Arkansas Razorbacks Football

Being a great football program is just as much about reloading at positions when players are gone as it is about playing a sound and fundamental game on the field. If you can't replace a star once he's gone, then problems begin to boil up. 

The Arkansas Razorbacks didn't have a lot of star power in 2013. While there are several positions that will have to be filled, it's not like the Hogs have to replace numerous All-SEC performers.

Rimington Trophy finalist and Associated Press First Team All-SEC center Travis Swanson is gone, but he has a clear replacement in emerging senior Luke Charpentier. 

The biggest hole left by departure is Chris Smith's spot at defensive end. Smith was the Razorbacks' best rush end last season, finishing fifth in the SEC with 8.5 sacks and 10th in tackles for loss with 11.5. He is rated the No. 8 defensive end and No. 80 overall player for the 2014 NFL draft by CBSSports.com. 

Losing Smith hurts the defense because of his pure pass-rushing skills and ability to make plays in the backfield. He was a great player for Arkansas and it's not going to be easy replacing his production.

That brings us to the main question: Who will replace Smith in 2014?

Going off of the team's Rivals.com depth chart from last year, his replacement would be Brandon Lewis. However, what muddies the situation is the fact that Trey Flowers chose to come back for his senior year. How does Flowers coming back affect whether or not Lewis will replace Smith, you might ask?

Backing up Flowers is Deatrich Wise Jr., who is a better pass-rusher and an overall more skilled player. Both Lewis and Wise played in all 12 of the Hogs' games, but Wise was more productive when on the field.

Wise had 17 tackles, three tackles for loss and two sacks last year while Lewis finished with 13 tackles, 3.5 TFL and 0.5 sacks.

Make no mistake, Lewis is a good player with talent. However, Wise has a lot more going for him and there's a very good chance head coach Bret Bielema will decide to move him to the other side to start opposite of Flowers.

Coming out of high school, Lewis and Wise were rated as 3-star prospects by 247Sports.com. Wise was considered to be the better talent and was ranked as a high 3-star recruit with a rating of 88, right on the cusp of 4-star status, while Lewis was a lower-ranked 3-star at 81.

The big difference between the two and why Wise seems likelier to replace Smith is, as mentioned, his pass-rushing skills.

Wise is more advanced than Lewis at the point of attack, hand quickness and footwork. Wise has a good first step and uses his hands very well to get past linemen. He also is an overall better athlete than Lewis and it showed when they played last year.

However, anything can happen over the next six months. Lewis and Wise are going to have opportunities to impress the staff during spring and fall practice and fill the hole left by Smith. The battle for that spot in the starting lineup should help push both to improve upon their games this offseason. 

But, in the end, it appears to be Wise's job to lose.

Bryan Heater is the featured columnist for the Arkansas Razorbacks football team. Follow him on Twitter @BHeaterRivals.

Arkansas head coach Bret Bielema wants to have a run-first, power attack in his second year in Fayetteville.

But in order to do so, he's going to have to add a second dimension to keep opposing defenses honest.

First-year starting quarterback Brandon Allen didn't provide that last year.

The sophomore signal-caller for the Razorbacks completed just 49.6 percent of his passes (128 of 258) for 1,552 yards, 13 touchdowns and 10 interceptions, as the Hogs sputtered to a 3-9 season and 0-8 mark in the SEC. Within the conference, Allen was worse. He completed 47.7 percent of his passes and had more picks (nine) than touchdown passes (eight).

That won't cut it.

Enter: Rafe Peavey.

The 4-star prospect in the class of 2014 signed with Arkansas and enrolled early in an attempt to get acquainted with college life and make a run for the starting quarterback job. The native of Bolivar, Mo., completed 127 of 185 passes as a senior at Bolivar High School for 2,294 yards, 16 touchdowns and only four picks, adding 1,557 rushing yards and 27 rushing touchdowns.

Bielema needs him to hit the ground running when spring practice starts on March 16, because even if he doesn't win the job, Allen needs to be pushed.

