Petrino begins with close one
Last updated Saturday, August 30, 2008 10:27 PM CDT in Columns
By Harry King
Stephens Media's Arkansas News Bureau
FAYETTEVILLE - Down yonder in Oxford, Miss., lives a scapegoat named Houston Dale Nutt.
Many times this fall, his name will be invoked as Arkansas fans rehash a loss. He got out when the getting was good, they'll say, filling his pockets with money and leaving his successor short-handed.
For one night, that convenient excuse is in abeyance, thanks to unflappable senior quarterback Casey Dick who completed a now-or-never pass on fourth down and ran for the first two touchdowns of his college career. Dick's job last year was to defer to Darren McFadden and Felix Jones. Not the most mobile guy around, he is a most unlikely successor to the two guys getting paid millions to carry the ball.
Reluctant to run, Dick finally did so for 23 yards and a third-quarter touchdown and he scored from the 4 with 1:49 to play after a fake to De'Anthony Curtis.
Watching the big screen closeup of Bobby Petrino as he left the field, it appeared Arkansas 28, WIU 24 had aged him five years.
He opened his news conference with an assessment shared by most: "That was a lot closer than we anticipated."
Arkansas fans can interpret the final score in a variety of ways. First off, they should latch onto the fact that their team rallied from 10 points down to win. On the other hand, WIU plays in the Missouri Valley Conference and has never beaten a team from a BCS conference.
Certainly, it was an inauspicious beginning to the Petrino era that is supposed to be chock full of imaginative pass plays that baffle defenses. Instead, the game reaffirmed some truisms about catching well-thrown passes, grabbing interceptions, running the ball, and getting in position to tackle a workhorse ball carrier.
In the fourth quarter, Joe Adams and Greg Childs mishandled passes from Dick. He threw 41 times and his only interception occurred when a ball that was a hair behind Lucas Miller went through Miller's hands.
Instead of sweating a final fourth down pass, Arkansas could have secured the victory with any one of three or four possible interceptions in the final minute.
Supposedly the strength of this team, the offensive line made it difficult for Dick, particularly in the first half, missing blitzing defenders time after time. Running back Michael Smith was suspended for the game, and freshmen De'Anthony Curtis and Dennis Johnson totaled 54 yards on 12 carries.
An acknowledged weakness, the defense rarely stopped running back Herb Donaldson with initial contact and his 157 yards on 35 carries helped WIU keep the ball almost 37 minutes. He's a powerful back, but Arkansas will face better and the WIU line is not Southeastern Conference caliber.
Donaldson's last big run was a 15-yarder to the WIU 37 midway through the fourth quarter. He made 2 and then 1 against a nine-man front. Dallas Washington hurried Matt Barr into a bad pass and Arkansas started its winning drive from the Razorback 17. From there, Dick was 6-of-9 for 79 yards.
Some of Arkansas' shortcomings can be blamed on the hesitation that goes with youth. More than a dozen freshmen played in the first half, including cornerback Tramain Thomas who was reluctant to break on a underthrown pass with only green in front of him. A year ago, Thomas was playing wherever his coaches needed him at Winnie, Texas, population 2,914.
Xs and Os only go so far. This is not an early death knell for this team, only a reminder that players make plays.
Harry King is sports columnist for Stephens Media's Arkansas News Bureau. His e-mail address is hking@arkansasnews.com.
About this columnist
The dean of Arkansas sports writers, Harry King updates his column five days per week with the latest on the Razorbacks. A 35-year veteran of The Associated Press, King joined the Arkansas News Bureau in May of 2002. He's covered the Razorbacks since the Arkansas-Texas game dubbed the Big Shootout in 1969.
Reader Comments (1 comment(s))
The following comments are provided by readers and are the sole responsibility of their authors. The Morning News does not review comments before their publication, nor do we guarantee their accuracy. By publishing a comment here you agree to abide by our comment policy. If you see a comment that violates our policy, please notify the web editor.
Not already registered?
razorhawg wrote on Aug 31, 2008 3:40 PM: