Importance of having a game changer at QB at Arkansas

[luke hawg]

I really like this offensive system but we would really benefit from more playmaking ability at QB. Me and my dad were talking how impressive our offense looked before Auburn stacked the box. It was laughable how close there safeties were creeping up to stop the run. The answer to all of this is a playmaker at QB. Allen is a good QB when put in appropriate situations but he isn't going to side step a defender roll out and make a DB choose between him and a TE running a comeback. He also isn't going to play action and rip a 50 yard bomb on a rope down the seam. We will win a fair amount of games with BA but we need an All SEC caliber QB to win big.

[1960'sHogFan]

I was impressed by the QB play.

[ShadowTheHedgehog]

Right now I would rather have a Play-maker at WR and keep BA. I bet KJ yesterday was thinking that one would had been a TD, that one a first down, that one a TD.

[TNRazorbacker]

Allen played a good game yesterday. Made good decisions, threw accurately, no mistakes that  hurt us. Those things alone are a huge improvement over last year and alone could yield us an additional win or two this year.

All that being said I do agree that we need a legit playmaker at QB to turn the corner. Alabama can win with a game manager because they outman you everywhere else. Arkansas will never have that advantage.

[luke hawg]

I'm not calling for a QB change some of you have poor reading comprehension skills. There isn't a better option on the roster that knows the system. In the future, I think we will need a dynamic QB to keep defenses honest and reach our fool potential.

[TNRazorbacker]

I'm not calling for a QB change some of you have poor reading comprehension skills. There isn't a better option on the roster that knows the system. In the future, I think we will need a dynamic QB to keep defenses honest and reach our fool potential.

Yes, completely agree. This is really the case for 99% of teams though. It's hard to win big without a really good QB.

[ShadowTheHedgehog]

I'm not calling for a QB change some of you have poor reading comprehension skills. There isn't a better option on the roster that knows the system. In the future, I think we will need a dynamic QB to keep defenses honest and reach our fool potential.

Agreed, but if you could change one thing in the O right now and get 1 play maker, I think it would be better that it was a WR and keep BA.

[luke hawg]

I'll really be surprised if young guys don't start getting more time as they learn the system. Hatcher is a bad situation. He is a fantastic physical runner after the catch but he is a real liability on critical downs. I look for better hands to prevail as ,the season goes on.

[ShadowTheHedgehog]

I'll really be surprised if young guys don't start getting more time as they learn the system. Hatcher is a bad situation. He is a fantastic physical runner after the catch but he is a real liability on critical downs. I look for better hands to prevail as ,the season goes on.

I think the backups are going to get some reps and an opportunity to show what they can do this weekend. They will be needed along the stretch regardless of what happens so it will be good to give them some reps.

[Letsroll1200]

Allen looked like a serviceable QB yesterday but however I agree we need special at Arkansas. BA showed improvement from last season and we have to hope he continues to grow. The only negative thing was the interception. I thought he should of took the sack and lets punt the ball. Overall good game from the QB position.

[3kgthog]

BA constantly gets put in bad situations by Chaney. Not Mallett, Ferguson, or Stoerner could've done much with the 2nd half gameplan.

[311Hog]

How about the importance of having players that can catch the dang ball ? =P  never been so glad that we got KJ and likely Gragg's commitment we desperately need people who can catch the bloody ball, use some stick um what ever you have to do....

[shotgun7]

We could have had a NFL QB, and it really wouldn't have mattered. If the ball hits you in the hands or on your numbers and you drop it, what more can a QB really do? Hopefully over the next 3 games some of our young guys step up.

[shotgun7]

How about the importance of having players that can catch the dang ball ? =P  never been so glad that we got KJ and likely Gragg's commitment we desperately need people who can catch the bloody ball, use some stick um what ever you have to do....

I am glad we got the commitments too, but I believe I remember reading where he is still taking 5 official visits and still wanted to see the hogs improve. It almost sounded like a soft commitment, at least to me. Or maybe I am just over thinking it. 

[311Hog]

I am glad we got the commitments too, but I believe I remember reading where he is still taking 5 official visits and still wanted to see the hogs improve. It almost sounded like a soft commitment, at least to me. Or maybe I am just over thinking it. 

Go look at Gragg's instagram and tell me you do not feel pretty good about them both being hogs.

http://instagram.com/p/sTUm3zghs2/


i think they are the second coming of the Warren 3 and i can only hope they stick with it because they could very well restore the glory on the hill.

