It wasn’t what many expected, but the Razorbacks did finish with bowl eligibility for the 3rd season in a row. Arkansas finished the regular season 5th in the SEC West with a record of 6-6 (3-5 in conference).

After starting the season 3-0, including victories against Cincinnati and South Carolina, the Hogs proceeded to lose 3 games in a row. They would bounce back with a win on the beautiful campus of BYU and another against struggling Auburn. Things looked to be ramping up for another winning run to close the season but it unfortunately didn’t happen. The Hogs would lose a shocker at home to Liberty and a 3-point loss with their backup quarterbacks against LSU.

There were plenty of outstanding performances including individual efforts from Raheim Sanders, Dwight McGlothern and the whole front 7 of the Razorbacks defense.

This was KJ Jefferson’s team

It was apparent early in the offseason that this offense would go the way of Jefferson. When he was down, the team was down but if he was playing strong the Hogs responded. In Arkansas’ 6 wins this season he threw 15 of his 22 touchdowns.

The goal inside the locker room before the season began was to win 10 regular-season games. And why not? With a 4th-year junior signal caller it definitely should elevate your program to the next level.

There were points where he seemed to be tuned out throughout a game. Against Missouri State, and in the second half of losses to Texas A&M and Liberty. But when he was on Jefferson was 1 of the best in the conference.

Now the question is whether he will return for 1 more season or if he opts for the NFL Draft.

The front 7 was better than expected

The Razorbacks defensive line and linebackers were impressive. Twelve players recorded at least 1 sack this season. There were 9.5 from Drew Sanders, a potential 1st-round pick in the upcoming draft.

A linebacker who hasn’t been talked about enough is Chris “Pooh” Paul. The Georgia native performed well as a backup, recording 4 sacks of his own. It is believed Paul is setting himself for an impactful career and perhaps as one of the next great linebackers in a line of outstanding talent in the middle of the Razorbacks defense.

A question mark going into the season was how the defensive line would perform after the loss of talented pass rusher Tre Williams and space stuffer John Ridgeway. First-year position coach Deke Adams inspired his group and they responded. Adding Jordan Domineck to the room as a transfer from Georgia Tech was icing on the cake as he would lead the linemen with 6.5 sacks.

Zach Williams had an outstanding senior season as well with 4.5 sacks and 6.5 tackles for a loss. The Razorback legacy (son of linebacker Rickey Williams, 1984-87) has an extra year of eligibility left due to the COVID-19 season. It would be a huge welcome to have him return for another season and continue to boost himself as a potential leader in the locker room. Maybe even become a draftee in 2024.

And LSU transfer defensive end Landon Jackson is still a young pup but showed plenty of promise as he continues his career as a Razorback. The redshirt freshman finished with 21 tackles and 3 sacks.

Overall, it was an exceptional start for Adams at Arkansas. His unit finished the regular season tied for 4th in total sacks with 39. That is 15 more than they recorded all last season. The Hogs were also solid recording tackles for loss, too, sitting 38th in the country with 72 negative yardage plays.

Raheim “Rocket” Sanders is a future superstar

There were a lot of folks that didn’t think a former high school wide receiver could wear the No. 5 jersey and live up to Darren McFadden’s legacy. That never should have been the expectation for the player who had one of the best sophomore seasons of any Razorback running the football.

His 1,425 yards this season pushed him past Madre Hill for 4th all-time for rushing yards in a season. He would need 153 yards to surpass Alex Collins for 3rd most in a season.

The secondary found a star in Quincey McAdoo

The sensational freshman from Clarendon, Ark., showed his talent this season as he converted from wide receiver to defensive back with just 4 games remaining. His closing speed on the outside and his coverage skills have wowed the coaching staff and Arkansas fans in such a short time.

In just 4 games on defense, McAdoo recorded 21 tackles, 1 sack, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 punt block for a safety and 1 interception. Even if he has the choice to move back to the offense he surely needs to stay. McAdoo has a huge future in the secondary. The freshman is a gamer and that’s the kind of guy needed to continue to rebuild the Razorbacks.

The transfers were outstanding additions

Sam Pittman and his staff should be commended for their evaluations of transfer portal additions. Arkansas is showing players around the country that Fayetteville is a destination for college football players looking to jumpstart their careers or give themselves a chance to recover their draft chances.

Drew Sanders, Dwight McGlothern, Domineck and Matt Landers have all likely made a case to be drafted after the season.

The midseason lull has to stop

For the second consecutive season the Hogs started undefeated but once they lost their first game things unwound. Just like last year, the Hogs lost 3 games in a row including blowouts to Alabama and Mississippi State.

Chalk it up to injuries or inexperience, but for real improvement the lulls have to stop. What’s the solution? How do you stop the bleeding over into each game? Pittman will have to figure that out quicker than he has previously.

Effort in all 4 quarters

Jefferson’s lack of urgency at certain points during games was something others shared. Many of times this season the team as a whole were going through motions. Honestly, the wakeup call against Missouri State wasn’t really a wakeup call at all. The truth is they struggled to stay motivated in almost every game. Once this season did the Razorbacks seem to be “all-in” and that was against Ole Miss just 7 days ago.

Drew Sanders will go down as an all-time great

It was already mentioned how good he was this season. If Sanders eventually leaves for the NFL, he’ll be thought of as one of the best Razorback linebackers ever. In his lone regular season at Arkansas, Sanders finished with 103 tackles, 9.5 sacks and 13.5 tackles for loss.

The what-ifs, close losses

Texas A&M (2 points), Liberty (2 points), LSU (3 points) and Missouri (2 points). All 4 games were losses and all of them were 1-possession games. Those games also were the kind the Razorbacks won in 2021. That is the thin line between winning and losing games.

Look back at the 2 plays against the Aggies in which Jefferson fumbled in midair and there was a return for a momentum-flipping TD return. Arkansas looked dejected and never recovered. That play took the air out of the sideline and the team never really recovered during the season. Then, when the win was within reach, Cam Little’s rare, missed field goal was the final straw. Things never seemed the same this season, but the team never quit fighting.

Being bowl eligible for three consecutive seasons

It’s been a while since the Hogs have been bowl eligible this often (2014-16). Also, just a short time ago, the Razorbacks were just 2-10 overall in 2018 and 2019. Fans must appreciate the rebuild and remember that no experienced head coach wanted to come here and stabilize this program. It took the perfect man at the perfect time and Sam Pittman has done that.

Three bowl eligible seasons in a row is nothing to scoff at when a team has been scarred the way they have. A roster and program that looked like it suffered through half a decade in the death penalty. Now, is just being bowl eligible enough? Not at all and if we think Pittman doesn’t see it that way it’s foolish. This deserves a pat on the back, maybe even an attaboy. However, Arkansas needs to continue building this program up if they plan to truly compete in the SEC again.