Arkansas dropped its SEC opener in overtime to Texas A&M, 28-21, on Saturday.

Here is a look back at and analysis of what transpired:

5 TAKEAWAYS

  • It’s “official,” Bret Bielema is having trouble winning close games at Arkansas: ESPN was throwing up quite a few troubling statistics involving the Razorbacks and close games during Saturday night’s telecast, but this one is really hard to refute: Bielema is 0-10 at Arkansas in games decided by 10 points or less.
  • The Razorbacks were the better team on Saturday, but still lost: There is no such thing as a moral victory for most fan bases, but there is something to be said for the way the Razorbacks played for the first 56 minutes of Saturday’s game. They controlled the clock, mixed plays well on offense and kept an explosive Aggies offense at bay for most of the game… they just didn’t finish the job.
  • There were too many mental mistakes: From a handful of first-half holding penalties that stalled out drives to a critical false start penalty by OL Denver Kirkland on a fourth down late in the fourth quarter, the Razorbacks simply didn’t play a clean enough game to win this one.
  • WR Drew Morgan may have emerged as a go-to guy for QB Brandon Allen: With all of the injuries the Razorbacks have been dealing with at WR, including Keon Hatcher, it had to be encouraging for Arkansas fans to see that Allen has found a guy that may be capable of carrying the load in the near term. Morgan had eight catches for 155 yards and a touchdown on Saturday.
  • Arkansas can still be a factor in the SEC West: This might seem like an odd thing to say about a team with a 1-3 record and a loss to Toledo on its record, but after watching teams like Mississippi State, Auburn and Alabama fall early in conference play, there’s reason to believe that the Razorbacks may have just battled one of the West’s top teams to an overtime loss. If that’s as tough a team as they’ll face, the Hogs still have some wins in them this season.

REPORT CARD

Offense: B+ — The Razorbacks moved the ball efficiently through the air, ran the ball effectively and controlled the line of scrimmage. Unfortunately, they simply didn’t turn that into enough points to win the game, which is why I can’t give them an A for the effort.

Defense: B- — First, the good: Arkansas limited Aggies RB Tra Carson to just 28 yards on eight carries, which has to be considered a win. Unfortunately, the bad is that Kyle Allen was able to throw for 358 yards, including 173 and two touchdowns to WR Christian Kirk and 106 to WR Josh Reynolds.

Special Teams: C — Not a whole lot of action here. And in the world of special teams, sometimes no news is good news.

Coaching: C+ — We can pick on Bielema for his inability to close this one out, and that’s fair. But I also think it is fair to point out that the Razorbacks came prepared with a pretty solid game plan, with offensive coordinator Dan Enos, in particular, deserving some credit.

Overall: B- — This was a solid effort against a very good team. It’s a game that the Razorbacks will look back on after the season is over and wonder how it got away, but it’s not one that they’re going to look back on and regret the way they played for most of the evening.

GAME PLAN

The most frustrating part of this loss for the Razorbacks has to be that they pretty well executed their game plan as they wanted in this game. Arkansas nearly doubled the Aggies in time of possession, ran the ball for 232 yards, completed 80 percent of its passes and made the Aggies one-dimensional on offense. But through untimely penalties and a couple of turnovers, the Razorbacks allowed Texas A&M to hang around and make some big plays at the end of the game for the win.

GAME BALLS

  • WR Drew Morgan: The junior wideout had a career night against the Aggies, hauling in eight passes for 155 yards and a touchdown. He also hauled in a crucial 38-yard reception on a third-down conversion late in the third quarter.
  • RB Alex Collins: In what has become a pretty standard thing for the Razorbacks, Collins turned in another superb performance on the ground, rushing for 151 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries.
  • QB Brandon Allen: Allen threw one interception and fumbled the ball late in the fourth quarter when hit by DE Myles Garrett, but he really did have a good game. He was efficient, completely 20-of-25 passes for 225 yards and a touchdown, rushing eight times for 35 yards and helping the Hogs hold the ball for 39:28.