Why cant we finish a game?

[Memhogs]

It is so hard to watch our team to play so well in the first half only to lay down in the second. Its happened every week except for LATech, that game just wasn't pretty all around. Even then zero points in the third quarter then the second-wind of panic pushed us through. Then TCU, up by 13 at the half, blew it the second half, last minute blessings sent us to overtime where we could pull it off. Even against Texas state we scored 35 in the FIRST HALF, and only 7 in the second (with zero in the 4th). I know that's when we started subbing guys in but really? Its Texas State. We've had this meltdown several times. I know the second half everybody gets tired, but why cant we make adjustments like other teams? We cant we play like the first half all the way through? Its obvious we can. Why aren't we? I'm all about optimism, but the facts are facts here. WPS  :razorback:

[Hawgndaaz]

We still don't have enough depth on defense, and that's all there is to it.

our 2-deep beyond the line of scrimmage is awful.

[PorkRinds]

It is so hard to watch our team to play so well in the first half only to lay down in the second. Its happened every week except for LATech, that game just wasn't pretty all around. Even then zero points in the third quarter then the second-wind of panic pushed us through. Then TCU, up by 13 at the half, blew it the second half, last minute blessings sent us to overtime where we could pull it off. Even against Texas state we scored 35 in the FIRST HALF, and only 7 in the second (with zero in the 4th). I know that's when we started subbing guys in but really? Its Texas State. We've had this meltdown several times. I know the second half everybody gets tired, but why cant we make adjustments like other teams? We cant we play like the first half all the way through? Its obvious we can. Why aren't we? I'm all about optimism, but the facts are facts here. WPS  :razorback:

Your facts seem more like opinions.

[hogcard1964]

Recruiting poorly

[Biggus Piggus]

Even against Texas state we scored 35 in the FIRST HALF, and only 7 in the second (with zero in the 4th). I know that's when we started subbing guys in but really? Its Texas State.

Not sure if serious.

[Memhogs]

Your facts seem more like opinions.

Its an opinion that we consistently don't score points in the second half?

[Sed76]

Perhaps at halftime the other teams are making adjustments.

[Biggus Piggus]

In 30 games since the beginning of the 2014 season, Arkansas has scored 20 points per game in the first half, 12 in the second half. Opponents have scored 11 points per game in the first half, 11 in the second. But Arkansas has been outscored consistently in the fourth quarter.

No, I have not pulled together SEC-only. But it is interesting that Arkansas has scored only 18% of its total points in regulation during the fourth quarter, while opponents have scored 30% of their points in the fourth quarter.

[DLUXHOG]

uhhhh....  we're tied with Tennessee for the most overtime wins in college football....   I'd say Arkansas is fairly prolific at finishing games.........

[Memhogs]

uhhhh....  we're tied with Tennessee for the most overtime wins in college football....   I'd say Arkansas is fairly prolific at finishing games.........
Why don't we put these teams away before overtime? Do you remember any of the times when we haven't gotten the OT win? Arkansas needs coaches that can make adjustments.

[rhames]

I think we have a philosophy of going on extra long drives in the 3rd quarter if we are winning. We just don't score.

[DiamondHogFan]

Every game we have started, we have finished.   

Some finishes were better than others tho...

[rickm1976]

We still don't have enough depth on defense, and that's all there is to it.

our 2-deep beyond the line of scrimmage is awful.

This.

[Kevin]

who knows what kind of depth we may have, since they are unwilling to play younger players at certain positions

[ricepig]

who knows what kind of depth we may have, since they are unwilling to play younger players at certain positions

Outside of LB, where else would you substitute?

[hobhog]

People have short memories....

[Brandon72]

Ever watched a decent horse run against some bottom level horses and just blow them away leading wire-to-wire, then run against top caliber horses and lead for 90% of the race only to get caught at the end by horses with more class and pedigree and fade to 7th in the last 100 yards?

I'd say we are that "decent" horse.  We are pretty much going to win the ones we should win, probably win one here or there where we are not the favorite, and lose most of the time when we are clearly outclassed.

It's not rocket science.  It's not like we say, "hey it's the 4th quarter, time to mail it in and lose."  Just like a superior horse has more left in the tank for the stretch run, the better the team we face, the more of a complete game they are going to be able to play.

