Arkansas Sports 360 - ArkansasSports360.com

1/5/2012 at 1:30pm

Well, we fibbed a little back in late November: We weren't done with the Pressbox Roundtable for the football season. Here we offer up our AT&T Cotton Bowl edition, as Bruce James and the media gang all look at pertinent topics for the game, as well as Jan. 9's national title matchup between No. 1 LSU and No. 2 Alabama. Have your say in the comments section at the end.

Jim Harris, AS360.com columnist and moderator: What is the biggest concern with Kansas State for Arkansas to overcome to win Friday?

Bruce James, former Razorback All-America defensive end: To stop their running game, not allowing them to manage the clock and just basically stopping the run. That’s the biggest concern.

Harris: It tells me everything about K-State that the quarterback is the Wildcats’ leading rusher. South Carolina had to rely on that with Connor Shaw, but it’s been a while since I’ve seen a quarterback so statistically dominant for an offense, with the exception of Auburn’s Cam Newton last year. Not saying Collin Klein is Cam Newton or has that kind of speed, but he’s a bull and has similar stats and means so much to his team’s success.

Bruce: Yeah, Newton comes to mind. That’s the last time we played a quarterback that ran the ball that successfully. I don’t think Kansas State’s offense line is as good as the one Newton had though. Arkansas has to top the run and make Kansas State pass the ball.

Chris Bahn, AS360.com editor: Stopping quarterback Collin Klein has to top the list. He has 26 rushing touchdowns this year, which is one off the record set by Texas’ Rickey Williams. Impressive stuff. Arkansas’ struggles with stopping the run — particularly running quarterbacks — are well documented. Also keep an eye on freshman kick return man Tyler Lockett, who averages 35.2 yards per return. That’s not a misprint, by the way.

Justin Acri, program director of KABZ-FM 103.7 The Buzz: I would think considering stopping running QB has been quite a major issue for Arkansas.

TJ Carpenter, Fayetteville sports radio talk-show host: Long drives are a concern. Kansas State's ability to run on first and second down and keep Arkansas' defense on the field will be its biggest weapon. Collin Klein is not going to beat Arkansas with big-play ability. He is going to wear down the defensive line until there is never any hope in their minds he will pass again, and then he'll hit it with a big pass play that turns third into first and moves the ball from the 40 to the 15. Arkansas' defense must be the sharpest it has been all season.

Brent Birch, CEO of Flex360 and former Razorback baseball player: Power running game. Big physical backs have been tough on the Hogs, and now throw a quarterback into the mix and that spells trouble. The gambling KSU secondary could also be a concern. One would think if Wilson has time and is patient, he can shred that Wildcat secondary. If he is sloppy with technique as he can be sometimes, the KSU defensive backs’ ability to create turnovers comes into play.

Mark Carter, AS360.com predictions guru: Starting fast. Containing Klein. Starting fast.

Jim Harris: Do you see this as a must-win for Bobby Petrino's advancement of the Hog program?

 

Bruce: Positively. Arkansas is a better football team than Kansas State. He’s gotta win this football game. He’s got to stop the Arkansas tradition of losing [bowl] games. He’s got to win this game to reach next year ready to go to the next level. Bowl games are very important for momentum going into the next year. This is a football team that is not as good as Arkansas, so to lose this game would be in my opinion losing to an inferior team, talent-wise. It’s a very well coached team, a very disciplined team.

Harris: Those kind of teams can be troublesome to a more talented team, though, right? That’s what would worry me if I’m Arkansas.

Bruce: Right. It gets down to want-to in a bowl game. Obviously Arkansas has a lot more team speed than Kansas State, but it’s going to boil down to fundamentals — blocking and tackling, and don’t drop passes. I really believe Arkansas talent-wise is better than Kansas State.

CBahn: It would be big to win. That likely gets the Razorbacks in the Top 5 to end the year and sets them up for a Top 5 or Top 10 preseason ranking in 2012. But I want to reserve “must-win” for next year’s LSU and Alabama games. Those are the program makers/builders. No disrespect to Kansas State — and this is something I get into a little more in Friday’s column — but beating the Wildcats is merely a step in the right direction, not the final destination.

TJ: Yes. Every game is a must-win in college football. If Arkansas wants to be considered among the elite programs in college football it must continue to beat those that are not considered to be elite. Kansas State falls into that group. It also makes the argument for Arkansas as the third best team in the nation that much stronger. Being able to hold onto the idea that Arkansas only lost to the two teams in the national title will strengthen its argument to be Top 5 preseason next year.

