Arkansas football: Hogs are 2 terrible calls from 5-3
Once again, a late call affected the outcome of an Arkansas football game.
The Razorbacks held a 24-20 lead over LSU late in the 4th quarter Saturday, but the Tigers had the ball. As one of the SEC’s top 5 tacklers, safety Jalen Catalon set out to do what he does best. But he was ejected for targeting for the 2nd time this year.
The replay showed clearly how wrong of a call that was.
There was no helmet contact. Catalon even appeared to make an effort to turn his body and make the collision less dangerous. The consensus among football fans everywhere was that there was no targeting.
Arkansas' Jalen Catalon was called for targeting on this play…pic.twitter.com/IzRhoktXmD
— Unnecessary Roughness (@UnnecRoughness) November 21, 2020
The refs didn’t agree, however, and Catalon was forced to miss the rest of the game. Of equal importance, the penalty moved the ball to the Arkansas 36. LSU was in perfect scoring position.
You already know what happened. The Razorbacks defense, now down one of its best players, didn’t have enough in it to force a stop. The Tigers scored, then blocked an Arkansas field-goal attempt that would have tied the score to hold on for a 27-24 victory.
It was the 2nd time this season that a late call might have cost the Hogs a win. They also lost to Auburn after Bo Nix fumbled a snap trying to spike the ball. Instead, intentional grounding was called, and Auburn won the game on a late field goal.
The officiating crew from that contest did not work any games the following week.
Saturday’s targeting call against Catalon was so egregious that Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek took to Twitter after the game. Players who are ejected for targeting in the 2nd half are forced to miss the entire next game, according to NCAA rules, but Yurachek wants to see an exception for Catalon.
I cannot change the outcome or any of the other missed calls, but I will work with the appropriate SEC Officials to make sure that this “targeting” call does not cost Jalen Catalon our next game. My student-athletes deserve better. pic.twitter.com/vGEd20u0FB
— Hunter Yurachek (@HunterYurachek) November 21, 2020
Whether he gets one or not, one thing is clear: Arkansas should probably be 5-3 instead of 3-5.
It’s always tough to pin an entire loss on 1 call or play. But both of those calls came on game-winning drives. An argument can be made that the Razorbacks would have come up with a stop if Catalon had stayed on the field.
In a normal year, this would be the unofficial end of Arkansas’ chances at a bowl game, as teams below .500 are not bowl-eligible. The Hogs have 2 games remaining but virtually no chance of beating Alabama on Dec. 5.
However, normal rules are out the window in 2020 as every FBS team is bowl-eligible.
The Razorbacks should have no trouble getting into a bowl this year at 4-6 or even 3-7. No team has been more surprising. If you take out these 2 losses, Arkansas has lost to only the following: Georgia, Florida and Texas A&M.
It should also be mentioned that starting running back Rakeem Boyd missed Saturday’s game. Without him, Feleipe Franks led the team in rushing with 43 yards.
The circumstances of these losses should definitely play a factor in the bowl selection process. Athlon Sports predicted the Razorbacks to land in the Outback Bowl this past week.
The result Saturday stung, but it is again a testament to how far Arkansas has come from last year.
Next week, the Hogs face Missouri, where defensive coordinator Barry Odom was the head coach just last year. If they win, we’ll likely be talking about how Sam Pittman turned around Arkansas in a season and how he deserves to win all the Coach of the Year awards.
And, how he took a team that failed to win an SEC game the 2 seasons before he showed up and somehow led them to what should have been a winning season.
It’s a stretch to say that play cost them the game. LSU would have had first and ten on the 50 without the call. Arkansas defense was pretty worn down before the call so I’m not sure that you can assume LSU would not have scored considering they would have gone for it on fourth down if needed for the rest of the drive.
I’m more upset about the no fumble recovery. We would’ve had the ball at the 35 and very easily could of got a field goal out of it. There’s no way to know what would’ve happened but without the bad officiating Arkansas has a really good shot at winning that game in my opinion.