Alabama does not dominate they way they do, because they know how to finish, they dominate because they are just damn good.

[popcornhog]

It is so hard to watch our team to play so well in the first half only to lay down in the second. Its happened every week except for LATech, that game just wasn't pretty all around. Even then zero points in the third quarter then the second-wind of panic pushed us through. Then TCU, up by 13 at the half, blew it the second half, last minute blessings sent us to overtime where we could pull it off. Even against Texas state we scored 35 in the FIRST HALF, and only 7 in the second (with zero in the 4th). I know that's when we started subbing guys in but really? Its Texas State. We've had this meltdown several times. I know the second half everybody gets tired, but why cant we make adjustments like other teams? We cant we play like the first half all the way through? Its obvious we can. Why aren't we? I'm all about optimism, but the facts are facts here. WPS  :razorback:

We seemed to finish strong against TCU after an up and down game and certainly against La Tech (although that game arguably should've never been close).

I think what you meant to ask was why we had a second half collapse against A&M.

[ZERO]

We seemed to finish strong against TCU after an up and down game and certainly against La Tech (although that game arguably should've never been close).

I think what you meant to ask was why we had a second half collapse against A&M.

BB himself said those two games were games we would not likely have won during his first three years here. Keep in mind that he started out 0-9 in one-possession games, and is now only 5-10. I was pretty proud at how we didn't fold like we usually would have @TCU, but there was no excuse for the LA. Tech game.

aTm just outlasted us. We didn't "collapse" in the second half, we had telling mistakes even in the second quarter. They pulled away and never looked back. I was frustrated as this happened, as it hasn't happened in a long time, but we certainly didn't give them a free game like we have the past two years. They were the better team and they earned it for sure.

[Dionysos25]

We didn't lose because we didn't finish.. we lost because we turned the ball over 50 times and shot ourselves in the foot 100 times.. and then we got tired in the 4th because of depth.. Pretty easy to see.

[HogimusMaximus]

We didn't lose because we didn't finish.. we lost because we turned the ball over 50 times and shot ourselves in the foot 100 times.. and then we got tired in the 4th because of depth.. Pretty easy to see.

Bret cant win, need a new coach.

[DLUXHOG]

Bret cant win, need a new coach.

suggestion....  go harass another team's fan board........... below are some ideas for you..
Alabama
Auburn
Kentucky
Tennessee
Mississippi State
Ol' Miss
Florida
Missouri
Texas A&M
LSU
Georgia
South Carolina
Vanderbuilt

[ricepig]

suggestion....  go harass another team's fan board........... below are some ideas for you..
Alabama
Auburn
Kentucky
Tennessee
Mississippi State
Ol' Miss
Florida
Missouri
Texas A&M
LSU
Georgia
South Carolina
Vanderbuilt

He's a shock jock, has he ever tried to articulate a reason/position on any subject, lol. Just know your posters.

[HogMantheIntruder]

Bret cant win, need a new coach.

You're not serious are you?

[DLUXHOG]

You're not serious are you?

no, he's just trolling because he obviously has miserable life........

[HoginIllinois]

Every game we have started, we have finished.   

Some finishes were better than others tho...

Welllllll, maybe not. A game is 60 minutes long but we only played 55 against Texas State.

[ricepig]

Welllllll, maybe not. A game is 60 minutes long but we only played 55 against Texas State.

But......was it finished, 0:00??

[Lake City Hog]

Why is it always because of the players? We don't have enough depth? How do we know that we don't have enough depth? We are going into game 5 and the ONLY reason Ellis left the field was an injury and LATE against Texas State.
The ONLY way that Harris is going to get any game experience is to actually play in a game.

I truly believe that players tend to take on the persona of their coaches and right now that persona seems to be fear. It appears that our coaches are just a bit afraid to put some of the kids on the field.
What is the difference in losing a game because your starters are out of gas and having a 2nd teamer in and he gets beat? You still lost the game either way, but in scenario 2 we gained some valuable experience for the guy that HAS to take the job next year.

[ricepig]

Why is it always because of the players? We don't have enough depth? How do we know that we don't have enough depth? We are going into game 5 and the ONLY reason Ellis left the field was an injury and LATE against Texas State.
The ONLY way that Harris is going to get any game experience is to actually play in a game.