Competition breeds success, and Peavey needs to provide that competition for Allen and Arkansas to get better. Peavey was rated as the nation's No. 13 pro-style passer according to 247Sports, but don't let the label fool you. He has good pocket presence and is accurate with the football, but he also can make things happen with his legs—particularly when extending plays behind the line of scrimmage.

"He throws the ball with a nice touch, puts it right on the seam, does a great job of converting and making the play happen," Bielema said on national signing day in quotes released by Arkansas. "He is an accurate passer, very live arm, great demeanor. I’m excited to watch him here and not just the spring game, but all the practices and preparation. I think he’s just what a QB is supposed to be."

Sure, Arkansas has other quarterbacks on the roster who could start this year, including Brandon Allen's younger brother, Austin, redshirt freshman Damon Mitchell and last year's backup AJ Derby.

But considering the elder Allen's struggles last season coupled with Derby's inability to kick-start the offense after Allen went down, it's a stretch to suggest that any of them will legitimately push for the starting job.

It's Peavey's job to push and see what Brandon Allen is made of.

Can he actually win the job?

Probably not in his first spring. But he needs to give Allen a run for his money for the sake of this year's Hogs. If that results in him winning the job during fall camp, that's just a bonus for Bielema's 2014 squad.

*Barrett Sallee is the lead SEC college football writer for Bleacher Report. All recruiting information is courtesy of 247Sports and all college statistics are courtesy of CFBStats.com.

Follow @BarrettSallee

Only 14 months after the shocking announcement that Bret Bielema was leaving Wisconsin for Arkansas, the storyline has morphed from “Why is he going?” to “Can he survive another season?”

How did the coach of the three-time Big Ten champions become coach of the 3-9 Razorbacks, and was his decision to go one of the biggest coaching missteps in recent history?

Bielema at Wisconsin

Bielema was promoted from defensive coordinator to head coach at Wisconsin in 2006, selected by long-time coach Barry Alvarez as his successor.

In his six seasons at Wisconsin, Bielema never posted a losing record, never sat home during bowl season and only once—in 2008—did his Badgers not finish in the Top 25.

The biggest achievement was his string of Big Ten championships from 2010 to 2012, the only three-peat in school history.

What’s important to remember about Bielema is that the Badger program was in good shape when he took over the reins in 2006.

While Alvarez’s numbers had slipped from 2001 to 2003, he posted a 9-3 mark in 2004 and went 10-3 in his final season in 2005.

Alvarez’s last game was the Capital One Bowl, which No. 21 Wisconsin won 24-10 over No. 7 Auburn, propelling the Badgers to a No. 15-ranking in the final AP poll.

This was not a rebuilding project—it was a “let’s take it from here and see how high it can go” job.

So, while there is no arguing Bielema’s success at Wisconsin, he didn’t necessarily get it from point A to point Z, he came in at S or T.

Take a look at some numbers comparing the 2005 squad (Alvarez’s final season) with the team in 2012 (Bielema’s last season).

	2005	FBS Rank	2012	FBS Rank
Preseason AP	NR		12
Scoring Offense	34.3 ppg	14	29.6 ppg	60
Scoring Defense	23.8 ppg	48	19.1 ppg	17
Record	10-3		8-6
Bowl Game	Capital One		Rose
Result	Beat No. 7 Auburn		Lost to No. 8 Stanford
Final AP	15		NR

The point here is that other than making huge strides in scoring defense, Bielema didn’t transform the program into something new by the time that he had left for Arkansas.

The other intriguing angle to Bielema’s run is the state of the Big Ten during his three-year championship streak.

The Badgers’ run came at the same time—2010 through 2012—as Ohio State’s fall from grace at the end of the Jim Tressel era. 

Though this doesn’t mean that the Badgers didn’t earn each and every championship they captured, it does remind you a bit of the two titles the NBA Houston Rockets won (1994-1995) during Michael Jordan’s hiatus from the Chicago Bulls to play baseball.

Where the Bulls won it all in 1993 and 1996, the Buckeyes won in 2009, shared the 2010 title, went 6-7 under interim head coach Luck Fickell in 2011 and were ineligible to win in 2012.

In both cases the misfortune of one team cleared the championship path for another.

