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There are a lot of things to takeaway from the Hogs’ first loss of the season. Whether it’s red zone inefficiency, defensive schemes or turnovers there is plenty to examine and improve. One thing that was also apparent is that Austin Allen knows how to take a hit. I don’t know the exact numbers on how many time Allen hit the ground but it was way too many, and he just kept getting up and competing. That toughness from a quarterback is something that people notice and plenty of people noticed across the country.
Allen gained a lot of respect nationally and from the team lined up against him. Texas A&M linebacker Claude George took to twitter to show his respect for Allen. Just four games into his career as a starter and the younger Allen is showing that he’s a different quarterback from his brother, but that’s not a bad thing. He is also distinguishing himself as one of the team’s leaders on the field.
The game was a bit of a reality check for Arkansas. The Hogs were brought down to earth a little after being beat by a very talented Texas A&M team. The Times Record talked about where the Razorbacks stand in the SEC. The loss was certainly frustrating, but all is not lost. Arkansas will almost certainly be heading into the Alabama game with a 4-1 record, which a lot of Hog fans would have taken without question at the beginning of the year.
The game didn’t hurt the Hogs in the polls or in bowl projections all that much. ESPN put Arkansas in the TaxSlayer (formerly known as the Gator) Bowl. The matchup in that bowl would be an ACC team, most likely around Miami or North Carolina’s caliber. Arkansas hasn’t had many opportunities to play ACC schools so it would be a unique matchup.
The first coaching domino fell very early this year with Les Miles’ firing and LSU will be heading into the battle of the boot with a new coach for the first time in a long time. So with every coaching search comes wild and (probably) ridiculous rumors. One of those is Bobby Petrino heading to the Bayou, which of course got people talking to Jeff Long on twitter and that means Long got to have some more fun with fans on social media.