Acri: No, it's not a must-win. But, man, it could sure do a lot of good for the program as a springboard into recruiting and for the polls next season if they want to start in top 5.

Birch: Without question this is a must-win game if Petrino's Razorback program wants to be mentioned in the same breath as the other elite teams. The 11-win season and winning a game against a top 10 team (after bombing out against LSU and ’Bama) is paramount to getting on a big-time run in this decade. This win perpetuates recruiting, exposure in the vital Texas area, generates a positive vibe heading into spring ball and so on.

Carter: The program will be OK, regardless of the outcome. But in terms of brand building, we've got some momentum right now and need to capitalize with a big win on a big stage. For some reason, we don't seem to get any credit for kicking the tenders out of the Fighting Chickens the last two years. A big win could propel us to a top 5 start next fall.

Harris: Great point. I don’t think I heard an announcer on radio or TV Monday mention that Arkansas had kicked the stuffing out of South Carolina’s defense. All I heard was how great South Carolina’s defense was. Not sure anybody knows Arkansas beat South Carolina outside of the two states, and I’m not positive the Cocks remember it. They’re going to be Top 10 in the final poll, too. Arkansas must win Friday.

Jim Harris: OK, now looking back to earlier December, was it the right move, sacking Willy Robinson, and do you expect to see a better performing Arkansas defense in the bowl game than what we saw in the regular season?

Carter: Yes, and I have no idea. Fortunately, neither does K-State.

Birch: It was the right move to let Robinson go. Nobody is second-guessing that. We shall see if the timing was right. I lean toward the timing was right. He had to pull the trigger in early December and get the new guy in with a full five to six weeks of preparation. Coaches can do a lot with schemes and personnel in that amount of time, especially with a veteran defense. I really don't have a good feel for what fans or Kansas State will see from the Hogs. Might be a little rocky that first half, but what's new? They better be physical up front and tackle on the edges or it will be a long day.

Bruce: If you’re going to make a change, you need to do it as early as possible. I have no problem, if Bobby Petrino was going to make change, that he did it when he did. The $64,000 question is, will this team perform better in this game? With all due respect to the new defensive coordinator [Paul Haynes], 30 days or less is not a lot of time to be able to evaluate players and do something that’s complicated. It gets down to Arkansas being fundamentally sound on defense, and that’s to have containment, don’t miss tackles and don’t make mental mistakes in the secondary. All of those things are a little bit difficult to do for any defensive coordinator in the first 30 days, so I’m not going to pass judgment on him if Arkansas doesn’t win. It gets down to the players. This gets down to the players wanting to get out there and wanting to win a football game.

TJ: I expect the defense to perform better. The defensive backs are already wishing Paul Haynes had been their defensive coordinator from their freshmen year onward. Expect to see a similar defense, but certainly a more motivated defense. Willy Robinson had worn out his welcome more than anything. Once that point is reached, it won't matter what changes that person makes, the end result is a broken system. Arkansas needed their system to be fixed.

Harris: The one thing that stands out to me the last time the Hogs were in Jerry’s World was how unmotivated the defense looked in the first half against Texas A&M, and Willy credited Petrino with the changes at halftime that turned that game around. Kansas State wasted a lot of film preparation time if the Wildcats watched much of that Arkansas first half. For whatever reason, the D played a lot of first series and first halves without much motivation this year and went backward. So, Willy had to go. If nothing else, I hope to see traditional, rabid Arkansas Razorback defense from the get-go Friday night.

CBahn: It never felt like Willy was the right fit for Petrino or the college game. So, when you factor in his preference for the NFL and the way his defenses struggled, it seemed inevitable that his time at Arkansas would eventually end. I have no idea how a couple of weeks with Paul Haynes (or without Willy) will help/hurt this defense. That’s where not seeing practice hinders things a bit.

Acri: I can't see them doing any worse at least. The one thing they appeared to be missing was a passion for the game from a leadership role on defense and I think we are all optimistic that Haynes can provide that.

Jim Harris: The SEC has been fairly impressive so far in the bowl games. Surprised?

CBahn: Nah. Even in a year the league is a bit top-heavy (aka: down), it’s still college football’s best.

