FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Arkansas coach Sam Pittman knows the book is in his defense and it will be the main story of both his Hogs and the ultimate fate of his career.
LSU has given a masterclass in attacking a Razorbacks secondary that isn’t as strong as the first six games of the season have suggested. As long as the team’s offensive coordinator and quarterback can exercise infinite patience, there is no need to bother with the Arkansas defense.
Repeat the catch route for five to eight yards to catch the ball and methodically move the ball down the field while eliminating any pressure that may come from the defensive line by quickly clearing the ball. No matter what adjustments Hogs defensive coordinator Travis Williams makes, there will always be a chance.
“We obviously tried different things there,” Pittman said. “I tried to play between players, I tried zero coverage, total coverage. (Garrett) Nussmier was really good and their wide outs were really good and we have to improve because we will see that continue throughout the season. season until the end of the season.”
This isn’t a situation where the Razorbacks can really play a different defense. Technically, there are a few things they can do when trying to create smoke and mirrors, but last week it was revealed that there are physical limitations.
Williams had his secondary players moved away from the receivers, providing a near-first down advantage. That’s because it was the only way they could avoid getting smoked by LSU’s receivers.
Of course, this created the problem of having to give up 5-yard catch routes in favor of a few yards added after the catch. After suffering what felt like the sting of 1,000 pins, Williams gave up and tried to get to the other end, trying to push receivers off the ball.
It almost felt like it was just a message to the fans who were subconsciously wondering why he allowed so much space. Almost immediately, Arkansas was smoked out at the line of scrimmage and had to intentionally obstruct the pass to avoid a touchdown.
Perhaps there is a medium where the defenders are not so far from the ball, but not so close that they fall behind in the first two steps. However, unless the Razorbacks magically improve their footwork, improve their recovery speed, or suddenly become strong enough to put receivers on their backs, the rest of the year will be a long one.
Williams can’t do much scheming or coaching to cover up what has been revealed. As for Saturday, the Hogs must count on an inaccurate freshman quarterback in Mississippi State’s Michael Van Buren, or at least an impatient one willing to push the ball downfield rather than settling for an easy pitch and a rinse-and-repeat catch.
The good thing for Arkansas is that Van Buren only completes about 50% of his passes, usually makes good interceptions, and also looks to hit the long ball. He threw for 46 yards against Texas, 72 yards against Georgia and 38 yards against Texas A&M, indicating that he was programmed to drop deep rather than patiently return the ball like LSU’s veteran quarterback.
If that happens, the defensive line will have opportunities to get sacks. This will greatly help the secondary and cover weaknesses.
One thing that seems almost certain is that this won’t be another pillow fight like the one that embarrassed both shows last season, driving each to a near-unrecoverable level. Both offenses are capable of putting up big numbers while making enough mistakes to give up easy scores on the opposite side of the ball.
This does not mean that any of the crimes will need additional help. After last week’s loss to LSU, both teams now have enough obvious defensive issues to almost guarantee a high score.
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