Wednesday, October 21, 2009

No. 1 Florida 23, Arkansas 20

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Arkansas went to The Swamp on Saturday as a 24 point dog against No. 1 Florida. The Hogs almost pulled off the biggest upset in Razorback history. Despite the loss, this is one of those games anyone would be proud to say "I was there." Arkansas had the lead on the Gators until late in the third quarter. A shaky kicking game and several bad calls on the Gators' final drive doomed the Hogs' upset.

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Arkansas' defense, who had little respect coming into this game, had their way with Tebow and Florida's offensive line. Jake Bequette forced a huge fumble in the first quarter.

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The fumble was one of four Florida turnovers in the game.

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Tim Tebow was sacked six times on the day by the Razorback defense. Here DeQuinta Jones manhandles Tebow for the freshman defensive tackle's first sack of the season.

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Jerry Franklin, left, and Matt Harris also got sacks on Tebow.

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Broderick Green stretches out to the one yard line late in the first quarter. The ball popped out after he was down, made for a good shot. Green punched the ball in on the next play for Arkansas' first score in the game.

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Dennis Johnson stepped up and filled Michael Smith's role at running back against Florida.

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Johnson had 107 yards on 14 carries.

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Ryan Mallett was up and down in the game. He started off shaky and finished 12-27 for 224 yards and one touchdown. Florida's defense got to him four times, which is still amazing considering the lack of respect Arkansas' O-line received coming into the game.

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Mallett's numbers would've been much better had it not been for a few dropped passes, including this pass to Greg Childs in the end zone in the third quarter. Childs caught the same pass against Georgia. The ball just slipped between his elbows. What a heartbreaker.

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The biggest plus out of this game was the defense. This is the same group that was dominated by Alabama during the Hogs' 33-7 loss on Sept. 26. They took on the No. 1 team in the country and essentially shut them down for an entire game. Malcolm Sheppard, above, drew a bad call on a crucial Florida scoring drive in the fourth quarter that gave them a first and goal. Had the call not been made, and the Hogs held, Florida wouldn've settled for a field goal. The SEC announced on Tuesday that the late hit penalty against Sheppard was a bad call. Too little, too late. (Update: The SEC announced Wednesday that the officiating crew of the game was suspended until Nov. 14 due to questionable calls in this game and the Georgia vs. LSU game a week earlier)

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On the same drive Andru Stewart was blatantly interfered by Florida receiver Riley Cooper on a deep pass to the end zone. Had Cooper not touched Stewart it would have been an interception. Had the officials called offensive pass interference the Gators' drive would've stalled and the game probably would've gone into overtime. Nope, the officials were either blind, stupid or too scared to make the right call against the No. 1 team in the country at their house. Bobby Petrino had little to say officially after the game, but he had plenty to say to the officials on the field.

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Unfortunately for Arkansas the game came down to kicking. And Florida made their kicks when it counted. The Razorbacks didn't.

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Even after the way Arkansas' defense manhandled Tebow, Florida fans still think the man is a God. I really feel for the dude pictured above. You know he was laughing inside, just a little bit, each time Tebow was sacked. :)

Oh well, on to Ole Miss and Nutty this Saturday in Oxford.

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