Acri: Is this a trick question? I am actually more disappointed that Richt and Georgia didn't close out a win they had sitting there for the taking.

TJ: No surprise. The SEC is still the best conference in college football and not nearly as down as people made it out to be. If Arkansas wins on Friday, the SEC will be the first conference in college football history to have four 11-win teams in one season. The SEC is guaranteed to have a blemished record in BCS national title games and simultaneously extended streak in BCS national titles. The college football landscape finally figured out how to get the SEC to lose the national title: pit it against itself. I expect Arkansas to win because it is a better football team — and while Bill Snyder is certainly a legend — because Arkansas has a better coach.

Birch: Good performance thus far but not dominating, as Georgia let one get away and Vandy was in uncharted waters to a degree. Hard not to be surprised by South Carolina’s dominating performance. Seems like smoke and mirrors but Spurrier did a heckuva job with that team this year. Auburn also somehow gets it done. Hogs need to carry the torch, as there will be one more loss at least in the title game.

Carter: The SEC gets stereotyped as top heavy, but top to bottom it remains the best league in the land. I'd love to see a West Virginia, Virginia Tech, even Michigan, play an SEC slate.

Harris: Well, the Mountaineers wanted to start playing an SEC slate and the league wouldn’t have them. So now we get to see them in the Big 12. Makes complete sense, and a topic for another roundtable down the road.

Bruce: I’m surprised Florida won and my hats off to South Carolina winning ball games week after week in a make-shift way. [Coach Steve] Spurrier, whether you like the guy or not, has done a heckuva job winning while losing the players he lost during the season. The biggest disappointment was the performance of Georgia. But otherwise the SEC has performed pretty dog-gone good in the bowl games.

Jim Harris: How do you see the rematch on Jan. 9 between Alabama and LSU turning out?

Bruce: Positively the emotional factor favors Alabama, because the teams are so evenly matched and the Alabama players want to win this game even more after losing the first matchup. It’s hard to beat a good team twice, especially when a national championship is on the line. It’s the old cliché of who makes the fewest mistakes will win. Both teams are better than when they first played, and it will be a very good game, but I do believe Alabama will win the football game.

CBahn: LSU is the better team in my opinion. I realize both beat Arkansas by identical margins [24 points], but it seemed to be that the Tigers have more playmakers in all three phases than Alabama does. I expect, and hope, it’s a much-higher scoring game. Doubt we see Alabama try to win it with field goals this time.

Acri: I like Alabama. I thought Saban should have punted more and tried to trick less in the first game, but I thought they had more explosive plays and I like them to win. I will be rooting for LSU, however, since I can't magically get both teams to lose.

TJ: LSU wins. It's hard to beat the same team twice in college football. What most may not realize is that on the field Alabama beat LSU, just not on the scoreboard. LSU has only gotten better since that game. As good as Alabama is, LSU is better and will prove it again on January 9th.

Birch: My hope is LSU wins it and removes all debate, what ifs and talk of split titles. And I think they will because their offense is a shade better. The defenses are a toss up, both a notch above the college level. Hard to root against the Bayou Bengals in New Orleans.

Bruce: I don’t think playing in New Orleans is that big of an advantage for LSU. It’s close enough to Alabama and they travel well. What I’m hearing, LSU will probably run the option more and Alabama is aware of that. Alabama maybe opens it up more. Alabama with Trent Richardson and its offensive line now healthy is going to run the football and will be able to throw it.

Carter: Well, I picked ’Bama in our picks blog, so I better stick with the Tide to redeem itself in another close one. But the whole LSU-in-New Orleans-for-BCS-title-game-every-four-years thing has a distinct voodoo ring to it, does it not?

Harris: LSU will beat Alabama by 10 this time. Jordan Jefferson will redeem me for picking him SEC Player of the Year. But, just in case anybody out there needs this pointed out again, in our Football Preview we (me) chose LSU over Georgia to win the SEC and yet Alabama (Bahn) to win the national championship in our national Top 25 story. Looked kind of odd back in July, no?

What do YOU think? Let us know in the comments section. 

Tagged: TJ Carpenter, Mark Carter, Brent Birch, Bruce James, Chris Bahn, Justin Acri, Collin Klein, Kansas State Wildcats, Jerry Jones, AT&T Cotton Bowl, LSU Tigers, Alabama Crimson Tide, Bobby Petrino