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Bret Bielema's always filled with ideas. When Arkansas is losing, people tend not to take them seriously at all. But when he's winning, people tend to take a stronger look at what he has to say. His latest proposal is for an annual SEC/Big Ten Challenge during the football season. SB Nation took a gander at how such a thing might actually look, and oh boy, this would be fun. This has been done in basketball for years, in fact Arkansas will play Texas Tech in the SEC/Big XII challenge this January. But the opportunities for these matchups are just beautiful, including the idea of sending Arkansas up to Madison to face Wisconsin, where I'm sure Bielema would get a warm welcome.
After constant criticism, the Arkansas defensive line stepped up for its best game of the season against LSU. They picked up five sacks and the star of the game was junior Deatrich Wise, who led the team with 2.5 sacks. The Times Record highlighted Wise after his big game, talking about how everything is finally clicking for him. Wise has been involved with a lot of activities including his fraternity and track and field, but he is now managing everything much better and it's showing on the football field.
The offensive line isn't being left out after the win though. The Press Enterprise in Sebastian Tretola's home state of California has a nice feature on what he has overcome to get where he is now. Tretola has gone from failing at Nevada, to not getting into his state community college, to being a senior leader on this Razorback team. Tretola has always been a fan favorite for Hog fans, but he is constantly making himself more and more likable in the eyes of fans.
Three huge plays on offense were the difference for the Razorbacks against LSU. Similarly, Mississippi State was doomed against Alabama because of the big play. So it seems like a pretty simple recipe for the two teams. If the Bulldogs can neutralize big plays they can have more success. The more big plays the Hogs have, the better chance they have of winning. In USA Today's preview, Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen talked about the importance of those big plays and how that can swing the game.