Tag: Arkansas Ole Miss

Razorbacks have only 28% chance to beat Ole Miss

Arkansas has won five straight against Ole Miss. ESPN’s numbers say that streak will end Wednesday.

The Arkansas basketball team owns more wins over Ole Miss than any other team in the SEC, save Texas A&M and that’s because of the Aggies’ days in the Southwest Conference with the Razorbacks in the old days.

Arkansas has dominated Ole Miss, really, with a 52-33 record since the two began playing back in the 1940s. The Rebels have had quality stretches, mostly in those pitiful Hogs seasons of the early 2000s and early 2010s.

This time, it’s looking like the boys from Oxford are about to snap a five-game losing streak to the Razorbacks. According to ESPN’s basketball power index, Ole Miss has a 71.5% chance of beating Arkansas when the two teams tip off Wednesday in Mississippi.

The Rebels have been good this year. They fell out of the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll rankings on Monday, but still picked up votes with one of last week’s two losses coming to powerhouse Auburn. Arkansas, meanwhile, has started SEC play just 1-4, with its lone win coming against Texas A&M on a last-second buzzer-beater.

Ole Miss’ last win in the series came in January 2019 in Oxford, before Eric Musselman took over as Arkansas head coach. Keyshawn Embery-Simpson led the Hogs that day with 16 points.

Diamond Hogs, Rebels alter season schedule

Arkansas and Ole Miss are moving their set to a Thursday-Saturday to make room for TV.

Arkansaas and Ole Miss are switching things up this spring.

The Diamond Hogs and Rebels moved their three-game series in April from Friday-Sunday to Thursday-Saturday. The new dates are April 4-6 and the games will be played, still, at Baum-Walker Stadium in Fayetteville.

That series will mark the third straight Thursday-Saturday series for Arkansas in SEC play. The Diamond Hogs will be coming off consecutive weekends against at Auburn and home against LSU that went the same way. Arkansas opens conference play against Missouri on from March 15-17.

Arkansas’ regular season begins with a four-game set against James Madison in Fayetteville starting February 16.

Ole Miss is coming off its worst season in decades. The Rebels went 25-29 last year with a 6-24 record in SEC play.

Behind the Numbers: Same issues plague Hogs in 27-20 loss to Ole Miss

How did the Hogs lose another one possession game? Here’s a closer look at some of the key numbers from Arkansas’ loss to Ole Miss.

It felt like deja vu watching things unfold in Arkansas’ 27-20 loss to Ole Miss on Saturday night.

[autotag]Arkansas football[/autotag] went on to lose their fourth-straight game on the season, and it was eerily similar to how they lost to BYU and LSU earlier in the year. Too many penalties, unforced errors and an abysmal performance on the offensive side of the ball.

If they’re able to limit those same three issues, which have hindered them all season, they’re looking at a record of 3-3 or 4-2 instead of 2-4. Unfortunately, the Hogs have dug themselves into a pretty impressive hole halfway through the season.

The numbers from last night don’t really offer a lot of hope that things will get much better next week or beyond. Let’s take a closer look and see how bad things were for the Hogs in Oxford on Saturday night.

Everything Sam Pittman said after Arkansas’ Week 6 loss to Ole Miss

Sam Pittman’s team is fighting. Fighting isn’t good enough to get wins right now.

Arkansas coach Sam Pittman knew this current stretch of four games away from Fayetteville would hold the key to the Razorbacks season.

The unfortunate thing for him is the Hogs lost four and a row and the stretch isn’t over.

Arkansas fell Saturday night at No. 16 Ole Miss, 27-20, dropping the Hogs’ record to two games under .500 at the halfway point of the regular season. The loss was the third of the four to be within one possession, an ill comfort to the embattled coach after the game.

Pittman is fully aware that a portion of the Arkansas fan base wants him out at season’s end. But to his credit, he isn’t going down that path and his team, unlike the teams of Bret Bielema and Chad Morris at their end, is staying hooked up.

Pittman was proud of the effort Saturday, but knows effort isn’t enough anymore. Here’s what he had to say following the game.

Yikes: Arkansas’ offensive line alteration lasted all of one half

Arkansas’ offense is floundering. Much more and it’ll progress to foundering.

Patrick Kutas had gone from right tackle to center. Beaux Limmer had gone from center to right guard. Brady Latham had gone from right guard to right tackle. The moves were meant to help Arkansas’ offensive line struggles.

They didn’t.

In fact, things were so poor with the new look that coach Sam Pittman scrapped it and went back to the way things were through the first five games after just one half against Ole Miss.

Arkansas had nine yards rushing in the first half against the Rebels. Quarterback KJ Jefferson was sacked three times. Ole Miss had four more tackles for-loss as the Razorbacks managed a total of 46 yards on their final five drives of the half and trailed 17-7 at the break.

The switch-back worked for 41 yards on the Hogs’ first drive of the second half until Jefferson was sacked for the fourth time. Pittman chose to go for it on 4th-and-7, but Jefferson was forced to call a timeout before the play was snapped. He barked something to his teammates as he walked toward the sideline. When Arkansas returned to the field, Cam Little kicked a 56-yard field goal.

The next drive? Another drive and another score. Then, for good measure, one more as Arkansas took a 20-17 lead in the fourth quarter.

The good didn’t last, though. Ole Miss retook the lead immediately after Arkansas scored and on the ensuing Hogs drive, Rocket Sanders was stuffed for no gain and Jefferson was sacked, resulting in a three-and-out. The Rebels tacked on another field goal and Jefferson, with defenders in his face all night and having to go the distance just to tie, threw an interception with 1:42 left to seal Ole Miss’ win.

“We could not handle the run-throughs and the movement,” coach Sam Pittman said. “They were too quick for us. I thought maybe if we moved Beaux back in the middle, maybe that would calm some things down.”

