Oklahoma drops seven spots to number 10 today in the AP Top 25 football poll that features numerous changes.

OU fell 27-24 to Colorado to become one of five top-10 teams to lose yesterday. Of those teams, only ninth-ranked Florida and the Sooners remained in the top 10. Louisiana State edged past Southern California to become the number 1 team, even though Southern Cal remained undefeated. A sloppy 27-24 victory at Washington cost USC the top ranking it had held all season.

California, Ohio State and Wisconsin rounded out the top five. Three unfamiliar names also are now in the top 10 -- South Florida at number 6, Boston College at number 7 and Kentucky at number 8. Other ranked Big 12 Conference teams are Missouri at number 17, Texas at number 19, Kansas State at number 24 and Nebraska at number 25.

Posted by Adria Goins at 2:01 PM | Permalink | Comments

Do the Razorbacks have the heart to win?

In my opinion:

After watching the Arkansas Kentucky game one thing became very clear. Something was missing on that field for the Razorbacks. Down 42-29 with 11 seconds on the clock at the end of the game I watched as Arkansas' offense gathered in the huddle, headed to the line of scrimmage and quarterback Casey Dick simple let the time clock expire before he could take the snap. The sound of disappointment rang out across the crowd. Not just because the home team lost but because the effort to a least attempt a last second touchdown was no where to be found. Was that a move made by the quarterback or was it a coaches decision to end the game without even trying?

Now I know that you can't win a game when you're down by 13 points with a single touchdown pass but it was almost as if the team didn't just lose the game, they lost their pride. Being a college athlete, when you step onto that field you play 100% until the final whistle is blown. It's called competitive nature. Maybe a person is born with it, maybe it's installed in their brain but any athlete who's played on a team or aspired to win wouldn't give up so easily.

We saw these example throughout the game. When the momentum shifted in the Wildcats favor Arkansas called it quits.

Darren McFadden is the perfect example of a driven athlete, someone who has the heart of a champion. When it looked like Arkansas had no chance of winning against Alabama McFadden just kept pounding out the yards one small chunk at a time. Oh how quickly the game changed. When he was kept on the sidelines at the end of that game you could tell by watching he wanted to be on that field. He wanted the ball in his hands. He wanted to be the hero.

The Razorbacks came into the season a little down and out. They lost Marcus Monk and Ben Cleveland in pre-season. Two crucial parts of the offense. The only bright spot was freshmen receiver Crosby Tuck and now he's gone for the year too. Marcus Harrison was arrested and the defense was criticized because they were considered weaker than last years unit. These challenges were all the more reason to prove a point. To play with pride.

If a team gives up with 11 seconds left on the clock do they really just give up or did they ever bring their heart to the game in the first place?

Posted by Adria Goins at 7:48 PM | Permalink | Comments

FAYETTEVILLE - After reviewing the film and looking back, Arkansas coach Houston Nutt say there is no second guess in the play calling. That includes a failed pass on third down that gave Alabama the ball with over two minutes in regulation.

"They moved that defense into a bear," says Nutt of Alabama's defense. "They knew McFadden wasn't back there, and we knew they were going to be pinching. So we thought we could go out and get one-on-one, if we got the first down, you're not asking the question today. But we also told him [quarterback Casey Dick] to run it, too, now. If there's any questions run it, but he's trying to make a play."

Nutt said all things considered, the play of Casey Dick and the play calling of David Lee was impressive. Dick finished the game 11-for-23 for 145 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. Dick did have a 40 yard touchdown to freshman Crosby Tuck on another third down pass call.

"He really did a fine job of managing and checking us out of a bad play to get us into the right one," says Nutt on his quarterback's play. "I thought he threw the crossing routes very accurate. The pass to Crosby Tuck was huge on third-and-one, a good call by David Lee to draw them in with a fake to Felix. It looks like a run in a running formation and we ran a stop-and-go."

Nutt says that after falling behind 21-0 in the first quarter, Lee was thinking it was time to open up the passing game. But Lee was reminded of Arkansas' best weapons, Darren McFadden and Felix Jones, and decided to avoid scrapping the ground attack.

But after taking the lead late in the fourth quarter, McFadden was knocked out of the game literally. D-Mac suffered a slight concussion and was held out of the final minutes of the game. Nutt says his star running back wanted to go out there, but trainer Dean Weber advised against it. Chances are he'll be ready to go again this Saturday against No. 21 Kentucky in Fayetteville.

Following the loss, Arkansas dropped from both major polls. The Hogs entered the game ranked No. 16 in both polls.

What do you think? Do you think the play call to throw on third and long was a smart decision?

Posted by Adria Goins at 11:55 AM | Permalink | Comments