Arkansas Coming into 2013

When Bielema opted to make the move to Arkansas, the hand he was dealt when he arrived was night and day different compared with what he had faced at Wisconsin in 2006.

Take a look at the numbers straight-up.

	Wisconsin '05	FBS Rank	Arkansas '12	FBS Rank
Preseason AP	NR		10
Scoring Offense	34.3 ppg	14	23.5 ppg	91
Scoring Defense	23.8 ppg	48	30.4 ppg	82
Record	10-3		4-8
Bowl Game	Capital One		NONE
Result	Beat No. 7 Auburn
Final AP Rank	15		NR

This makes a clear case that Bielema was in a bad spot coming into the 2013 season at Arkansas.  This was true even though just a year before the team had finished 11-2 and were No. 5 in the final AP poll. Clearly, something had gone wrong in Fayetteville and it wasn’t going to be easy to fix.

Add in that the Razorbacks returned only 11 starters from 2012 to 2013 (No. 12 in the SEC and No. 98 in the FBS) and the situation looks even grimmer in retrospect.

 

The 2013 Results

So, how did Bielema do with his young Arkansas team in 2013?  Remember this is the same program which was spiraling out of control under John L. Smith only months before.

Here’s a look at what he walked into versus what he managed to pump out.

	2012	FBS Rank	2013	FBS Rank
Preseason AP	10		NR
Scoring Offense	23.5 ppg	91	20.7 ppg	106
Scoring Defense	30.4 ppg	82	30.8 ppg	89
Record	4-8		3-9
Bowl Game	NONE		NONE
Final AP Rank	NR		NR

Bielema’s first product at Arkansas actually took a statistical step backwards from Smith’s woeful 2012 team. This is hard to stomach despite the inexperience Bielema had to work with. 

On one hand you had an interim head coach hired in late April to do damage control, while on the other you had a three-time Big Ten champion coach hired in December who was meant to be the permanent solution.

What makes it even more difficult is knowing that Gus Malzahn managed to take an Auburn team that went 3-9 in 2012 to the heights of a 12-2 mark in only his first season in 2013.

Gaining Some Perspective

What’s key to remember when comparing stats between SEC and Big Ten teams—and their coaches—is that it’s not always an apples-to-apples type of deal.

The strength of schedule is different (meaning a win doesn’t always equal a win), talent levels are different and even expectations are different.

To illustrate, take a look at Bielema’s last regular-season schedule at Wisconsin versus his first slate at Arkansas.

Wisconsin '12		Arkansas '13
FCS Northern Iowa	W	Louisiana-Lafayette	W
at Oregon State	L	FCS Samford	W
Utah State	W	Southern Miss	W
UTEP	W	at Rutgers	L
at No. 22 Nebraska	L	No. 10 Texas A&M	L
Illinois	W	at No. 18 Florida	L
at Purdue	W	No. 14 South Carolina	L
Minnesota	W	at No. 1 Alabama	L
Michigan State	L	No. 8 Auburn	L
at Indiana	W	at Ole Miss	L
No. 6 Ohio State	L	Mississippi State	L
at Penn State	L	at No. 15 LSU	L

What it amounts to is a Big Ten schedule with league games against two ranked teams versus the SEC slate with six ranked foes.

That’s three times as many ranked opponents, making it not only not an apples-to-apples comparison, it’s not even an all-fruit affair.

Next, take a look at Bielema’s recruiting class rankings at Wisconsin versus Arkansas’ numbers for the same time period.  To add further perspective, Nebraska and LSU are included to give a gauge within each conference.

	Wisconsin	Nebraska	Arkansas	LSU
2006	40	20	27	7
2007	34	13	31	4
2008	41	30	36	11
2009	43	28	16	2
2010	88	22	49	6
2011	40	15	24	6
2012	56	25	33	17
2013	56	17	26	6
2014	33	32	29	2

This identifies one common denominator between Arkansas and Wisconsin:  They don’t recruit as well as other top-tier programs in the same division. 

Keep in mind that Nebraska and LSU aren't even the top dogs in recruiting in their respective conferences.  In the Big Ten Ohio State and Michigan are tops, while in the leaders are Alabama and Auburn.