When the ball carrier fumbles the ball it is a live ball until there is a clear recovery, unless the player who fumbled the ball is the first to it. At that point the ball is dead once they have control of the ball. This is clearly seen on the replay that Emery is in control of the ball while laying flat on the ground prior to the defender stripping the ball out. He’s actions to retrieve the ball are after the play is dead.
You are exactly right. He had the ball and after he was down they pried it out of his hands.
Arkansas starting to get a little too much ahead of themselves. It’s not like they got the stop and the call gave LSU the first down, they had it anyway. Arkansas has been the most improved team in CFB and maybe that should be enough for them. Problem I continue to see is that Arkansas can’t get the stop when they have to have it and that’s why they aren’t 5-3. At some point, Arkansas fans need to really stop believing the narrative and look at their team objectively from that standpoint. The first step is admitting you have a problem.
I’ll admit that the call against LSU didn’t cost us the game but the one at the end of the Auburn game sure did.
Oh, I agree. Arkansas almost got lucky on that last play and make no mistake, Arkansas would have gotten lucky there. You can’t solely rely on mistakes from your opponent to win games.
Right again. See my post below.
Auburn fans need to stop acting like they’re anything more than a little sister program thats propped up by the SEC to make their rivalry game relevant. Thats the only purpose they serve or will ever serve. Its just a God thing. Arkansas is better than Auburn and everyone in college football knows it especially that clown show brought to you by Gus and Chad. Auburn is 2 -5 without their attachment to Alabama. Don’t ever tell an Arkansas fan what their place should be. Your below us in athletics and always will be. We wi let you know what your place is in the SEC. Now go worry about the FBI or increasing your all time leading major recruiting sanctions total.
Funny, you say 2-5 but the record says 5-2. At first I thought you had Auburn and Arkansas confused but Arkansas is 3-4 so that doesn’t add up.
Also, last I checked, Auburn is the only SEC team to hold every opponent to 30 points or less. I’d pump the brakes on that Arkansas being a better team than Auburn. Y’all have a few recruiting class to go before you can even measure up talent-wise, if you even get the recruits.
Neither team will ever be confused with Bama. That’s acceptance.
You’re
“The first step is admitting you have a problem.” This is the response of a fan of a school which hired an OC that could not win a game as an HC. Brilliant.
Funny, Chad seems to be doing okay at Auburn with the offense progressively getting better so I don’t see your point. Some coaches just aren’t cut out to be head coaches. Chad figured that out at Arkansas and found a new place to get back to his basics to be successful.
Not really that funny if you think he’s doing ok. I suggest pulling your head out of your backside. In the Arkansas loss (the reality) how many offensive touchdowns did they score? Even Kentucky was suspect. It’s not secret how despised among the AU faithful how much the Malzahn/Morris project is. Go easy on your Kool Aid mix.
More of a rivalry here than the manufactured battle line rivalry trophy presented by Shelter Insurance. No way to know for sure if the call cost us the game, maybe yes, maybe no. COVID surely did though. Chaddy might work out okay in Auburn, but that’s the problem, you need more than okay which is all the Gus Bus does-give you okay/mediocre performance.
So is Arky going to beat Mizzou this coming weekend?
I hope so, but that doesn’t make it a rivalry. There’s more bad blood between Arkansas and Texas and it’s been a hot minute since they’ve played. So, as bmlock said, Arkansas-LSU is more of a rivalry than the manufactured one between Arkansas and Mizzou.
In order to have a rivalry you have to win one occasionally. Mizzou has won 4 in a row. LSU has won 5 in a row. Your rival is Ole Miss and Vandy.
When a defender makes force-able contact to a receiver’s head or neck it is targeting bottom line, quit referencing only part of the rule and complaining about how you were cheated. I bet y’all are the type of people who drive in the left lane on the highway and complain when someone behind you wants you to move to the right… “but I’m going the speed limit, I shouldn’t have to get over”. The law also states the left lane is for passing only. Stop trying to make the world conform to your liberal ideology.
