Who should get the carries?

[gopig]

Who do you want to see carrying the ball against Bama? It seems a lot of people are clamoring for our freshman, and they've certainly looked good so far..

[uscrebel]

Who do you want to see carrying the ball against Bama? It seems a lot of people are clamoring for our freshman, and they've certainly looked good so far..

Matt Jones

[gopig]

Matt Jones

Crap, you've found the secret. Every time you say Matt Jones a hog fan gives you a rep point.

[gopig]

Or at least he would've, if he didn't have to "spread it around"

[Jordan]

Doesn't matter, cause they're all going to be stopped at the line tomorrow. :p hehe

Seriously though, I'd have to say Felix Jones.

[jbuzbee]

Without stating an opinion on who will win or lose....I am 99% sure that Arkansas will NOT be held to less than 40 yards rushing (Bama's D is giving up an average of 38 I believe).

I think a lot of people were expecting Hillis to be this hybrid player...#1 tailback, #1 Fullback, #1 half back and receiver.....thats just not realistic. He is just not fast enough to be an SEC caliber tailback on every down. Sure he can do it 5-10 times a game but I'm much more comfortable with him running the ball 7 times, mostly playing fullback and catching 5-6 passes. For as big as he is he tiptoes to the line a little too much (see Vandy game when he couldn't get it in from the 3). I like Howard for his consistency and the fact that he has never fumbled....he really needs 20-25 carries a game to be effective because he is a bruiser but he is better than a lot of SEC backs. Jones and McFadden are just really exciting to people because they are highly touted freshmen and they have come in and produced. They have that extra element of superior speed and vision that Howard and Hillis just don't have. If the hole isn't there, Hillis and Howard MAKE ONE....McFadden and Jones look for a different one. They are definitely gonna be very good.

This weeks Sporting News called Darren McFadden a "Rising Threat" in its article about "Transformer"...guys like Reggie Bush, Breaston, Ginn and Hester that are involved in the return game, running, passing...etc. The other "Rising Threats" were Derrick Williams at Penn st. and DeSean Jackson at Cal. They said McFadden "....has Bush's size, tremendous straight line speed and return ability".

[WooHawg]

Good post jbuz. I agree, how nice would it be to have Matt Jones back. I think that possibly Felix Jones could be getting the start tomorrow? But if anything, I hope that Hillis is not lining up at tailback any during the game and not returning punts either. I am a big fan of Hillis but think he needs to stick to fullback. We have too good of a trio already at the tailback position. Maybe our running game will get off to a good start tomorrow.

[Jay_Lupo]

That's true, but what do you do with Brandon Kennedy, who's gonna be an NFL fullback? He brings the pain back there. We'll have to just keep throwing Hillis around. I don't really even think it matters though. Our offense has been fine. I think Robert has done pretty good, given the circumstances, too. I didn't realize that we gained more rushing yards on USC than anybody has in 37 games. We dominated Vanderbilt for three quarters, had an 11 point lead and 200+ total offense advantage through 3Qs, then we just forgot to show up in the 4th. What did we do, gain 11 yards and give up 200? Seriously, that's right isn't it? USC raped us but had our defense not been an ultra-pathetic joke, we would've at least been competitive in the first half b/c before Rojo got hurt, we were moving the ball. Doesn't matter when they score every time they touch it.

Defense is what's killing us, obviously. But my dear god, can it get any worse? Seriously, it's got to get better ... doesn't it?

Sorry, I can't talk about the Razorbacks and not talk about this stuff.

But the backs have unquestionably been the brightest spot of the season for us. We've got some good ones and excluding Howard, they're all gonna be here for at least 2 seasons after this one. I think this year, you've got let Howard tote the rock. It's his year. But you just can't leave McFadden and Jones on the bench. You can't. Those two need to be returning kicks, punts, and getting significant pt every game. They're that good.
But You're 100 percent right Buz, DHoward needs 17+ carries to truly be effective. He destroys tired defenses and that's an advantage we'll have this season and the Nutt brothers are going to have to take advantage. We can always have a good back in the game with fresh legs. Always.

Alabama, however, will offer one of the stiffest if not the stiffest test for our offense all season. Their defense is awesome, athletic and experienced. Throw proven in there too. No hype. The proof is in the puddin, as they say. But yeah, we'll gain more than 40 on 'em I'd imagine. We better, or we're in gigantic trouble. I do think we'll be competitive with Bama though. We always are and this team shouldn't just lie down now. Nutt, while it's almost impossible not to question his coaching logic sometimes, has never had a problem picking players back up.

Alabama is legit though and they are the team I thought they'd be this season, which is a team that will challenge LSU for the SEC West Title. We could be in for a long day no matter how we play. We just need to use all of our backs, gain yards on the ground and keep our miserable defense off the field.

Sorry for the book, I had to get all this out at once cuz I gotta work all weekend.

Holla at me Buz.

[jbuzbee]

POOP....POOP....why does Nutt insist on letting Hillis return punts and kickoffs. I don't care how good his hands are. Everytime Jones returns the ball he gets a HUGE return so does McFadden. Once the opponent sees that they just kick it to Hillis and let him get 5 yards on the return and tackle him....whats gonna happen even if he breaks away? He's just gonna get caught from behind.....and Lupo, I'm sorry but I'd much rather have Kennedy sitting the bench and Hillis playing Fullback then have him lined up in the tailback spot.

[WooHawg]

To make it harder on the tailbacks, we don't pass. Just imagine how much better even our running game would be if we would just pass it every now and then, the deep ball. I don't care if Johnson throws it into the stands, as long as someone runs a deep route. How hard is it? We have an excellent running game and we can't further get the most out of it. But what do ya'll think of Johnson so far? Besides him not having much time back there so far and Nutt not appearing to have confidence in him at all, he should have been sat down on Saturday. Mort or Barthel? I say give Barthel a shot if a backup comes into the game.

