LITTLE ROCK — One of the most pivotal plays in Arkansas’ 31-24 victory over Georgia on Saturday didn’t show up in the box score.
It happened with 2:47 left in the first half, as Georgia, down 14-7, drove into Arkansas territory. On a third-and-1 play, quarterback Aaron Murray rushed two yards to the 46-yard-line, where a scrum between the two teams’ linemen flared. Arkansas defensive tackle D.D. Jones and a Georgia lineman were jawing inches from each other’s face. The scene could have easily deflated on its own, or it could have escalated, leading to shoving, punches, ejections and suspensions.
But one Arkansas defender didn’t take that chance.
Couldn’t let what likely cost his team a win against Georgia last season happen again.
Immediately after Jones pushed the Georgia player away, middle linebacker Jerry Franklin flew in and immediately began shoving Jones toward the sideline, away from the action. Imagine what the redshirt junior yelled at the sophomore as he knocked him toward the Arkansas sideline. How about: “No, no, no. No way does this happen. Calm down, okay? Don’t you remember last year?”
Arkansas fans do.
The Hogs were up 21-10 on the Bulldogs in the second quarter in last season’s second game. The Hog offense seemed unstoppable. Franklin spearheaded the defense as it fed off the crowd’s energy. Indeed, Fayetteville was in a frenzy at the prospect of blowing out an elite SEC team.
Then, too much passion.
First, Franklin complained to a ref that a Georgia player hit him late. Then, another Bulldog got in his face following an Arkansas interception. Franklin shoved back, and bumped an official after a flag was thrown.
He was ejected, and watched as Arkansas’ 21-10 advantage crumbled into a 52-41 loss. “It was one of those heat-of-the-moment things that I will regret the rest of my life,” Franklin told the Arkansas News Bureau. “Not a day goes by that I don’t remember what happened.”
On Saturday, Franklin helped atone for last season’s blunder by making sure Arkansas didn’t lose another premier defensive player to the heat of a moment.
Arkansas went on to stop Georgia on that second-quarter drive Saturday. Ramon Broadway batted down a deep pass, Alfred Davis destroyed a run attempt up the middle and Damario Ambrose sacked Murray — one of the Hogs’ six sacks in the game. That kind of stout defense — bolstered by seven tackles from cornerback Isaac Madison, who was injured all last season — will make the Arkansas-Alabama showdown on Saturday more interesting than last season’s 35-7 ‘Bama beatdown.
I just don’t think Arkansas’ defense — which was also gouged for pass plays of 46 and 47 yards — is good enough to upset the national champions. Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson, after all, are one of the top running back duos in SEC history, joining the likes of Cadillac Williams/Ronnie Brown and Darren McFadden/Felix Jones.
And if you thought Arkansas media was tough on the Hogs after a slow start against Louisiana-Monroe, check out the teeth gnashing The Birmingham News reserved for Alabama after it obliterated Duke 62-13: “If the Alabama defense that showed up in the first quarter and the second half shows up Saturday in Fayetteville, Ark., the Tide could win easily. If the defense that gave up yards and field goals and — gasp! — a touchdown in the second quarter shows up, CBS will show the nation a competitive game.”
The only way for Alabama’s defense to play at such a subpar level throughout most of the game is if its players get rattled. That’s unlikely, but possible through a combination of near-perfect execution on the Hogs’ part (including more long-distance field goals from Zack Hocker and a higher rushing-yards-per-carry average than 2.3) and the discord sewn by a Reynolds Razorback Stadium capacity crowd growing wilder as the game wears on and Arkansas sticks around.
But while Franklin may have learned how to channel his emotions in such a setting, I’m not entirely convinced Mallett has yet. Yes, he’s better than last year, when he dominated at home but struggled on the road. The 380-yard, three-touchdown, zero-interception performance at Georgia proves it.
Still, before the last game-winning drive, he had only completed five of 13 passes in the second half. Those weren’t the receivers’ drops, either — Mallett was airmailing leather into other zip codes. It’s clear some of Mallett’s tendency toward excitability remains. I look for that tendency to be compounded in Fayetteville, as the pressure to score one of the greatest wins in Razorback history and cement his status as a Heisman forerunner mounts with every pass.
Arkansas should give Alabama a good fight for at least a half, which will earn more national respect as it builds its reputation as a program elbowing into the SEC’s elite. Both sides can win Saturday.