One of the things Bielema was so successful at during his time at Wisconsin was taking mid-level recruits and transforming them into championship teams.  Though this is doable in the Big Ten, it is a task that is near impossible in the SEC, where the schedules are more difficult and a bigger proportion of the opposition is fielding top-ranked talent.

To quantify this, the average recruiting ranking across the Big Ten from 2010-2014 was 41.6 versus 20.5 for the SEC over the same time period.

What’s Next?

Though it’s too early to declare the Bielema experiment at Arkansas a great hire or a big bust, it isn’t premature to say that he’s fighting an uphill battle.

If he is to succeed in getting the Razorbacks back into championship form, he’ll have to win games despite not having Alabama, LSU, Auburn or Texas A&M-like talent.  And, he’ll have to do it against the best combined set of opponents in the nation.

It’s simple: Fielding a title team in the SEC is a different animal altogether than making magic in the Big Ten.

Here’s what Steve Spurrier had to say about it at the SEC Media Days in 2012, according to Jon Cooper at Saturday Down South.

It’s easier to win the national championship than the SEC.  Ask Nick Saban.

If this is true—and it could be argued that it is—it would have been easier for Bielema to stay at Wisconsin and put together a national title team than it will be for him to capture an SEC crown at Arkansas.

As to whether he made a mistake moving from the Big Ten to the SEC, the answer may not have anything to do with Bielema. No, the question may instead only serve to highlight Bobby Petrino’s astonishing achievement at Arkansas—a feat that could be almost impossible to duplicate.

Statistics courtesy of Sports Reference-College Football and College Football Data Warehouse.  Recruiting rankings courtesy of Rivals.

Bottoms up, Hog fans. The Arkansas Razorbacks are reportedly pushing to sell wine and beer at football games.

Bob Holt of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette tweeted a report this week that wine and beer will be available to club seat holders at Razorback Stadium, pending the approval of a state liquor license.

Current SEC policy states that alcoholic beverages can only be sold to those sitting in premium seats, so only a select few of the 72,000 fans at the Fayetteville stadium will benefit from this change.

As Holt quipped, last year's 0-8 SEC season might have driven a number of Hogs fans to the bottle, so making that source of solace readily available is a savvy business move for UA.

The sale of alcohol at collegiate football games has been a source of some controversy over the years.

The practice is common at NFL games and even when NFL stadiums host collegiate games, but it has been met with some resistance at the collegiate level.

Without delving into the moral side of the issue, it is a no-brainer from a business standpoint.

Recently, West Virginia began selling beer to all fans of legal drinking age, not just those in premium seating. The change was a humongous success and, according to the Associated Press (h/t The Charleston Gazette), astronomically increased concession sales while simultaneously reducing arrests.

The win-win move resulted in more than $500,000 in beer sales alone and an overall 84 percent increase in concession sales at its 60,000-seat Milan Puskar Stadium.

With an established Big 12 program like WVU showing all-around success with beer sales, other leagues and teams could follow.

If SEC programs like Arkansas continue to show interest in the sale of beer to fans, it could only be a matter of time before the league gives in and alters its current policy to allow sale to those in standard seating.

So drink responsibly, Hog fans, and it just might happen.

UPDATE: Feb. 18th, 2014

According to Thomas Murphy of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Alex Collins has been reinstated.  Read Bret Bielema's comments below. 

Arkansas running back Alex Collins, who led all FBS freshmen in rushing attempts and yards last season, has been suspended from team activities for a week due to an unspecified offense.

Robbie Neiswanger of Arkansas News tweeted the report:

According to Andy Shupe of WholeHogSports.com, head coach Bret Bielema announced the suspension at a news conference to introduce new defensive coordinator Robb Smith.

While he didn't go into the specifics of his rationale, Bielema did make it seem like Collins' social media behavior was at least partially responsible.

"You'll probably see that [Collins] is not going to be as active on Twitter and everything else as well," Bielema said, according to Shupe. "He's been removed from all social media until further notice."

The suspension isn't overly important, at least in its current form, since it's taking place during winter conditioning and not spring practice.

