By Harry King
FAYETTEVILLE—Arkansas insiders are the only ones informed enough to extract any information from the Razorbacks’ rout of Missouri State on Saturday night in Reynolds Razorback Stadium.
The rest of us know only that the Bears were outmanned as advertised. Perfectly cast in the role of scrubs, they deserve kudos for offering all the resistance they could muster.
But, the mismatch was as obvious as 6-foot-3, 231-pound Ronnie Wingo Jr. in the open field against 5-foot-9, 170-pound cornerback Sybhrian Berry in the first quarter. Wingo initiated contact and Berry hung on.
Even miscues worked out for Arkansas. Joe Adams mishandled a punt in the third quarter and the Bears’ Kaleb Mueller failed to fall on the ball. Given a second chance, Adams picked up the ball and maneuvered 78 yards for a TD.
Early on in Arkansas 51, Missouri State 7, it was clear that those in the stands would not gain any insight about Bobby Petrino’s fourth Razorback team. No update is expected this week in Little Rock when New Mexico is the opponent.
Devoted to detail, Petrino will look at the season opener from a coach’s unique perspective.
Armed with rewind and slow-mo, he and his staff will scrutinize alignment on a particular play, determine if those responsible made accurate reads, and check for appropriate technique — nothing discernible to the outside world.
The rest of us did see:
—Out of kilter early, the Razorbacks spent two timeouts in the opening minutes. The first came when Arkansas had five wide receivers and seven others on the field; the second was called to avoid a penalty for delay of game.
—Arkansas has a package out of the Pistol formation for Brandon Mitchell. The backup quarterback lined up in the formation on third-and-1 at the Arkansas 39 in the first quarter, but a false start short-circuited the snap. Tyler Wilson returned and completed a quick pass to Cobi Hamilton for 20 yards.
—Touted as a kick returner, Marquel Wade is more. The freshman delivered the kick-out block that sprung Adams on a 61-yard punt return in the second quarter.
—Arkansas’ much-ballyhooed defensive front was too stout for Missouri State’s slow-developing option attack, and the down linemen were even more aggressive when Kierra Harris tried to throw on third-and-long.
—Wilson completed 8-of-12 in the first quarter and most of them were short and sweet. The first time he was asked to do more, Wilson was hit in the back. The next time, he was perfect on a 33-yarder down the middle to Jarius Wright.
Many of Arkansas’ 28 completions were easy because Missouri State was determined to stop the run. The Bears did that to a degree — De’Anthony Curtis’ 14-yarder was the longest of 24 rushing plays in the first 45 minutes.
Meanwhile, Wright, Cobi Hamilton, and Wingo each had catches of 19 yards or more.
Even if Arkansas had shared the play call with the Bears, I’m not sure they could have done anything about it.
Leading 30-0, Arkansas covered 90 yards with nothing but bland plays. Usually, Wilson’s completions were short throws and the runs were inside. The only third-down conversion came on the old pitch sweep.
Wilson’s one deep pass during the series was to Wright, who was ruled out of bounds. When Arkansas fans booed, Petrino gave in and challenged the ruling. It was a touchdown.
Harry King is sports columnist for Stephens Media’s Arkansas News Bureau. Email: hking@arkansasnews.com.
