While Alabama was taking care of business last Saturday against Western Kentucky, Arkansas was doing the same to the Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks. That was setting up a Top 10 match between Alabama and Arkansas Saturday.
But then a funny thing happened on the way to what would have been the top game in the country this weekend.
First, Arkansas’ Heisman Trophy candidate quarterback Tyler Wilson was hit in the head in the second quarter and left the game.
Second, Arkansas’ 28-7 lead evaporated and ULM quarterback Kolton Browning led the Warhawks on a 90-yard drive that resulted in a touchdown on a 4th-and-10 play to tie the game with 55 seconds remaining. Then, after an Arkansas field goal gave the Razorbacks a 31-28 lead in overtime, Browning worked his magic again, scoring the winning touchdown on a 16-yard fourth down run for a 34-31 upset of the Razorbacks.
Suddenly the best game in the country was no more.
It is still a huge game for the No. 1-ranked Crimson Tide, although the stakes are not quite as high for Arkansas. The Razorbacks slipped to No. 21 in the Coaches’ poll but completely out of Lindy’s rankings and the Associated Press poll.
The game is still big for the Hogs despite the loss to ULM. Senior tight end Chris Gragg explained the Razorbacks will be ready for Alabama and SEC play.
“It’s a big game for us,” senior tight end Chris Gragg said. “This is Arkansas-Alabama. We still feel like we’re a top 10 team in the nation. They’re ranked No. 1 right now. They’re undefeated and we have one blemish on our record. We’re 0-0 in SEC and we know that this is a big game, like it always is every year that I’ve been here. It has implications on what happens in the SEC.”
Arkansas coach John L. Smith agreed with Gragg.
“It has to be a positive week,” Arkansas coach John L. Smith said. “We have to go to the field. We have to practice that way. We are still undefeated in the league. We still have the same goals in front of us to win an SEC Championship. We just have to bounce back and get it done. We have to prepare well and play well. That’s where we will start.”
Arkansas’ loss last weekend caught the attention of Alabama coach Nick Saban and his players.
“We are playing a really good Arkansas team,” Saban said. “Regardless of what happened last week, that doesn’t change how we feel and how we respect their players and the team that they have. They have a very good team. They had some very difficult misfortune in the last game that they weren’t able to overcome. We still have to expect that we are going to get their very best performance. We need to have our very best performance if we are going to be able to play the kind of game that we need to play on the road to have a chance to be successful against what we think is a very good team.”
The injury to Wilson and the uncertainty as to whether he will play Saturday should have no impact on how Alabama prepares for the 2:30 kickoff at Reynolds Razorback Stadium.
“Nobody here should be feeling warm and cozy about the other team’s circumstance or situation,” Saban said. “We need to be thinking about what we need to do to be successful. Regardless of who plays in the game, they have a lot of players that are very capable of making plays and having success.
“Regardless of who plays quarterback, whoever prepares to play in their system is probably going to be a pretty effective player that we are going to have to do things correctly to be able to stop. Tyler Wilson is a great player; you don’t like to really see anybody ever get injured. He is great for our league, he is great for the fans and he is certainly a very challenging competitor that we have to play against, and we hope he is okay.
“Whoever plays, we are going to have to do a good job of executing, and do our best job and it really doesn’t matter what happened last week — I’m sure we are going to get their best game.”
Arkansas always plays well in their own stadium, where their fans really get behind the Razorbacks.
“It is (going to be loud), coming off the week they had and the week we had. It’s always a rivalry type of atmosphere,” linebacker Nico Johnson said. “We know it’s going to be loud, we know it’s going to be an emotional game for them and us, so we’re going to have to go in with the right mindset and the right intensity and get the job done.”
“I remember playing in 2010, being nervous and not really knowing what to expect and the crowd playing a huge factor in my performance,” Alabama defensive back Robert Lester said. “Going into games like that you need to make sure that the young guys are ready and know what to expect. You need to make sure that they don’t fold under the pressure and that they actually go out there and perform the way that they can.”
Lester sees similarities in Wilson and a former Razorback.
“He reminds me of Ryan Mallett,” Lester said. “They always have great quarterbacks. He is a guy that can make plays. He is smart, and he has managed the offense. Even if he doesn’t play, Arkansas has backups that are very capable of doing the same thing.”
Johnson knows that Arkansas is explosive with Wilson on the field, but he’s not the only one who can kick-start the Hogs’ offense. Guys like tailbacks Knile Davis and Dennis Johnson also provide big-play ability.
“It’s been like that for a while with Arkansas,” he said. “They always have a very good offense; good receivers; good running back; good quarterback. We’re going to have to go in and have a good week this week and see what happens.
“He’s intelligent,” Johnson said of Wilson. “Watching film on him and playing against him last year. But (running back Dennis) Johnson has skills. Whether he plays or not, we have to come in this game with the mindset of affecting the quarterback the best we can and keep creating turnovers. One thing I expect going into every game is to affect the quarterback and stop the run, and if we do that then we should be okay.”