ARKANSAS AT TCU

Razorbacks place victory into win-and-learn file

University of Arkansas quarterback Austin Allen gets a hand shake from coach Bret Bielema after their win over Louisiana Tech Saturday, September 3, 2016 at Razorback Stadium.
University of Arkansas quarterback Austin Allen gets a hand shake from coach Bret Bielema after their win over Louisiana Tech Saturday, September 3, 2016 at Razorback Stadium.

FAYETTEVILLE -- The Arkansas football team learned valuable lessons in Saturday's season opener. The Razorbacks were much happier to see their flaws exposed in 21-20 victory over Louisiana Tech rather than in a defeat, as they did often in early season losses the past couple of years.

Bielema said there were enough issues, such as "a huge self-destruction in the red zone" on a second-quarter interception, and a holding penalty in the red zone, that they could have added up to a loss.

"We won by one, but in the record books for the rest of time, it'll say a 'W,' and you've got to learn to appreciate those," Bielema said. "Learn big time. Learn, learn, learn. Understand why it was close, why we had failure in the first half, why things happened a certain way."

Half of Arkansas' past six games have been decided by one point, and the Razorbacks are 2-1 in those games.

"We set our goals to finish strong, to finish those close games and to be that team that can finish in those close situations," Arkansas tailback Rawleigh Williams said. "I believe today that we did what we set out to do."

Quarterback Austin Allen said the offense made its share of mistakes against a "sound" defense, but that the team's past experiences helped lead to winning plays.

"There's a lot of senior leadership," Allen said. "They've seen it all, they've been through the fire and we scored one more point than the other team."

Arkansas outgained Toledo by 197 yards in its 16-12 loss last season in Week 2, and there were similarities between that game and Saturday's squeaker.

"I don't know if this football team the last three years wins that game," Bielema said. "I really don't. I think that this team and the scars that they've had in the past propelled them to victory today. ... Believe me, it's not going to be a great Sunday to come over here and watch film. People are going to hear it and they're going to have to learn from it. People are going to have to take ownership in it, starting with myself, and we'll go from there."

The Razorbacks take their 1-0 record into Fort Worth, Texas, next Saturday against No. 13 TCU. The Horned Frogs outlasted South Dakota State 59-41 in their closer-than-expected opener. The Jackrabbits were within 45-41 with less than 10 minutes to play.

Arkansas did not establish the running game as much as coordinator Dan Enos would have liked. Williams rushed for 96 yards on 24 carries, but the rest of the team combined for 10 yards on 16 carries, including four sacks of Brandon Allen for minus-26 yards.

"I think at the end of the day, we'll probably look back at it and probably wish we had run it a little bit more, especially with the way we were running," Bielema said.

Arkansas had trouble picking up blitzes, particularly early in the third quarter when the Bulldogs clearly knocked the Razorbacks out of rhythm.

"First, give a lot of credit to them," Bielema said. "They were bringing pressures that we hadn't seen before as you should do in an opener. Brought some guys off the edges we hadn't seen, and we had to make adjustments. ... We got that shored up."

Louisiana Tech had several items in its game plan that the Razorbacks had not seen on tape from last season, including a quicker passing scheme for redshirt freshman quarterback J'mar Smith, who completed 19 of 21 passes for 212 yards. Smith threw one interception and was sacked three times, including a key combo sack by Jeremiah Ledbetter and Deatrich Wise on a third and 10 on Tech's final offensive snap. However, he also converted on three third-and-long passes to notch first downs.

"They got rid of the ball really quick," Bielema said. "They did not want him to get pressure. The ball is out of his hands in less than three seconds.

"Skip is a good coach, man. I love it. I think it's a chess game. ... We would have loved to probably come out with a couple more points, but on the flip side, this must be exactly what the doctor ordered."

Sports on 09/05/2016

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