued to throw for the end zone while up 51-10 in the fourth quarter

"We got the monkey off our back today."
—A&M Coach Kevin Sumlin on the Aggies ending a string of three consecutive losses to Arkansas. And it was the program's first SEC win.

Up Next
Arkansas (1-4, 0-2) travels to Auburn (1-3, 0-2). Kickoff is set for 11 a.m.