[jbuzbee]

I don't think you can sit a inexperienced quarterback down just because he had one bad game. With the exception of the Bama game, Johnson hasn't really played all that bad......i.e. he hasn't lost any games for us. The Vandy and USC games were lost by the defense. You could make the argument that he lost the Bama game for us but I think there is just as compelling an argument that Nutt or Herring lost us that game, but whatever.

Johnson is out there because he won the spot. Mortensen has proved that, whatever his superior knowledge of the playbook, he just doesn't have the athletic ability or natural talent to play as a starter in the SEC....that said he is a terrific #2. You saw the rush on Johnson when he tried to throw....what do you think would be the result if a QB was back there that was practically nailed to the turf? Barthel is even more inexperienced. The fact is that experience is a crucial factor at the QB position....more so than at any other....especially when you aren't surrounded with tons of talent. Talent makes average QB's look great....we don't have that talent right now. Barthel, if he hasn't been already, should definitely be redshirted and should think about transferring cause he ain't gonna play when Mustain gets here.

Johnson should be the QB for the rest of the season barring a string of these poor performances. I'd look for him to bounce back in the coming weeks...especially with an off week and a cupcake against Monroe.

[WooHawg]

I think on the Johnson issue, he should remain the QB. I fully believe that he has earned the spot and should remain there. It just appeared from the Bama game, Nutt wasn't even making an attempt to get him involved in the game hardly. I too think he will bounce back. Guess my frustrations with there not being any pass plays at all is what my point is. During the USC game, hell throw Barthel in there. I understand that Mort has a good grasp of the playbook but see what Barthel can do as well during the game. Who knows what exactly will happen on the Mustain deal. Nutt sure didn't mind sharing QB time when MJ was there, I don't see why now he wouldn't spread the wealth if at times Johnson isn't getting the job done. I like Johnson alot and hope he turns things around a bit.

[Spurrierismyhomeboy]

After reading this thread I realized Arkansas still plays football!!!! :eek:

[jbuzbee]

After reading this thread I realized Arkansas still plays football!!!! :eek:

Never heard of Phil Steel...or whoever, but I can tell he knows his football. I'm sure other east teams are really scared of the USC team that is still right where it always is....4th.

Also...Office Space, while a good movie, is played out and over-quoted. Kinda like someone else I know.

[jbuzbee]

I think on the Johnson issue, he should remain the QB. I fully believe that he has earned the spot and should remain there. It just appeared from the Bama game, Nutt wasn't even making an attempt to get him involved in the game hardly. I too think he will bounce back. Guess my frustrations with there not being any pass plays at all is what my point is. During the USC game, hell throw Barthel in there. I understand that Mort has a good grasp of the playbook but see what Barthel can do as well during the game. Who knows what exactly will happen on the Mustain deal. Nutt sure didn't mind sharing QB time when MJ was there, I don't see why now he wouldn't spread the wealth if at times Johnson isn't getting the job done. I like Johnson alot and hope he turns things around a bit.

Valid points. Nutt is just scared....he's scared to open it up and put the game on Johnson's shoulders....while I agree with his fear I still feel like you have to air it out regardless of how inexperience Johnson is because thats the only way to open up our potent ground attack. You said spread the wealth....I wish we had some wealth!! I agree with you about seeing what the other guys can do...but as mediocre as we are I don't want to be the fan thats always wanting the backup....I think I want to be careful what I wish for. Just my opinion but you do have a valid argument to play whoever can help us win.....The MJ sharing QB time with Sorahan thing made me so mad I wanted to run out on the field and attack Nutt...Do you remember when he did it with Tavaris Jackson too? Remember the Tennessee 6ot game? It drove me insane.

[WooHawg]

Valid points. Nutt is just scared....he's scared to open it up and put the game on Johnson's shoulders....while I agree with his fear I still feel like you have to air it out regardless of how inexperience Johnson is because thats the only way to open up our potent ground attack. You said spread the wealth....I wish we had some wealth!! I agree with you about seeing what the other guys can do...but as mediocre as we are I don't want to be the fan thats always wanting the backup....I think I want to be careful what I wish for. Just my opinion but you do have a valid argument to play whoever can help us win.....The MJ sharing QB time with Sorahan thing made me so mad I wanted to run out on the field and attack Nutt...Do you remember when he did it with Tavaris Jackson too? Remember the Tennessee 6ot game? It drove me insane.

I am no fan of a 2 QB system whatsoever, and would prefer Johnson to stay in there through everything just for the experience factor. Not saying we have a 2 QB system at all right now but if the starter isn't getting the job done. Still struggling with why Barthel didn't touch the field during the USC game. I am very happy that Mort got some snaps during that game. Johnson will come along and just needs to get a few more games under his belt. I think we have plenty of wealth to spread. Our running game is great and we have some good receivers as well. Don't even get me started on the times when MJ had to share QB time with Sorahan. I'd cringe when I saw Sorahan running onto the field! I remember it with TJ too, you gotta wonder why Nutt did that crap.

[jbuzbee]

I am no fan of a 2 QB system whatsoever, and would prefer Johnson to stay in there through everything just for the experience factor. Not saying we have a 2 QB system at all right now but if the starter isn't getting the job done. Still struggling with why Barthel didn't touch the field during the USC game. I am very happy that Mort got some snaps during that game. Johnson will come along and just needs to get a few more games under his belt. I think we have plenty of wealth to spread. Our running game is great and we have some good receivers as well. Don't even get me started on the times when MJ had to share QB time with Sorahan. I'd cringe when I saw Sorahan running onto the field! I remember it with TJ too, you gotta wonder why Nutt did that crap.

All very true.