Arkansas saw plenty in Mizzou win over UCA to have hope for last game of season

It was easy to envision Hogs running back Mike Washington breaking off big run after big run with ease and Arkansas receivers spinning free into open space. Central Arkansas should have easily started off with 14 points, but unfortunately in Columbia, flags of phantom calls killed drives as soon as they built momentum.

That wouldn't be the issue in an SEC vs. SEC game in Razorback Stadium. However, while the opportunities on offense were plenty, it wasn't what would have had the Arkansas staff downright giddy.

The Bears' defense took what was supposed to be a light-hearted quarterback tryout between Sam Horn and Beau Pribula and turned it into a full-on nightmare.

Whether they walked someone up from the secondary or went straight up the gut with a defensive lineman, Central Arkansas had clean runs at the quarterback that ended in powerful hits.

Tigers fans were expecting to witness the unveiling of an improved offensive line. Instead, Mizzou looked lost as assignnents were missed and, in many cases, Bears defensive linemen simply blew past them, sometimes on something as simple as a basic swim move..

It was because of this that the quarterback tryout came to an abrupt halt. Horn went down in the first quarter on his first snap of the season and was soon on the sideline on crutches and in a full leg cast.

On the plays that followed, Pribula took a relentless pounding as the Bears' defense poured through. It was stunning to see an SEC offensive line so heavily abused by an FCS defensive line.

At one point, Pribula took a hard hit from a pair of Bears as he tried to scramble through the line. The hit slammed him to the ground and sent his helmet flying.

That meant, even though Pribula was able to get up and could have run another play, Mizzou had to bring its third string quarterback cold off the bench. Had the Bears had a secodary to match the rest of its team, the Tigers would have been in for a fight.

However, on the ocassions Pribula could stay on his feet and get a pass off, it almost always went for big yards to a wide open receiver.

What this game says is Arkansas can put up big points against the Tigers. Also, if defensive end Cam Ball is looking to close his career with strong highlights, the opportunities will be there to put it on video.

Of course, there is another side of the coin. No one knows what the Hogs have in the secondary beyond size.

If the Razorbacks can't pull together a solid unit, Drinkwitz can dial up plays for Pribula to pick apart the secondary and win in a shootout.

HOGS FEED: