Arkansas 47 - Texas A&M 19 : Yes, I know that in the grand scheme of things this may not have been that big of a game. But I attended it so y'all can shut up and hear about it and the stadium in particular.
After the teams' historical intros (A&M's about 5 minutes, Jerry Jones' alma mater, Arkansas, about 20) the athletic departments swiftly gave the Sith Lord a medal for hosting the 'Southwest Classic' in his new WMD. That in itself was great (really, a f*ckin medal? What did Jerry do, win the 100 meters?)
Then the actual football teams finally came out. Arkansas was in their traditional home uniforms while the Aggies sported some nifty White on White uniforms with White helmets. All in all, I thought it was a nice choice for the visiting Aggies.
But really, now to the action. A&M came out strong and looked to take control early in this one. They got out to an early lead on the heels of a 60 yard TD pass to WR Brandal Jackson. This made it 10-0 Aggies early, but Ryan Mallett eventually got into a rhythm towards the end of the 1st quarter and didn't look back after that. The Razorbacks' running game wasn't great, but they did receive a great run late from Ronnie Wingo that boosted the stats. There were a couple of turning points in this one. The first of which was when Ryan Tannehill dropped a sure TD pass from Johnson in the first half. That would have put the Aggies right back in the game. The other was when the game was very much still in reach for the Aggies at 14-10 in the second quarter. But a Jerrod Johnson fumble in the backfield at the Arkansas 15 yard line was returned by Razorback Jerry Franklin for an 85 yard TD. Those two plays demoralized the Aggies and distributed momentum to the Hogs.
A&M also struggled on the ground and that can't happen for A&M to beat solid teams. Jarrod Johnson threw for over 300 yards and 2 TDs, but for the Aggies to be effective Johnson can't have 58 passing attempts. Getting into a 30-10 hole at the half forced A&M to abandon their stable of talented backs in the second half and work exclusively through the air, which did not go well.
Some kudos in this one can go to a few different units. I thought Ryan Mallett looked poised all night, even with DE Von Miller harassing him throughout the night. Arkansas' future looks bright if they can better protect Mallett with a running game and better pass blocking. Bu back to A&M's Von Miller. This kid showed he can get it done against stiffer competition by keeping Mallett under constant pressure. He was active up and down the line of scrimmage playing better against the run than I expected. He's a great fit for that hybrid D-end position A&M has added this season.
Jerrod Johnson showed good escapability throughout this one, but that might be more of an indictment of Texas A&M's offensive line. The Aggie O-line had Johnson on the run much of the time in this one and as the game went on you could tell it hurt Johnson's pocket presence. He began to get happy feet and feel all plays he had to make on the move or outside of the pocket, even if he didn't.
But take nothing away from the Arkansas defense. They played tough in this one shutting down what had been one of the best offenses in the nation to this point. Both defenses came in as each team's weakness, but Arkansas took a major stride in this one. They truly lived up to the SEC defensive hype for the first time this season bending for A&M, but rarely breaking. Good pressure on Johnson was the key for the Hogs' front 7. Forcing turnovers was a key for each team, but Arkansas was just much better at capitalizing on them.
And finally for the record the new Cowboys Stadium is as advertised. It's ridiculous. It's very open on the inside once you walk in so you don't feel crowded. And the freakin' screens. Jeez. 60 yards of hi-def has you watching as much of the screen as the actual game on the field. It truly has never been done before in the sporting arena. I definitely recommend going if you can. And bonus: no punts hit the screen. If only the team that plays there every other Sunday could win. Odds Jerry drafts Ryan Mallett in a year?
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