After the Alabama Crimson Tide beat down the Arkansas Razorbacks, what three things did we learn?
There was certainly a bit of hype about the Arkansas Razorbacks as they welcomed the Alabama Crimson Tide to Fayetteville in Week 6 of the college football season. No one was making the mistake of saying they’re on the level of the Tide. However, there was definite reason to believe that they could put up a strong fight in a huge SEC matchup at home.
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Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. Between Alabama quarterback Jalen Hurts both running and throwing all over the Razorbacks, Damien Harris torching them, and the Bama defense torturing Austin Allen and company, it just wasn’t in the cards for the home team. The Crimson Tide ultimately went on to win, 49-30, and stay undefeated.
That being said, the game wasn’t even as close as that score would indicate. This was a game dominated by the No. 1 team in the nation. Even as that’s the case, though, there’s still plenty to be learned from this matchup.
Here are the three biggest things we learned from Alabama vs Arkansas:
1. Don’t Run on Alabama
If the Razorbacks were going to have a chance in this game, they were going to have to get the ball moving on the ground. That’s been the bread and butter of Arkansas all season. However, they got almost less-than-nothing going with their rushing attack. Rawleigh Williams III and company took 36 total carries for only 73 yards on the night. Obviously Alabama has a litany of NFL prospects on their defense, but the fact remains that you’re just not going to beat this team running the football.
2. Arkansas is Good…Just Not There Yet
The job that Bret Bielema has done with the Arkansas program has been absolutely fantastic. He’s gotten this team to a point where they’re competitive consistently in the SEC and where they have a ton of talent. However, games like this prove that the program still has another step to take to be elite. Even with great talent like Austin Allen, they just aren’t on the same level as a team like Alabama and can get man-handled because of that. Bielema and Co. are on the right track. But it’s going to take a bit more time before they’re competing at the same level of SEC foes.
3. Jalen Hurts is Going to Be a Heisman Trophy Winner
It’s probably not going to be in 2016, but Jalen Hurts is winning the Heisman before he leaves Tuscaloosa. As a true freshman, this quarterback is absolutely electric. He has physical tools bursting at the seams as both a passer and runner and already plays so composed in big moments like this one on Saturday. Yes, he’s young and makes silly mistakes at times. However, he’s going to only get better with more time under Nick Saban. And as he does, that trophy is going to be on his mantle at some point in his college career.