CK is a winner. I like the changes in the OL. D played well after Q1. The switch to 3-4 takes time. It should be solid in 2018.
If we finish 6-6 with CK at qb, I’ll be looking forward to 2018.
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In the first place, AA will be back at QB once the shoulder allows it. CK won’t be on the field unless AA is not ready to go. And…what exactly did you see that makes you feel positive about next year? The offensive line? The defense? CK?
While Cole Kelly may turn into a nice QB he will still need and OL and some semblance of a defense … I simply don’t see a big improvement in either next year.
Unless we have some new kids that are coming in that will be able to play right away at a higher level than the current OL and defensive line/secondary how is it going to be better?
You just can’t make a bunch of 3 star athletes perform like 4/5 star athletes… we just don’t have players of that category. That being said next year SHOULD be a bit better just based on the schedule but I wouldn’t think it’s a LOT better. I hope I’m wrong but…
I look forward to the end of the Missouri game, hopefully Bielema will be gone shortly there after and so will Long.
Never thought I would doubt Bielema. I remember seeing him on the sidelines when Wisky beat Nebraska 77-3 or so. I thought: Arkansas will never have such a dominating, composed coach. As far as Long, I have no complaints. He has approximated FJB better than I imagined. As far as the overall sports program, he has done very well. Having lived in Texas, California, and Nebraska for the past 35 years, I have come to appreciate what a negative position Arkansas competes from. Our baseball, track, and basketball programs excell any expectations. Our football team, unfortunately, is about what would be expected. I dream of a return to the glory days of my youth. So much would have to happen for my dreams to come true. An influx of $$ from Jerry Jones (have Stephens and Tyson dried up?) would help, but how do you compete with Alabama’s 5 stars with 3 stars? Our recruiting is usually 10-12 `in the SEC.
poor Arkansas. How can we ever hope to win with the 14th highest athletic department revenue in all of college football. Poor us.
The frustrating thing right now is the lack of OL development. We have one guy who will be in the NFL next year-Ragnow, and another guy that is likely to get drafted next year-Froholdt, but the rest of the line is a revolving door of guys who are either playing out of position or just have not developed. We are on our third OL coach in five years, and it shows. We are recruiting OL at a level where we should be in top half of SEC OLs, but the unit’s production is lousy, and is not going to get much better quickly when we are changing the starters every damn week.
All that being said, there is a lot of reason to be optimistic going forward. Kelley looks to be the long term answer at QB, and we’ve got more talent coming in at the position. The RBs and FBs are fine, but somebody has to block for them. The WRs are finally starting to click, though we did have a couple of drops in bad spots last night.
The defense as a whole is playing more cohesively. Scoota Harris and Greenaw both seem to be finding their stride, DL seems to be progressing a bit too, though we still are looking for more production from those OLBs. Glad to see more blitzing. The DBs are playing much better, and getting Pulley back to go with the returners next year bodes well, though we will need to find another starter and more depth at safety.
We do need to do better with kickers/punters and special teams in general. Kick return blocking was particularly lousy last night.
Buzzard you just echoed my thoughts from a previous post. I agree with everything you just posted.
Outside linebacker needs an upgrade. I’ll bet $ the Henry kid starts there next year. And I wouldn’t be shocked if they figure out a way to get Morgan consistently on the field. That kid is our next Jericho Nelson. He impressed me again last night. Talk about bloodlines with those two. Our inside backer’s just need more experience.
As for the secondary, I think we will have 4 good corners next year. CBB has recruited well there.
I sound like a broken record…but the thing that is the most broken is we are very weak at free safety. That’s one spot where a great defense is almost always great. We are the opposite of great there.
Here’s hoping Buster Brown is the next great one at UA. Once upon a time we were known for great free safety play. We desperately need that again. Liddell and Coley just haven’t been the answer.