As you watch the video, he comes in to the screen squared up, realizes that the receiver is going low, so turns his body in an effort to not hit the man and avoid the forcible contact. In doing so, they collide right shoulder to right shoulder. Also, targeting means taking aim, which him attempting to avoid contact is not taking aim. Additionally, shoulder pads aren’t considered head or neck, so…yeah. Oh, here’s the rule in case you’re wondering.
Targeting and Making Forcible Contact to Head or Neck Area of a Defenseless Player
ARTICLE 4. No player shall target and make forcible contact to the head or neck area of a defenseless opponent (See Note 2 below) with the helmet, forearm, hand, fist, elbow or shoulder. This foul requires that there be at least one indicator of targeting (See Note 1 below). When in question, it is a foul (Rules 2-27-14 and 9-6). (A.R. 9-1-4-I-VI).
Note 1: “Targeting” means that a player takes aim at an opponent for purposes of attacking with forcible contact that goes beyond making a legal tackle or a legal block or playing the ball. Some indicators of targeting include but are not limited to:
– Launch-a player leaving his feet to attack an opponent by an upward and forward thrust of the body to make forcible contact in the head or neck area. (He clearly didn’t do that.)
– A crouch followed by an upward and forward thrust to attack with forcible contact at the head or neck area, even though one or both feet are still on the ground. (He didn’t do that either.)
– Leading with helmet, shoulder, forearm, fist, hand or elbow to attack with forcible contact at the head or neck area. (Sure, he technically led with the shoulder, but he was not taking aim for the purpose of forcible AND he hit the receiver’s shoulder…so, not neck or head area.)
– Lowering the head before attacking by initiating forcible contact with the crown of the helmet. (Again, didn’t do this.)
I don’t think this cost them the game. The pick surely didn’t help as that set LSU up with an easy TD. The no clear recovery fumble hurt more as that left our defense out on the field longer, however, the next play was almost a pick anyway. We make the pick and there’s only a one play difference. Instead, a few plays later we get a fumble to end their drive. What really killed us was COVID destroying our defensive line. When you have 1 starter and a bunch of RS FR or true FR leading the way while playing DTs at the DEs position because you have to, things aren’t going to go exactly according to plan. Tack on the fact that our offense couldn’t stay on the field very long and you gas your defense in a hurry. The that we held them scoreless in the second half until the last drive showed that our defense still had fight in them. Just needed the offense to do their job.
And LSU played a true freshman at quarterback against an experience senior. Just accept the fact that compared to the last two years you actually have a team that wants to win and tries to win instead of making excuses.
Should have would have could have. Don’t go 0 for 10 on third down and then blame a loss on an officials call. Get some first downs. Back to Auburn. If Nix doesn’t spike the ball backwards then there would not have been a controversy. In other words, sheer luck was the only reason Arkansas had a chance to win and not their good play on the last drive. Arkansas never loses. You always get cheated on every close game you have ever loss.
I don’t think that was targeting he did everything possible to avoid the hit, I don’t think it was going to matter though, our defense was gassed and we had shown no ability to move the QB off his easy curls all game. The fumble didn’t matter we got the next one on the same drive and still scored. Honestly I watched it like 50 times and I think I see the LSU guys arm sliding out to grab the ball might have been right call. Hell the officials didn’t even see the fumble though.
0-10 on third down and covid ravaged d line. if we had went 3-10 and had some more starters I think we win it.
The bad call cost them the Auburn game. You can’t assume that they would have won against LSU without the game.
Looks like targeting to me. He used his shoulder and hit a defenseless player in the head. Arkansas never loses. They always get cheated. Been going on for decades.
I keep noticing you refer to Arkansas and arkansas fans as “them” and “they”. You arent an Arkansas fan. Change your name and pick a school avatar so we know who you’re with.