Instant Reaction: Hogs vs. Bears

The Hogs just got finished dismantling the Missouri State Bears by a score of 51 to 7.

Football season has officially arrived! It was great to watch the Hogs in action again. Sure, every opening game has its share of miscues. And the Hogs' opponent tonight was admittedly weak. The team looked good overall, though. And of course, the Hogs have got a few weeks before their first real test against the Alabama Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa on September 24th.

Here are a few thoughts on the game tonight:

1) Starting QB Tyler Wilson looked good. Coach Bobby Petrino's game plan was conservative, and Wilson didn't play much of the second half at all. He looked fairly comfortable running the offense and clearly had an outstanding stable of wide receivers to use as targets for his passes. Final stats: 18/24 for 260 yards and 2 TDs.

2) The Arkansas defense seems to have taken another step forward. It's hard to say that with 100% certainty due to the quality of the opponent tonight, but Coach Willy Robinson's unit did seem to be firing on all cylinders. The team speed is good. Poor tackling fundamentals seems to be the football epidemic of our era, and the Hogs are no exception to this problem. But I have no doubt this will improve over the first few games. And maybe the best news is that our defensive secondary looks like it is fast and able to read assignments well.

3) The two Arkansas QBs completed passes to 11 different receivers. No joke. The depth at wideout is just silly, and every one of them looks like he runs a 4.5 or better. TE Chris Gragg looks like he has hands as good as D.J. Williams' were, and he's a considerably bigger target. Tyler Wilson ought to be able to put up big numbers all year long. And speaking of Wilson...

4) On a 29-yard TD pass to Jarius Wright in the 3rd quarter, starting QB Wilson showed that he has the combination of power and accuracy on his deep throws that the Hogs are going to need this year at the field general position. I've got a lot of confidence in what he's going to be able to do. And hey, speaking of Wright...

5) WR Jarius Wright showed just how good he is with 6 catches for 108 yards and 2 TDs. He's got great hands and explosive speed. The only thing that might keep him from breaking the 1000 yard mark this year is the depth the Hogs field at receiver. My guess is that we'll see each of the big receivers for the Hogs have games like this on somewhat of a rotating basis: Greg Childs, Joe Adams, Cobi Hamilton, and Wright.

6) All-purpose WR Joe Adams has proved early that he will be at least as dangerous a kick returner as he was last year. He ran two punts back for TDs and had over 180 return yards. He's going to give opposing special teams coaches absolute fits. He's one of those guys with "another gear" as they say, as well as the ability to cut laterally and make tacklers fall over their own feet.

7) New starting RB Ronnie Wingo, Jr., is the #1 tailback due to the season-ending injury to Knile Davis. And tonight, he put on a show during the time he was in the game, rushing for 43 yards and catching for another 51 more. He could have easily rushed for 100 yards had he played the entire game (and the Hogs did run for 130+ as a team). But with RBs Knile Davis and Broderick Green out for the season, it only makes sense that Coach Petrino limited his time. Wingo is a big, strong back with speed who ran north-south with his shoulders down in a way I’ve never seen him do in the past. This shift could help him have a breakthrough year. He did more pass catching out of the backfield than running last year, and that experience could help him be a serious dual threat this fall. Can't wait to see how his role develops this year.

8) Freshman RB Kody Walker actually ended up as the game’s leading rusher with 69 yards on 9 carries for 2 TDs – and he was the third string Hog tailback! He’ll have to learn not to run with such a straight-up posture. But that will come, and the injuries Arkansas has at the position means Walker is likely to get a lot of carries as a freshman.

9) My game prediction was that the Hogs would win by a score of: However Much They Wanted To Score to 7. Actual final score: 51 to 7. I'd say I pretty much hit the nail on the head.