[hoglady]

I just don't know what some of you expect from BA.
Good Lord the pass dropped by Hatcher was a thing of beauty.
Allen played a very good game yesterday.
He, Derby and our backs were by far the bright spots.

[311Hog]

I just don't know what some of you expect from BA.
Good Lord the pass dropped by Hatcher was a thing of beauty.
Allen played a very good game yesterday.
He, Derby and our backs were by far the bright spots.

i thought BA played great, if he plays like that for every game we will go to a bowl game this year.

[hoglady]

i thought BA played great, if he plays like that for every game we will go to a bowl game this year.

I agree.

[hogsanity]

We need a difference maker at quarterback?  Translated the OP wants some guy that runs around and takes all kinds of chances. Thing is that guy still has to have receivers that can get open and catch the ball.

[urkillnmesmalls]

I'm not calling for a QB change some of you have poor reading comprehension skills. There isn't a better option on the roster that knows the system. In the future, I think we will need a dynamic QB to keep defenses honest and reach our fool potential.

That's a potential that I hope we're not trying to reach.   

[urkillnmesmalls]

We need a difference maker at quarterback?  Translated the OP wants some guy that runs around and takes all kinds of chances. Thing is that guy still has to have receivers that can get open and catch the ball.

I was thinking just the opposite of the OP.  I thought BA was night and day ahead of last year, played a good game, and showed some arm strength on that long pass that Hatcher dropped.  What I thought we needed were some difference makers at WR, and I was hoping we'd see that.  But alas...we didn't.  I think we would look like a different offense with a player or two like the JC transfer at Auburn, or the kid from Ole Miss (name eluded me...Fr. last season, unstoppable).  That's what we need, and then we take on a different dynamic. 

What I hope our fans realize is that we played a team that is recruiting in the top 5 in the nation.  We're nowhere near that level, so our best bet to combat that is to field a team with experience.  We don't have that either.  What exactly is it that our fans are expecting? 

Like it or not...wait til next year is going to be our best bet for the next two seasons as Hog fans.   

[hogsanity]

I just don't know what some of you expect from BA.
Good Lord the pass dropped by Hatcher was a thing of beauty.
Allen played a very good game yesterday.
He, Derby and our backs were by far the bright spots.

They want sling around run around. They would be tickled pink if football became 7 on 7.

[hogsanity]

I was thinking just the opposite of the OP.  I thought BA was night and day ahead of last year, played a good game, and showed some arm strength on that long pass that Hatcher dropped.  What I thought we needed were some difference makers at WR, and I was hoping we'd see that.  But alas...we didn't.  I think we would look like a different offense with a player or two like the JC transfer at Auburn, or the kid from Ole Miss (name eluded me...Fr. last season, unstoppable).  That's what we need, and then we take on a different dynamic. 

What I hope our fans realize is that we played a team that is recruiting in the top 5 in the nation.  We're nowhere near that level, so our best bet to combat that is to field a team with experience.  We don't have that either.  What exactly is it that our fans are expecting? 

Like it or not...wait til next year is going to be our best bet for the next two seasons as Hog fans.   

I hate to say it but RM would have looked avg with these receivers.

[urkillnmesmalls]

I hate to say it but RM would have looked avg with these receivers.

While they may not have made it in the NFL like some would have hoped, it wasn't that we had one or two outsanding WR's like an Evans or Jones, as much as it was that we had 3-4 REALLY good ones on the field at one time.  It's just tough for any team to deal with the weapons we could put on the field together...JA, JW, GC, CH, DJW/Gragg.  Yes, BP's system certainly helped them to all be successful and at least get shots in the NFL, but collectively...at one time on the field, that's a tall order for anyone but the best defenses...like Bama for example. 

We need some kids to want to come play WR and secondary at the UA.  I truly believe that BB is building it the right way, but the harsh reality is that if a few difference makers don't come along, he may look for another opportunity where the level of competition isn't so tough.  He's bitten off a lot here.     

[rlamb]

BA a fair game yesterday, a game changer he is not nor ever will be. The butter fingered receivers are the problem and the patterns not going over the middle or finding Hunter
anywhere are also. The game changers are the 3 running backs if the opposing defenses are forced to spread out a little.

