How is it possible that a decade that began with back-to-back 10-win seasons could end so abruptly on the opposite end of the spectrum with consecutive 10-loss seasons (for the first time in school history)?

It was quite a tumble in a short period of time, going from a No. 3 ranking in 2011 to finishing with a losing record overall and finishing the decade losing 19 consecutive SEC games.

When the dust finally settled on the 2010s, the Razorbacks had posted a 58-67 mark and for the 3rd consecutive season will not go bowling. Arkansas won 3 of 5 bowl games this decade, but haven’t hoisted a bowl trophy since 2015.

It really has been the leanest of years at Arkansas. This decade the Hogs had just 1 NFL 1st-round draft pick, center Frank Ragnow, a 20th overall selection of the Detroit Lions.

Here are the top 10 moments of the decade that defined Arkansas football.

10. Hogs destroy Longhorns in Texas Bowl

In Bret Bielema’s 1st of 3 consecutive bowl appearances, the Razorbacks dominated Texas, 31-7, in the 2014 Texas Bowl. The Arkansas defense held the Horns to just 2 yards rushing and 58 total yards. The program trended up the following season before dropping off after the 2016 and 2017 seasons.

9. Alex Collins has career day against Texas Tech

The Arkansas running back ran wild on the Red Raiders in this 2014 game. Collins piled up a career-high 212 of Arkansas’ 438 yards rushing in a 49-28 victory that ushered in the Bret Bielema era and gave Razorbacks fans hope after consecutive losing seasons. Collins went on to top 1,000 yards again that season. The next year, Collins became just the 4th SEC running back in history to rush for 1,000 yards in 3 seasons. (In 2017, Nick Chubb became the 5th.)

8. Mallett’s last-second heroics propels program

When Mallett found Gregg Childs with 15 seconds remaining in a 24-24 tie with Georgia, the Arkansas wide receiver raced 40 yards to pay dirt and a 2010 road victory that propelled the Razorbacks to prominence in the 3rd season under Petrino. It helped the Hogs take the next step in its 1st of back-to-back 10-win seasons.

7. First major bowl victory in over a decade

Following the 2011 season, the Razorbacks throttled Kansas State, 29-16, in the Cotton Bowl for their first 11-win season since 1977 and just the 3rd in program history. It was Arkansas’ first major bowl victory since the 1999 season, also a Cotton Bowl victory, 24-14, over Texas, and lifted the Razorbacks to a No. 5 ranking nationally. Ironically, at the height of the Arkansas rise, it would prove to be the final game under Petrino and the beginning of the program’s downfall.

6. Hogs earn BCS Bowl bid

Quarterback Ryan Mallett hit Joe Adams with a touchdown pass that put the Hogs ahead of LSU, 28-23. It propelled the Hogs to The Boot-winning 31-23 victory at the conclusion of the 2010 regular season and secured a Sugar Bowl berth — their 1st BCS Bowl Game. It also gave Arkansas its 1st 10-win season since 2006 and the program’s 2nd since 1989.

5. Bret Bielema experiment

A winner at Wisconsin, Bret Bielema immediately gave Razorbacks fans hope of returning to prominence. After all, Bielema had 4 10-win seasons in 7 years with the Badgers. What could go wrong? A lot, particularly early. He lost 9 games in Year 1. The Hogs did reach 3 bowl games, but they never dropped fewer than 5 games in any one of his 5 seasons before being fired after the 2017 campaign.

4. Hogs tank with John L. Smith

Following the firing of Petrino in the summer of 2012, the Hogs were desperate for a new head coach and John L. Smith took the reins. It was the beginning of the end to Arkansas’ rise to contender status in the SEC. Smith limped through a 4-8 season and was relieved of his duties.

3. Chad Morris debacle

Changing with the times, Arkansas went from the traditional tough, run-dominant offense that helped mold the SEC into the best conference in the country, to a more wide open approach much like Alabama and LSU opted for — but with opposite results. While the Tide and Tigers were winning SEC titles with their new-found approach, the Razorbacks hit rock bottom.

2. “The Hunter Heave”

The most iconic single play of the decade and perhaps in Razorbacks history has to be in the 2015 overtime game against Ole Miss. Tight end Hunter Henry tossed a no-look, over-the-head desperation lateral on a 4th-and-25 play with time running out and the Hogs trailing, 52-45. It was picked up by Alex Collins, who ran 30 yards for a 1st down. It enabled QB Brandon Allen to throw a touchdown pass, then run for the game-winning 2-point conversion. The victory prevented Ole Miss from winning the SEC West and instead paved the way for Alabama to take its place. The Tide went on to win the SEC and national championship.

1. Petrino affair

Arkansas AD Jeff Long fired head coach Bobby Petrino on April 10, 2012, after a motorcycle accident brought to light his extra-marital relationship with a university employee he had hired. Petrino had recently completed his 4th and most successful season as head coach at Arkansas, going 11-2 and winning the Cotton Bowl. He was 21-5 over his final 2 seasons and his firing set the Razorbacks program on a spiral it still has not recovered from.