Arkansas defense has to shut off the big play

The Arkansas football defense played well enough to win on Saturday against Tennessee. Let's start there. Arkansas allowed 24 points but came up with three takeaways. The unfortunate reality for the Hogs is that their offense and their kicking game weren't consistent enough to take advantage of those Vol mistakes at the level needed to win. The Quincy Rhodes fumble recovery and return was followed by a missed 38-yard field goal at the end of the first half. Arkansas cashed one of its two interceptions into a touchdown, but not the other one. All in all, seven points scored off three takeaways just isn't good enough. The defense put the team in position to win and held the team together when the offense got shut out in the first half. The defensive performance from the Razorbacks contained more good than bad.

However, the cruel truth of sports is that a generally good performance can still contain a few flaws and failings which, if severe enough, can turn victory into defeat. Such is the case for the Hogs on Saturday versus the Vols.

A day full of toughness, resilience, and overall competence was marred by a few huge mistakes. The brutality of football isn't just a matter of physical punishment; it is rooted in the reality that just one or two brief lapses can affect the end result. Such was the case for UA on Saturday.

The Hogs led 14-10 early in the fourth quarter. They allowed a 68-yard pass which was the product of being caught out of position. It wasn't Tennessee being spectacular; it was an instance of Arkasnas players not taking the right angle and being left in no-man's land on a relatively short pass which turned into a long run after the catch.

Then, with the score tied 17-17 midway through the fourth quarter, the Hogs allowed Tennessee's DeSean Bishop to rumble 59 yards to put the Vols in position to get the winning score.

Two plays, nearly 130 total yards, 14 Tennessee points as a result. Two snaps undid a lot of the very good work the Razorbacks performed in this game. That's how costly a brief pair of failures can be. No football team or defensive unit gets a special prize for winning 95 percent of snaps. If the 5 percent consists of massive gainers for the opponent which lead to touchdowns, a close and hard-fought game doesn't end the right way.

Arkansas, finally thrust into a close game after a series of lopsided outcomes (good and bad), learned all too fully how two bad plays can overwhelm a lot of good ones. It's a lesson to apply to the rest of the season.