Improving Razorbacks hope to slow Ole Miss

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.—Chad Morris’ best quality in his first year at Arkansas has had nothing to do with his coaching ability.

It has been his knack for keeping a sense of optimism alive with both the Razorbacks (1-5, 0-3 Southeastern Conference) and the school’s fan base despite losing five straight games after a season-opening win. The victories haven’t been there, but the improvement has for a Morris-led team that faces Mississippi (4-2, 0-2) in Little Rock’s War Memorial Stadium on Saturday night.

The Razorbacks have shown promise in recent weeks. First, they narrowly lost to Texas A&M two weeks ago and then scored the most points on No. 1 Alabama this season in a 65-31 loss last week.

Compared to a September in which Arkansas blew a large fourth-quarter lead in a loss at Colorado State and lost at home to North Texas, every little bit of progress breeds hope.

“When you go through adversity, you come closer, you become better,” Morris said. “I think the staff has become better, the players have become better and closer, and that’s why you’ve seen the progress you’ve seen.”

The Razorbacks begin the second half of their season against an Ole Miss team that’s seventh in the country in total offense, averaging 540.8 yards per game. The Rebels have scored at least 70 points in a game twice this season, including a week ago in a 70-21 win over Louisiana-Monroe.

Still, Ole Miss has averaged only 11.5 points per game in two SEC losses.

For an Arkansas team searching for any bit of hope it can find, it’s enough to fuel the belief that the Razorbacks can extend their four-game winning streak over the Rebels—and maybe turn around Morris’ first season.

“I feel like these last six games, we’re very capable of going out and winning,” Arkansas safety Santos Ramirez said.

HOME AWAY FROM HOME

Arkansas will be playing its first SEC game in Little Rock since 2012. The Razorbacks have played in War Memorial Stadium on a part-time basis since 1948, and the school extended its contract with the stadium during the spring— agreeing to face Missouri there in 2019, 2021 and 2023.

“I do think it’s unique that both teams are traveling to play there,” Ole Miss coach Matt Luke said. “But I still think it will be a hostile crowd.”