Hogs Didn't Want to Be in This Spot and It Gets More Physical

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — When looking at Arkansas' football season back in August, I broke it into quarters. Coaches that are in the college and pro football halls of fame used to talk about that all time. Everybody knows it's next game most important, but in terms of the season, look at quarters.

Nearly everybody thought the first quarter would be 3-0. I thought it had to be with the goal of having any hope to compete for a really good bowl game or an outside shot still be in the title chase for something.

The worst possible scenario, though, is exactly where Sam Pittman finds himself right now with this team. After a 27-20 loss to Ole Miss on Saturday night, now they have to go on the road again to play Alabama, who got past Texas A&M yesterday.

Jimbo Fisher didn't do Pittman any favors. The Crimson Tide appear to have some of their earlier problems sorted out and the Razorbacks riding a four-game losing streak and a 2-4 record that is heavily favored to be 2-5 next week. Do the math just to get bowl eligible and groan.

Everybody should know preseason projections on a schedule are worthless because you don't really know who's got what and will be by the time the Hogs show up to play them. Most people had Florida, Auburn and Missouri as fairly sure locks.

The minimum magic number is six to qualify for a bowl game. Only Georgia is there, but nine of the 14 teams in the league are within two wins of being there. That list is Alabama, Ole Miss, Missouri and Kentucky needing one more win. Yes, the Tigers up north the Hogs have to play every Thanksgiving is one win away from being bowl eligible a month before Halloween. Texas A&M, LSU, Florida and Tennessee need just two more wins to qualify. For the future, Oklahoma is already qualified and Texas needs just one more win.

Things are also going to get even more physical now. After the Aggies shoved them around Arlington a couple of weeks ago, the Ole Miss game wasn't easy and it was physical. It gets worse the next couple of weeks. Alabama is, well, Alabama and Mississippi State the next week wants to beat you and beat you up. They have the size to do that, too.

And the Hogs lost linebacker Pooh Paul with some sort of injury. He missed the entire second half with whatever it was. Their defense everyone says is playing much better gave up 349 yards to Ole Miss (don't expect the Rebels to have 700 yards every week) which is not great and you see 196 of that was on the ground and you say "uh-oh."

Oh, and Jalen Milroe seems to have finally figured out some things he can do consistently and the Crimson Tide appear to be on track to having their earlier problems sorted out. They are now the odds-on favorites to be playing Georgia in the SEC Championship game.

One thing that probably won't change in a week is the Hogs will need to reach that magic number of six to play in any bowl game. Finding four more guaranteed wins certainly doesn't look as easy as it did back in August when we were all projecting the season. A guarantee of anything right now is just sheer hope.

HOGS FEED:

RANDOM THOUGHTS: ROBIN NEEDS BATMAN AROUND TO KEEP BEING A SUPER HERO

RAZORBACK DEFENSE KEEPS ARKANSAS IN GAME, BUT OLE MISS FINDS WAY TO HOLD ON

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