[shotgun7]

Go look at Gragg's instagram and tell me you do not feel pretty good about them both being hogs.

http://instagram.com/p/sTUm3zghs2/


i think they are the second coming of the Warren 3 and i can only hope they stick with it because they could very well restore the glory on the hill.

Awesome Pic! That does make me feel quite a bit better as a matter of fact!

[Wright43]

Right now I would rather have a Play-maker at WR and keep BA. I bet KJ yesterday was thinking that one would had been a TD, that one a first down, that one a TD.

This. Allen only made one really bad mistake. The receivers on the other hand....if we can't air it out, every team will stack the box against us-and I love AC, CM, and Jwill but the only RB I've seen have consistent success against a stacked box is DMac...

[Carl Lazlo]

Pick 6?

BA doesn't know how to read defenses.  It's his job to get the offense out of bad play calls by Chaney.

He also had receivers drop a couple key balls. Yet made a couple terrible throws were D. Wilson made fantastic adjustments to make the catch. 

[PorcineSublime]

Pick 6?

BA doesn't know how to read defenses.  It's his job to get the offense out of bad play calls by Chaney.

He also had receivers drop a couple key balls. Yet made a couple terrible throws were D. Wilson made fantastic adjustments to make the catch.

Didn't need to read the D on the pick 6. Had a receiver wide open and had the line held another half second he would have hit him in stride for 6 our way (Assuming the WR didn't drop it). BA is not the issue.

[Mike Irwin]

Some fans click on the TV and zero in on the QB. They don't see much of anything else.

The vast majority of people posting here know that QB play is at the bottom of the list of issues from Saturday. They actually see football in more than one dimension.

The rest just clutter up this board and take the focus away from actual football.

Here's what I noticed.

Within a few steps off the snap of the ball Auburn's receivers were already open. Arkansas defensive ends didn't have time to get to Jeremy Johnson or even affect this throws.

Brandon Allen was always looking. Looking. Is somebody going to get open? If they do will they catch the ball?

Also when Arkansas climbed that hill from being down 21-7 to tie it up just before the half the players eased up. It was like they said, man that took some effort. Let's rest a while.

So they went to the locker-room and rested and they never played the same the rest of the game.

Jim Chaney said yesterday that schemes and adjustments didn't cause what happened in the second half. It was a lack of execution.

[Soooie21]

Wr's catching the ball would greatly help the offense.....

[lefty08]

People blaming BA for the pick 6 is troubling. Watching the replay multiple times, I dont think he ever saw the guy coming from his blindside. He had the receiver open, but it took longer to get open than we needed. Anyone questioning his ability look no further than the drop by hatcher, that ball was thrown perfectly. QB isnt a problem for this team, people just say whatbthey have heard over and over. Its akin to "turning our heads on D" and he is "staring down receivers"

[MuskogeeHogFan]

This. Allen only made one really bad mistake. The receivers on the other hand....if we can't air it out, every team will stack the box against us-and I love AC, CM, and Jwill but the only RB I've seen have consistent success against a stacked box is DMac...

We had receivers who did catch the ball Saturday. As far as I could tell, the RB's caught everything that was thrown to them, the TE's caught 6 of 8 and the WR's caught 7 of 15. Breaking it down, Henry caught 1 of 2, Sprinkle 1 of 1 and Derby caught 4 of 5 that were thrown to them. As for WR, the only reliable receivers we had Saturday were Wilson (4 of 6) and Hollister (2 of 3). We do need some WR's to step up, but we do have some kids who are catching a higher percentage of the balls that are thrown to them.

BA completed 60% of his passes in the first half but the passing game was helped by the fact that we ran the ball 25 times in the first half averaging 6.8 yards per carry. In the second half we ran the ball 8 times for a net of 2 total yards. Yeah, I know Auburn was stacking the line and sending run blitzes, but you have to run more than 8 times and you absolutely should make more than a net of 2 yards.

But what bothered me more than anything was that Chaney wasn't making sure that we had "hot" receivers to dump the ball off to in order to back the defense off. Forget about BA, it is Chaney and his lack of counters to Ellis Johnson's adjustments that bothers me.

[Hoggie17]

I would love to have Matt Jones with this group.

[razorjacket43]

Agreed, but if you could change one thing in the O right now and get 1 play maker, I think it would be better that it was a WR and keep BA.

