Alabama 41, Arkansas 38: A Few Observations

This was a tough game to watch if you were a Razorback fan. After falling behind 21-0, Arkansas stormed back to take a 38-31 lead in the fourth quarter before losing on a last second touchdown pass. A few thoughts on the game:

• It wouldn’t have seemed possible, but Arkansas’ secondary is actually worse than it was last year. How bad? Even Michael Vick could probably light this team up for 300 passing yards.

• Over the summer, Houston Nutt has apparently not developed the ability to call decent plays on offense. What? You thought the new Offensive Coordinator was going to get to make the calls? Yeah, he probably did too.

• As amazing as he is, Darren McFadden can’t win games for the Hogs all by himself. Against Alabama, he amassed 195 rushing yards, two touchdowns and a mild concussion, and it wasn’t enough. He can’t give much more than that.

And what about Mitch Mustain and Gus Malzahn, who were basically forced to walk the plank of a sinking ship back in January?

They’re doing okay.

Malzahn has watched his offense at Tulsa churn out 90 points and 1,118 net yards in two victories so far, while Mustain has watched from the sidelines as his top-ranked USC Trojans have ripped through their first two opponents.

Of course, in Mustain’s case, you could argue that he’d rather be playing than watching, but if you have to watch from the sidelines, you’d rather it be because you’re red-shirting, and not because your jerk of a head coach is playing an inferior player in your stead.