I truly believe that players tend to take on the persona of their coaches and right now that persona seems to be fear. It appears that our coaches are just a bit afraid to put some of the kids on the field.
What is the difference in losing a game because your starters are out of gas and having a 2nd teamer in and he gets beat? You still lost the game either way, but in scenario 2 we gained some valuable experience for the guy that HAS to take the job next year.

Wrong, Hackett relieved Brooks on at least two plays in the second and third quarters against TCU, watch it again and see if #27 doesn't sub in. Now, should he play more?? It sounds from Hargreaves that they are subbing some, no matter the score going forward, time will tell.

[Lake City Hog]

If he did I surely missed it, but wow 2 whole plays?? Hackett? not Harris? Isn't Harris the back-up MLB?If he is not going to be the back-up MLB why list him as back-up MLB?
NOW we are going to start subbing more? We are going to sub MORE against Alabama and Ole Miss and Florida and LSU???

[ricepig]

If he did I surely missed it, but wow 2 whole plays?? Hackett? not Harris? Isn't Harris the back-up MLB?If he is not going to be the back-up MLB why list him as back-up MLB?
NOW we are going to start subbing more? We are going to sub MORE against Alabama and Ole Miss and Florida and LSU???

"With the (Texas A&M) game like it was, it was tied up and I didn't think that was the right spot for a young guy to go out there against a team like that in that environment," Hargreaves said. "But it's going to happen. And I'm going to force it to happen. We just need to do it just so we can have that depth at our disposal."

Hargreaves listed freshman De'Jon Harris, junior Dwayne Eugene and senior Josh Williams as players who could see increased playing time. On the depth chart, Harris is listed as the backup to Ellis, Eugene the backup to Greenlaw and Williams the starting strong-side linebacker. Hargreaves also mentioned sophomore defensive end Randy Ramsey could fill in as a strong-side linebacker if needed.

[Jonbo]

Ever watched a decent horse run against some bottom level horses and just blow them away leading wire-to-wire, then run against top caliber horses and lead for 90% of the race only to get caught at the end by horses with more class and pedigree and fade to 7th in the last 100 yards?

I'd say we are that "decent" horse.  We are pretty much going to win the ones we should win, probably win one here or there where we are not the favorite, and lose most of the time when we are clearly outclassed.

It's not rocket science.  It's not like we say, "hey it's the 4th quarter, time to mail it in and lose."  Just like a superior horse has more left in the tank for the stretch run, the better the team we face, the more of a complete game they are going to be able to play.

Alabama does not dominate they way they do, because they know how to finish, they dominate because they are just damn good.

That's it in a nutshell. I wasn't PO'ed so much that aTm dominated the end of the game. They clearly had the horses, the stamina, the speed, etc. What frosted a lot of us was that when we had the mo', earlier, we weren't able to do more with it so that we would still be in a close one coming down to the wire (to continue the horse racing analogy).

[nwahogfan1]

We still don't have enough depth on defense, and that's all there is to it.

our 2-deep beyond the line of scrimmage is awful.

Do we not have enough quality depth or coaches just too scared to play inexperienced players in close games.  I really think a lot of our 2nd half problems are caused by not playing more subs in the 1st half.  CBB must play more players to build depth and keep players fresher.

[secfan30]

It is so hard to watch our team to play so well in the first half only to lay down in the second. Its happened every week except for LATech, that game just wasn't pretty all around. Even then zero points in the third quarter then the second-wind of panic pushed us through. Then TCU, up by 13 at the half, blew it the second half, last minute blessings sent us to overtime where we could pull it off. Even against Texas state we scored 35 in the FIRST HALF, and only 7 in the second (with zero in the 4th). I know that's when we started subbing guys in but really? Its Texas State. We've had this meltdown several times. I know the second half everybody gets tired, but why cant we make adjustments like other teams? We cant we play like the first half all the way through? Its obvious we can. Why aren't we? I'm all about optimism, but the facts are facts here. WPS  :razorback:

We are 9-2 in our last 11 games, and a few of those were games we won because of late game heroics. This is not a relevant complaint anymore.

