Arkansas 24, Auburn 7: Igniting Shreveport Dreams

Gene Chizik, consider yourself L'd.

The Razorbacks officially staked their claim as NOT the worst team in the SEC, even not the worst in the West.

It may have been ugly as hell but if felt damn good. They dominated Auburn (not really but it felt kind of like it), beating the Tigers for the 5th time in the last seven games. Kiehl Frazier was miserable in the first half, missing throws, getting sacked 382 times, and benched at halftime. Somehow, Chizik's strategy of benching the mobile quarterback for the immobile quarterback failed when the mobile quarterback was getting sacked to hell was a dismal failure, as Clint Moseley was sacked 413 times in the second half.

Actually, Auburn had more passing yards through the air, had three more first downs, and won time of possession, but turned the ball over five times while Arkansas only gave one away before garbage time. Moseley threw 2 picks in the red zone and lost two more fumbles. Frazier threw a pick on his last drive before being benched at halftime.

How exactly did Arkansas pull it out? Remarkably, Arkansas scored three touchdowns and none of them were on Tyler Wilson passes. As per usual, the Hogs moved the ball well in the first half but struggled to put points on the board. Zack Hocker missed a chip shot field goal early. It was at least his second kick this year to hit the upright. Dennis Johnson rammed the ball into the end zone to get Arkansas on board early, and Hocker tacked on a field goal. Moseley found a wide open Emory Blake to score Auburn's only points in third quarter, and Blake nearly fell out of bounds without a Hog anywhere in site before he crossed the goal line. But Brandon Mitchell found Javontee Herndon on a trick play to put the lead back to 10, and Dennis Johnson scored his second touchdown on another short run to push the lead to 24.

Also, There were a few changes this week. They went back to red helmets and matched them with red pants. They looked good. Paul Petrino was in the press box instead of the sidelines. This could be for many reasons, possibly so he wouldn't be seen screaming at Wilson on the sidelines or because it would be easier to contact his brother for help. Whichever. Knile Davis only saw the field for a handful of plays. He only carried 3 times and lost 4 yards. Freshman Jonathan Williams got the late carries, forcing us to wonder how much we'll see Knile the rest of the year.

At what point do we start seriously wondering if Knile will be back next year? What could his NFL stock possibly be at this point?

Now the Hogs get three home games against some very winnable teams. First is Kentucky, then a bye week before getting Ole Miss in Little Rock, and finish it up against Tulsa in Fayetteville. At this point, nothing is a gimme, but if Arkansas can win those, they'll be 5-4 and need to win just one of the last three games against South Carolina, Mississippi State, and LSU to become bowl eligible. That won't be easy, but it is possible, especially if the team ever starts playing up to its potential.

But the Shreveport dreams are alive!