Hog Lineman's Leadership Lapses in Largest Moment

Captain Brady Latham's penalties symptom of bigger problems for Pittman along the offensive line in Razorbacks loss to BYU

Author:
Daniel Shi
Publish date:
Sep 17, 2023 4:05 PM EDT

In this story:

Arkansas Razorbacks

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — False start, offense number 62. It's a 5-yard penalty, repeat first down. False start, offense number 62. It's a 5-yard penalty, repeat fourth down. Holding, offense number 62. It's a 10-yard penalty, repeat second down.

If you think you're seeing triple as Hog Nation continues to lick their wounds after the BYU Cougars scored 17 unanswered points to cap off a 38-31 win Saturday night, you're not. Senior left guard (who moved to tackle because of injury) and captain Brady Latham was shown the yellow flag three times in the fourth quarter, all at critical moments.

Coach Sam Pittman was quick to point out that Latham was the least of his worries on his long list of things to fix after this game as he limps into conference play.

"He's won a lot of games here and been a great player for us," Pittman said. "He'll bounce back. He wasn't the reason we lost the game tonight."

That's true. There are plenty of slices of the blame pie to cut up and dish around, but whether by just terrible luck or just poor play, the leader who's supposed to be the communicator along the line, ultimately shut the door on the Hogs for good. Arkansas drove 52 yards in just six plays on the final drive of the game. They looked positioned to pull a Houdini-esque escape act, but at the BYU 16-yard line, Latham was once again flagged for holding working against defensive tackle John Nelson with just 5 seconds left.

The biggest problem is Latham was supposed to be the constant. The one that you never had to worry about. There's a reason he was the only lineman voted a captain. He was selected to speak to the media Wednesday after practice.

"The O-line has gotten together," Latham said Wednesday. The run game is kind of what we want to be known for. We’ve had success in the past in the run game and we want to continue to have success. So, we’ve taken these challenges really personal, and it’s something we’re going to get fixed."

Well, that might have to wait another week. Although the run game was better, Arkansas finished with a season-high 175 rushing yards and AJ Green was able to rip off a 55-yard run for the opening touchdown. However, BYU got three sacks, had six tackles for loss and forced two fumbles.

This is not meant to rail on one particular player, Latham has had trials and tribulations that are out of his control. He sat out week one with an undisclosed injury and was asked to shift positions due to an injury suffered by Andrew Chamblee. There is also the lingering stinger suffered by Devon Manuel that continues to keep him on the sideline.

It certainly hasn't been easy, but one injury along the offensive line should not cause a collapse a team to the point where there are seven flags for holding and false starts (six on the offensive line). There are major questions on the discipline of the line after three straight subpar performances.

Things are going to happen; injuries are inevitable when 300+ pound humans fight with each other on a daily basis in practice and at games. The complete collapse of a unit that is supposed to be Sam Pittman's specialty because of really one injury to someone who has played nine snaps in a Razorback uniform is unfathomable, but here we are.

"I've coached line for 30 some years," Pittman said after Week 2. "I know how to coach offensive line."

At the beginning of the season, there were two up front that could be trusted, now there might be none. Although Limmer's day at center was better. No truly bad snaps that sent quarterback KJ Jefferson scrambling into the backfield and no flags; there were a few snaps that weren't exactly clean. All of that becomes magnified when the offensive line is already struggling to give Jefferson ample time to make a decision with the ball.

This group had all the chance to figure it out, the Razorbacks had the best chance of any team to work out whatever issues they had up front with the opening two games. That ship has long sailed, and it doesn't look like it helped, if anything, there are more issues.

Pittman says he can coach the offensive line, four years into his tenure, he faces his toughest test yet. The Hogs will take on LSU Saturday 6 p.m. at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge La. The game will be streamed live on ESPN and fuboTV .