[FATHAWG08]

We still don't have enough depth on defense, and that's all there is to it.

our 2-deep beyond the line of scrimmage is awful.

Our defense sat & watched the whole 3rd Quarter. They should of had plenty in the tank. No excuses here. We had the ball for 40 minutes. The best team won.

[Pig In The City]

Because we are very predictable on offense.

[Buff]

We should start holding up 4 fingers, with BOTH hands.

[Foozzball]

We should start holding up 4 fingers, with BOTH hands.

They too tired to hold up both hands!

[Foozzball]

There are lots of strategic reasons why we can't finish games.  But the most simple explanation is that the other team is just better than we are!

[TNRazorbacker]

See TCU game approximately 3 weeks back.

[(notOM)Rebel123]

It is so hard to watch our team to play so well in the first half only to lay down in the second. Its happened every week except for LATech, that game just wasn't pretty all around. Even then zero points in the third quarter then the second-wind of panic pushed us through. Then TCU, up by 13 at the half, blew it the second half, last minute blessings sent us to overtime where we could pull it off. Even against Texas state we scored 35 in the FIRST HALF, and only 7 in the second (with zero in the 4th). I know that's when we started subbing guys in but really? Its Texas State. We've had this meltdown several times. I know the second half everybody gets tired, but why cant we make adjustments like other teams? We cant we play like the first half all the way through? Its obvious we can. Why aren't we? I'm all about optimism, but the facts are facts here. WPS  :razorback:

Cutting the Texas St game short came back to haunt us. Those 5 extra minutes can be killers.

[(notOM)Rebel123]

Welllllll, maybe not. A game is 60 minutes long but we only played 55 against Texas State.

Oops, just saw this. Exactly. 😀

[HOGINTENNESSEE]

Bret cant win, need a new coach.

About to be 10 of his last 12 here. Of course we could go back and look at his 3 Big 10 Championships and a 12-1 season which he didn't win the Big 10 Championship in his 6 seasons.

But why you facts?

[sickboy]

We don't have a problem finishing games. We finished the LA Tech game. We finished the TCU game.

We got beat by A&M because we didn't execute on a few key plays and A&M took advantag and executed on their end. That's how big boy football works. You give someone an inch and it's game over.  It's not rocket science and it's not indicative of systemic issues.

[dmaxfan]

Why cant we finish a game? Bielema can't out scheme. How many games has arkansas lost in the 2nd half? He can't make the necessary adjustments. Not that he's not a good coach, just not the one arkansas needs. Likeable yes, good coach, debatable. Great coach for arkansas. No. For arkansas to win it all, they need better recruiting. For better recruiting, it needs to win big games. For big games, it needs a coach who can make chicken salad out of chicken crap. Bielema isn't that type of coach. He can't do great things with little.

[arktravlr]

Because we are very predictable on offense.

The noodle arm doesn't help

[rhames]

Why cant we finish a game? Bielema can't out scheme. How many games has arkansas lost in the 2nd half? He can't make the necessary adjustments. Not that he's not a good coach, just not the one arkansas needs. Likeable yes, good coach, debatable. Great coach for arkansas. No. For arkansas to win it all, they need better recruiting. For better recruiting, it needs to win big games. For big games, it needs a coach who can make chicken salad out of chicken crap. Bielema isn't that type of coach. He can't do great things with little.

He has won 10 of his last 12. 3 or 4 of those were on the road against top 25.



So who should we get?

[Tejano Jawg]

Today the problem was the 2nd quarter, not the 2nd half. Or was I watching a different game?

[mckinneyhog5]

He has won 10 of his last 12. 3 or 4 of those were on the road against top 25.



So who should we get?

You just bitch slapped his argument..

[dmaxfan]

He has won 10 of his last 12. 3 or 4 of those were on the road against top 25.



So who should we get?

Nutt won some too. I'm not saying he isn't a good coach, but I just don't think he's the right fit for us to win sec west or a nc. Like I said, hes not the kind of coach  (art briles, urban meyer, mark dantonio, bobby petrino- not that I want him back) that can take the players he has and get them to play above expectations. I'm tired of the "we'll be better next year" mentality. It seems a lot of fans have turned apathetic. I think we are the best that we will be with bielema.