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UA TodaySCOTT CAINARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE LOOKING BACK SATURDAY REWIND All started out well enough in Arkansas' 27-7 loss to South Carolina on Saturday. It was scoreless after the first quarter and the Razorbacks were turning the game -- to borrow one of basketball Coach Nolan Richardson's favorite phrases -- into a street fight. "That was a game we felt like deep down inside that we could win if it's played just right by winning the turnover margin and stopping [South Carolina tailback Derek Watson] and playing field position," Coach Houston Nutt said Sunday. "The first quarter went exactly like we wanted it to go. We wanted it to go just like that for four quarters, somehow get on the board, make it like a 21-17 type of game." When South Carolina missed the extra point after scoring its second touchdown, Arkansas went into halftime trailing 13-0. Nutt said he and the other coaches believed they would end up winning 14-13. But hope ran out after two third-quarter mistakes led to South Carolina touchdowns. Fred Talley fumbled at the Gamecocks' 5-yard line and Richard Smith muffed a punt. Smith's miscue "just deflated us," Nutt said. It seemed like something went wrong in every area for at least a little while. "Really, after watching the film, I was proud of the effort," Nutt said. "I was proud of the way we prepared during the week. I think we're going to build off that." The preparation and concentration, particularly the night before the game, couldn't have been better, Nutt said. "Y'all didn't see anybody at 7-11, you didn't see anybody going talking to their girlfriends at 10 o'clock or 10:30," Nutt said of the Friday night at a Columbia, S.C., hotel. "That was as good as it got as far as road etiquette." MISSING IN ACTION In trying to deny the big play, turnovers have all but dried up. Arkansas has collected nine turnovers through six games. Last year's team had 22 at the same point in the season. Especially noticeable has been the inability to force fumbles -- the Razorbacks have forced only three so far. This time last season, the defense had grabbed 11 fumbles. Part of the reason the turnovers have declined is because the defense has been playing more conservatively by blitzing less. On the upside, playing softer has limited the big play. When Arkansas tried to blitz more against South Carolina, quarterback Phil Petty burned it with quick reads and throws, and the Gamecocks only committed one turnover. "I still think we can get some more turnovers," Coach Houston Nutt said. "I still think we can be more conscious of ripping the ball out." MORE HELP, PLEASE Fred Talley's third-quarter fumble, his first in a game since his sophomore season of high school, was not all his fault. Talley should have held onto the ball, but blockers missed defenders who destroyed the play and forced the ball out even though Talley had both hands on it, Coach Houston Nutt said. "He's hitting a wall before he even takes a step," Nutt said. It was the first game back for the sophomore tailback after missing the previous two with a broken hand. The fumble did not happen because of the injury, Talley said. LINE BLURS ON GOOD, BAD It has been an underachieving year for an offensive line that returned four starters. Injuries have disrupted the chemistry. But even when the linemen were healthy and they had tailback Cedric Cobbs, they had trouble blocking Southwest Missouri State, an NCAA I-AA program. "We're on the ground too much and fundamentally we've got to be better," Coach Houston Nutt said. South Carolina sacked UA quarterbacks three times, chased them several other times and, worst of all, injured all three. During one second-quarter series, the pass rush looked like a jailbreak with quarterback Robby Hampton getting smashed as he threw on first down and getting sacked on second and third down. After the last one, right guard Kenny Sandlin jumped into the face of right tackle Gary Hobbs, who missed a blocked. Hobbs said he could not hear the snap count because of the crowd noise. Not all of the quarterback chasing was the line's fault. At times, Hampton held onto the ball too long, a back might have missed a block or a receiver might not have run his route correctly. "You watch the tape, see what happened," offensive line coach Mike Markuson said. "That's how you get better. Shoot, we've got a lot of things we've got to get better at. It will come together. "We did a lot of good things, too. I'm not going to sit here and make up anything. But we had some good drives and we ran the ball at times. That's what we have to do more consistently and protect a little better and throw and catch." SIDELINES  Steadman Campbell has replaced Richard Smith as the punt returner after Smith fumbled his second punt of the season. Arkansas has fumbled a punt in all three SEC games. Richie Butler moved to 10th nationally and second in the SEC in punting with a 44-yard average, but Arkansas is tied for 51st in net punting, which reflects Butler outkicking the coverage and players missing tackles. Tailbacks Brandon Holmes and Fred Talley will continue to share time, Coach Houston Nutt said.LOOKING AHEAD UP NEXT Arkansas (4-2, 1-2 SEC) does not play again until Oct. 28 at Auburn (5-2, 3-2) and will use the bye week to rest injured players. "I don't like open dates but it is a must for us," Coach Houston Nutt said. "It is really perfect timing. "And we've still won four out of six games. I'm still excited if you look at the conference race on our side. Two weeks from now it could be a lot different for everybody." Alabama and Mississippi State are tied for first in the West with one loss each. The other teams have two losses each. Arkansas did not practice Sunday. The team will work out Monday-Thursday and take the weekend off. BOO AMONG INJURED One player tore a knee ligament, another might have and top offensive threat Boo Williams dislocated his shoulder in the South Carolina game. Williams has not been ruled out of the Oct. 28 game against Auburn, trainer Dean Weber said Sunday. Rehabilitation has been ordered for the injury instead of surgery, but that could change. If Williams cannot play, then Arkansas will have lost its top two offensive weapons. Tailback Cedric Cobbs suffered a separated shoulder in the Alabama game and is out for the season. Although defenses had schemed heavily against Williams, he led the team with 24 receptions, 436 yards and 4 touchdowns. Reserve quarterback Jared McBride of Nashville tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee and is out for the season. He also suffered cartilage damage when South Carolina defensive tackle Cecil Caldwell crunched him two plays after McBride entered in the fourth quarter. He will have surgery within two weeks, Weber said. Derrick Johnson, who took over the bandit job four games ago, has an injury that shows signs of being an ACL tear. An imaging scan did not reveal a tear but that does not mean one isn't there. He will be evaluated again in a few days. Johnson started the season at rover but began playing regularly at bandit during the Alabama game, displacing senior Jeremiah Harper. He started at bandit against Georgia and South Carolina, missing the Louisiana-Monroe game in between because of a pinched nerve. Harper will move back into the starting role. HARRIS WILL STAY OUT Coaches considered bringing back junior cornerback Harold Harris this week if his broken arm had healed enough, but Houston Nutt ruled out the possibility Sunday. "It will be two more weeks before he can go and it's just not worth it," Nutt said. "We'd rather save him." Harris should qualify for a medical hardship that would restore a season of eligibility. COACH LOSES FATHER The father of co-defensive coordinator John Thompson died Sunday morning in Forrest City. He'd had a heart attack four weeks ago and had surgery, Coach Houston Nutt said. Nutt said he had sulked over Arkansas' loss to South Carolina until he received a phone call from Thompson early Sunday morning about his father, whose first name and age was not immediately available. "That puts things in a little bit more perspective," Nutt said.
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