It did for a while. If you’re a glass-half-full person, the positive step could be carried over in the back half of the season. If you’re a glass-half-empty person, it was just another adjustment that didn’t work well enough.

Six games left to figure out which is reality.

Washington, Jeffcoat headline Arkansas’ Players of the Game vs Ole Miss

The indivdual efforts will be forgotten – even if they shouldn’t be – because of Arkansas’ fourth straight loss.

Arkansas was better than it was against Texas A&M.

Better wasn’t enough.

The Razorbacks fell against No. 16 Ole Miss on Saturday, 27-20, as one big issue continued and countered several good individual efforts for Arkansas.

Quarterback KJ Jefferson did everything he could considering he was sacked five times and Arkansas’ running backs were limited to 25 yards on 12 carries.

Ty Washington was his favorite target as the redshirt freshman tight end caught two touchdown passes.

Cam Little chipped in with a 56-yard field goal, as well.

Defensively, Trajan Jeffcoat looked the part of his All-SEC self from three years ago.

And Jayden Johnson was the first Arkansas player not named Jaheim Thomas to lead the Hogs in tackles in a game.

Those efforts will be largely forgotten because of the loss, but like every week, we name our Arkansas Players of the Game. Check out more details below.

No. 16 Ole Miss sends Arkansas to fourth straight loss

It ain’t horseshoes and it ain’t hand grenades. Close doesn’t count as Arkansas drops fourth straight.

The good news? Arkansas hasn’t been demolished a single time this season.

The bad news? Close doesn’t count.

The Razorbacks lost their fourth straight game Saturday, falling against No. 16 Ole Miss, 27-20, as the Rebels’ aggressive defense did the same as the aggressive defenses did before.

Arkansas’ offensive line had moments, but struggled again. Ole Miss sacked Hogs quarterback KJ Jefferson five times and had nine total tackles for-loss. The Razorbacks ran for just 36 yards on 29 carries, as well.

Jefferson’s hand was forced in the fourth quarter with Arkansas down seven points with under two minutes left. He was intercepted by John Saunders Jr. with 1:42 to play and Ole Miss was able to run out the rest of the clock.

The Razorbacks led in the fourth quarter after Jefferson threw a touchdown pass to Ty Washington early in the period. Ole Miss countered with a 12-play, 75-yard drive ending in the end zone to go ahead, 24-20, and tacked on a field goal on its next drive, setting up Arkansas’ last gasp.

Arkansas will play its fourth straight game away from Fayetteville in Week 7 when the Razorbacks travel to SEC West leader Alabama. The Crimson Tide have won the last 15 meetings between the two teams.

WATCH: Arkansas takes the lead as Jefferson connects with Washington again

KJ Jefferson willing Arkansas to a lead against Ole Miss late.

Ty Washington and KJ Jefferson. Who would have thought that was the duo that would have Arkansas sniffing for an upset against Ole Miss?

Jefferson, the Razorbacks’ quarterback, connected with his redshirt freshman tight end for a fourth-quarter touchdown with 13:11 left to provide Arkansas a 20-17 lead over the Rebels. It was the second time the two hooked up for a score as Arkansas took a 7-0 lead after its first drive.

The Razorbacks’ first three drives of the second half have gone for 31, 37 and 72 yards. Arkansas scored on its second – a 56-yard field goal by Cam Little – and its third to move ahead.

Jefferson has been dynamite, if not electric. The senior quarterback was 23 of 34 passing for 238 yards with the two scores to that point.

Arkansas needed him to be, too, as the Hogs had just 41 yards rushing on 26 carries when it took the lead.

WATCH: Ty Washington shows out as Arkansas opens with lead on Ole Miss

Luke Hasz? Who needs Luke Hasz? Ty Washington filled in nicely for the injured Arkansas tight end as Hogs take lead.

Luke Hasz’s injury suffered in Week 5 against Texas A&M will likely keep him out for the season. Arkansas didn’t need him early against Ole Miss.

Redshirt freshman Ty Washington caught five passes for 56 yards, including a drive-capping three-yard touchdown, on Arkansas’ first drive against the Rebels to provide the Razorbacks a 7-0 lead midway through the first quarter.

Washington leaked out to the left on 3rd-and-goal and KJ Jefferson found him underneath and Washington was barely touched on his way into the end zone. The score was his first of the season as his playing time had been limited when Hasz was healthy.

The biggest play of the drive was provided by him and Jefferson, as well. On 2nd-and-20, Jefferson hit him down the right sideline for a 34-yard gain to get Hogs to the Ole Miss 11. After a penalty, another five yards were tacked on and Arkansas scored three plays later.

Game predictions Arkansas football vs. Ole Miss – Week 6

At least one of the RazorbacksWire staffers is picking Arkansas to snap its skid.

One of Arkansas’ best rivals in the last 15 years has been Ole Miss.

In the Sam Pittman era alone, the two teams have played three quality games in Pittman’s three seasons. The Razorbacks have taken two of those three, as well, including last year’s game in Fayetteville.

But Ole Miss’ and Arkansas’ seasons in 2023 have gone two separate ways. Ole Miss beat LSU in Week 5 to stay in the hunt of the SEC West and has just one loss on the year. Arkansas lost to LSU and has, in fact, lost three games in a row to tumble to the bottom of the division standings.

If Arkansas were to win, the Razorbacks’ schedule over the last month of the season is such that Arkansas could still pull its hoped-for eight-win season. If Arkansas loses a fourth game in a row, however, and with Alabama – a team the Hogs haven’t beaten in more than a decade – next week, Arkansas’ hole could be so deep there’s no returning.

As usual, here at RazorbacksWire, our four staffers have made their picks. And at least one of them sees Arkansas turning things around.