Short-yardage irritation
Razorbacks search for right answers in close
FAYETTEVILLE — The University of Arkansas cannot afford to get stonewalled on a series of short-yardage plays and expect to win games against Power 5 teams.
Additionally, the Razorbacks cannot have two series whiffs inside the red zone, and more precisely, inside the 10-yard line, and count on success against anybody on their schedule.
Yet that’s what happened on multiple possessions in last Saturday’s 40-17 loss at No. 23 Mississippi State. It’s the kind of downer that Arkansas (3-3) can ill afford in Saturday’s 2:30 p.m. Central road game at Brigham Young (4-2) because home crowds pass the energy from those stops back to the field.
The Razorbacks did not convert their first three plays that required 1 yard to reach the line to gain at Mississippi State, which came on their second and third possessions.
In the second half, the Razorbacks were stuffed on three consecutive plays from the Mississippi State 1 while trailing 27-10. That deflating series, which came after an 8-yard run by Raheim Sanders set up first and goal from the 2, likely played a large role in the outcome.
“It’s about getting the right movement and getting the right back in there, your best short-yardage guy,” Coach Sam Pittman said about the run plays in those situations.
“I felt like we ran high during those situations, as well. Not necessarily on the fourth and 1 because there was no chance. I mean, they closed it down and there was no chance. On the other ones, I felt like we need to understand we have to get the ball
in there, both up front and the running back.”
Each of Arkansas’ top four running backs — Sanders, AJ Green, Dominique Johnson and Rashod Dubinon — had a chance with a one-yard-togo carry and they were all denied. Additionally, quarterbacks Malik Hornsby and Cade Fortin had pass plays to receivers running to the right sideline in or near the end zone on the short-yardage plays and both fell incomplete.
“We just need to be more disciplined,” left tackle Luke Jones said. “Obviously we would love to score the ball. We’ve been working on that. That’s been a big emphasis for us this week and the last couple of weeks, and I’m excited to show it this weekend.”
Largely, the two areas of frustration — short yardage and red zone — were intertwined against the Bulldogs.
Mississippi State stopped a third-and-1 play and a fourthand-1 play at its 8 in the first half while leading 14-0.
On the first play, Fortin ran a bootleg pass and got pressure while Jadon Haselwood had a defender draped on him as Fortin rolled right and threw wide.
On fourth down, Sanders tried the left side and linebackers Tyrus Wheat and Jalen Green met him behind the line and brought him down with no gain.
The second stop inside the red zone stung, because it could have thrown the Razorbacks some needed momentum early in the third quarter.
The sequence was set up by Haselwood’s 44-yard catch and run from Hornsby that put Arkansas in the red zone. Sanders had battled hard around the right edge to gain 8 yards and set up the first and goal from the 2. Sanders gained 1 yard on first down. Then, in succession, Johnson was held up over the left side, Hornsby threw errantly toward Matt Landers to the right, then Dubinion was swarmed heading left after motioning late into the backfield.
“Well, we had a missed assignment on the goal line,” Pittman said.
Instead of pulling back within 27-17 early in the half, the Razorbacks got a stop and scored on Bryce Stephens’ 54yard deep ball from Hornsby. If the Hogs had punched in the goal line scenario then repeated the big play, they could have been within three points with about three minutes left in the third quarter.
“Yeah, it’s obviously frustrating not getting those fourth and 1, those fourthand-short opportunities,” Jones said. “But there’s nothing we can do but just keep working on it, emphasizing it in practice and getting better.”
In addition to the two redzone stops, the Razorbacks also had a third and 1 from their 10 early in the second quarter while trailing 14-0. On that play, a slower-than-normal mesh between Fortin and Green, a crashing backside linebacker hit Green just after he got the ball.
The Razorbacks’ lone short-yardage conversion on a scoring drive came on Sanders’ 3-yard touchdown run between Jones and left guard Brady Latham with 1:11 left in the half after Haselwood’s 68yard reception.
Pittman was asked if the rotation of running backs on the short-yardage plays was just to see which backs could run low and stick it in or if they were specific for each tailback.
“I think we were going to leave Dominique in there on the second one, and then we didn’t feel good with the way we attacked the play so we put another running back in there,” Pittman said.
Another key factor in the lack of short-yardage conversions was the absence of 6-3, 242-pound quarterback KJ Jefferson, who has converted a large number of and-one situations the last two seasons and has been denied on a couple, such as versus Auburn last year and South Carolina this year.
Jefferson is expected to be full speed for Saturday’s game at BYU, which should give the Razorbacks a boost in short-yardage, red zone and goal-line situations.