I will give a +1 whether you care or not for that. I was unable to see the 2nd half due too the new marriage I had yesterday. I think we are headed down the road in

[OneTuskOverTheLine™]

Right now I would rather have a Play-maker at WR and keep BA. I bet KJ yesterday was thinking that one would had been a TD, that one a first down, that one a TD.

This.. We need Gragg and Pettway to follow Stewart and KJ. It would be the biggest influx of hands team talent that the UofA has seen since the Warren boys all stayed home...  +1

[MuskogeeHogFan]

I would love to have Matt Jones with this group.

As a QB or WR?

[Pig Worshipper]

I would love to have Matt Jones with this group.

So would I, or a Russell Wilson-type player, but, in most years, that's not going to happen.
Brandon Allen played very well against Auburn. I'll admit, I thought our receivers would be better this season. Certainly, at least in the first game, I was wrong about that. But it's a nice long season and our guys just got a taste, a mere taste, of how good they can be with their play in the first half against Auburn.
If Coach Bielema can keep them focused and keep them from getting down on themselves, they are going to rear up and shock a couple of Big Boys in the SEC this year and we won't need an All-SEC quarterback to do it. We just need Brandon Allen playing as well as he did this past Saturday.

[Cure]

Allen just has to test the defense more vertically, he'll be fine.

[three hog night]

Allen just has to test the defense more vertically, he'll be fine.

Brandon Allen is a good qb that has proven the injury was the factor last year by how he played.   The national media raved about him but our own "fans" are not smart enough to recognize it.   We need 3 good WR's and this offense is tough.

[three hog night]

We could have had a NFL QB, and it really wouldn't have mattered. If the ball hits you in the hands or on your numbers and you drop it, what more can a QB really do? Hopefully over the next 3 games some of our young guys step up.

Yes I agree and add that BA was hit while passing to create the INT.   The defender erupted on him quickly as he was winding up the pass.  We can win with BA and has thrown the 50 yard play action pass down the seam.  Too bad our fans are not knowledgeable enough to recognize it.

[Kevin]

better play makers on the outside will make ba a better play maker

[Quickdraw]

BA played as good as any other QB this weekend. The offense and defense did not play for 4 quarters. Most of the mistakes in this game are correctable. But the only way we fix the WR problem is to recruit our way out of it. And I hope these WR prove me wrong...

[HiggiePiggy]

BA played pretty well.  What I really would like to see are the coaches getting on these receivers hard.   Make these guys fear for their jobs.  It gets old seeing exactly what we saw last year with the reciever core. 

Catch the damn balls. 

[farmhawg]

I was impressed by the QB play.

BA played good enough to win the game.  Still need tackling to win.

[HVHog]

BA constantly gets put in bad situations by Chaney. Not Mallett, Ferguson, or Stoerner could've done much with the 2nd half gameplan.

agree wholeheartedly!

[FANONTHEHILL]

Allen looked like a serviceable QB yesterday but however I agree we need special at Arkansas. BA showed improvement from last season and we have to hope he continues to grow. The only negative thing was the interception. I thought he should of took the sack and lets punt the ball. Overall good game from the QB position.

He was stepping into his throw and was hit in the chin by a blitzer that Hunter Henry whiffed on his block. That pick was not on Allen. By the way, it was an illegal hit on Allen. A launch and hit to the QB's chin with the crown of the helmet is supposed to be illegal.

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[Hogwild]

People blaming BA for the pick 6 is troubling. Watching the replay multiple times, I dont think he ever saw the guy coming from his blindside. He had the receiver open, but it took longer to get open than we needed.

I agree with what other posters have said and he does share in the blame for that pic 6.  Like you stated he never saw the guy coming.  He needed to recognized blitz, & change to the correct protection. He does that and we complete a long pass, instead of them scoring a touchdown.  That said it was only one play and BA looked much better than last season.

[FANONTHEHILL]

He doesn't need to make the check. The TE has the blitz. Missed block = pick six.  A 6'6", 250lb TE has got to at least slow down a blitzing d-back.

[jcharkansas]

Wr's catching the ball would greatly help the offense.....

I'm thinking the end around with hatcher maybe the only place he should get the ball, or some other hand off situation.  We have got to have wrs that can catch. I have been a huge BA downer but he played well and this wasn't on him imo.
On another note did Henry only have 1 catch? Seems like we can use him so much more with his hands.