Collins will miss all team-related activities for the next week—though Jerry Hinnen of CBS Sports says he's still expected to meet with strength and conditioning coach Ben Herbert—but he should still be a full-go once real practices begin in Fayetteville.

According to Shupe, Collins is the fourth Razorbacks player that Bielema has suspended for a week this offseason, following the lead of running back Korliss Marshall and walk-ons Bubba Crouch and Nathan Williamson.

Collins, though, is by far the highest profile of that group.

A former 5-star recruit who was part of Arkansas' two-headed rushing attack last season, Collins is expected to again be one of the best offensive players in the SEC next year. He finished 2013 with 1,026 yards on 190 carries and was named the conference's Freshman of the Year, doing so despite his team's winless record in league play.

Bielema has a reputation for grooming his running backs into superstars, as he did with countless players at Wisconsin—chief among them P.J. Hill, John Clay, Montee Ball and James White. Last year, he continued his trend of sharing the rock, giving Jonathan Williams 150 carries to Collins' 190.

Strictly based on talent, that dichotomy was expected to remain intact this upcoming season, with Collins perhaps pulling an even bigger load than he did as a true freshman.

This report, if isolated, won't do anything to change that, but it's at least worth keeping an eye on.

It might be the first step toward the dog house.

Follow Brian Leigh on Twitter: @BLeighDAT

The biggest remaining coaching mystery was solved over the weekend, as Arkansas finally named a defensive coordinator.

Robb Smith—formerly the linebackers coach of the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers and longtime assistant with Rutgers under former coach Greg Schiano—was named the defensive coordinator and secondary coach of the Hogs Saturday.

"Robb has been promoted time and time again at every place he's been," head coach Bret Bielema said in quotes released by Arkansas. "With his background, he captivates a room no matter where he is and players gravitate towards him. He's demonstrated an understanding of what it takes to build a team into a championship program."

The job had been vacant for nearly a month, after former defensive coordinator Chris Ash left the program to become the co-defensive coordinator at Ohio State.

Smith has his work cut out for him, because Arkansas is nowhere near a championship program on the defensive side of the ball, as-is.

The Hogs finished ninth in the SEC in total defense, giving up 413.4 yards per game last year, and 12th in yards per play with 6.09. The secondary—which will be Smith's positional focus—gave up 235 yards per game through the air and 7.9 yards per passing play—the second-worst mark in the conference.

Stat	Value	SEC Rank
Total Defense	413.4 YPG	9
Yards Per Play	6.09 YPP	12
Turnovers Gained	14	14
Pass Defense	235.0 YPG	11
Rush Defense	178.42 YPG	11

There is talent for Smith to work with.

Defensive end Chris Smith exhausted his eligibility, but rising senior Trey Flowers opted to stay with the program instead of bolting early for the NFL. Defensive lineman Darius Philon was a freshman All-SEC selection from the coaches last season after notching 46 tackles, nine tackles for loss and three sacks in 2013. Leading returning tackler Alan Turner will be back at safety along with rising senior cornerback Tevin Mitchel.

But can those pieces work together and lead the program back to prosperity? 

Bielema wants to play an old-school brand of football that's predicated on running the ball and playing defense. That means the margin for error is thinner in Fayetteville than it is at other programs where offenses are more dynamic and can make up for the shortcomings of their defenses.

Simply put, Arkansas cannot skate by being opportunistic playing the way Bielema wants to play. Its defense has to be a difference maker which means it must essentially pull a 180-degree turn from where it was a year ago.

Despite this being Bielema's second year as head coach, there is pressure in Fayetteville.

A 3-9 record in 2013 and a nine-game losing streak simply won't cut it—rebuilding year or not. The Hogs need to show marginal improvement in 2014, otherwise, 2015 could get a little dicey for Bielema and his staff. 

Can Smith get things turned around in a hurry and at least get Arkansas competitive in the rough-and-tumble SEC West? There's talent there but the depth that makes championship-caliber teams is not. He has his work cut out for him.

*Barrett Sallee is the lead SEC college football writer for Bleacher Report. All stats are courtesy of CFBStats.com.

Follow @BarrettSallee