By Harry King
STARKVILLE, Miss. — House of Pain’s “Jump Around” was blaring over the P.A. and the Mississippi State players were bouncing all over the place, excited about earning overtime with Arkansas on a last-second field goal.
On the other side of the field, the white-clad Razorbacks crowded around Bobby Petrino, listening. All-business, Arkansas’ head coach does not panic and his even-keel approach infects his assistants and his players.
I have no idea what Petrino told his players, but I suspect it was a detailed explanation of what needed to be done.
Certainly, Arkansas was ripe to be upset. After all, the Razorbacks led by 10 with 10:06 to play, were still in front 31-28 and had the ball with barely four minutes remaining, forcing the Bulldogs to use up their timeouts before a Knile Davis fumble provided MSU with a final opportunity. Fortunately for the Razorbacks, MSU quarterback Chris Relf got bogged down at the Arkansas 7 and the Bulldogs had to settle for a tying field goal.
Even after Petrino played for a winning field goal in the first OT — he would not have called three running plays if hard-trying Vick Ballard had not fumbled out of the end zone — and Zach Hocker disappointed, there was no sign of desperation.
That’s how it is with a successful CEO who is in control of every aspect of his operation.
An equipment change for thoroughbreds, blinkers on is duly noted by handicappers. The idea is that reducing the distractions can wake-up a four-legged runner.
It is a compliment to Petrino and all of those who follow his lead that this Arkansas football team never needs blinkers. With him, there are no emotional ups and downs that accompany a lot of rah-rah.
Once conference play begins, many teams stumble against an inferior opponent. During 8-5 last year and the 9-2 at this point, the Razorbacks have avoided such a misstep.
Lost in the MSU rally and the two overtimes is the fact that the Razorbacks, on the road in front of a very loud crowd, came from behind to take a 24-21 lead. They did it from their own 11 with Ryan Mallett to Jarius Wright, running free in the middle of the field. That 89-yard play, second longest in school history, occurred after safety Elton Ford made two big plays. First, he turned and knocked down a pass in the end zone. Then, he came forward and separated Ballard and ball.
Arkansas’ victory and LSU’s rally past Ole Miss leaves CBS sitting pretty. The network has 11-0 Auburn vs. 9-2 Alabama on Friday and 10-1 LSU in Little Rock on Saturday. Once Auburn-Alabama is over, the prizes for the Arkansas-LSU winner will be more in focus.
Arkansas’ winning touchdown was easy. Split left, wide receiver Cobi Hamilton turned blocker and took the only defender deep into the end zone. Davis only had to catch Mallett’s pass and pursue an uncluttered path.
During the first 60 minutes, Arkansas made 460 yards and MSU netted 453. The fact that the Razorbacks ran 54 plays, 35 less than the Bulldogs, speaks to Arkansas’ penchant for the big play and MSU’s lack thereof. In addition to Wright’s bomb, Davis had a 62-yard TD run, and three other receivers each had catches of 21 yards or more.
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Harry King is sports columnist for Stephens Media’s Arkansas News Bureau. His e-mail address is hking@arkansasnews.com.
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