The Arkansas Game

Auburn 65...University of Arkansas 43

I took a poll after the game. The question was,"If I told you that Arkansas would have 43 points on the board 46 minutes into the game, would you still go to the game?" The answer almost unanimously was "no". Of course, Arkansas laid an egg (goose egg?) in the last 14 minutes.

Finally we had an afternoon kickoff and the weather continued to be unelievably perfect. Okay, maybe it got a little warm, but 80 degrees with a breeze was nice in the shade. The East side of the stadium I'm sure was hot, but it was tolerable. CBS was in town and I guess their (useless) overhead camera does more tricks than ESPN's camera, because it took at least 9 (count 'em) wires to run and control their piece of...nevermind. Nova's flight time was just under 5 seconds. This is great if you are a punter, but pretty pathetic if you are a golden eagle.

The ballgame was a thriller and as expected, two high powered offenses dismantled two under powered defenses. As it turned out, the combined 108 points was the most ever by two SEC opponents. The Ryan Mallett - Cam Newton showdown didn't take place, however. Nick Fairley had a meeting with Mallett in the Arkansas backfield and Mallett left the game with a headache. Tyler Wilson took over the quarterback duties and looked like an All-American. I wish Mallett a speedy recovery along with Aairon Savage.

Something happened to my camera shutter, and I can't quite figure out what it was. When I got home, I had almost 500 pictures of the game. Even after I edited them, there were over 50 pictures. So...if the page is still loading as you are reading this, don't worry, it will stop sooner or later.

Behind The Head player of the game...Cam Newton. Just when you think you've seen Cam at his best, here he comes again. He had 188 net yards rushing (7.5 yards per carry) and 140 yards passing (10 of 14). That totaled 4 touchdowns.

Runnersup...The Offensive Line. While the defense was getting toasted for 43 points, the Big Nasties opened hole after hole for the Auburn backfield for a net 330 yards. Great job Mike Berry, Byron Isom, Brandon Mosley, Ryan Pugh and Lee Zimba!

CBS was in the house and the house was full!

Nick Fairley was on a mission to corral Ryan Mallett.

Mallett connected with Van Stumon for a 7 yards touchdown and the gauntlet was thrown.

Demond Washington responded with a 47 yards kickoff return. DW averaged over 30 yards per return on the day.

Lee Zimba (left arrow) and Ryan Pugh (right arrow) sealed off the middle of the line to allow Cam Newton escape for 22 yards.

Two plays later, Byron Isom and Mike Berry sealed off the Arkansas defenders again and Cam scored from the 5 yards line.

Zac Etheridge clobbered Cobi Hamilton after a 2 yards gain. Wrap him up Zac!

Mike McNeil evidently never saw the ball coming on this 16 yard Mallett to Hamilton completion.

It was on this play that Mallett was hurt. No, it is not a "horsecollar" penalty, because Mallett was still in the "box" (thanks, JJ). The ball was spotted inside the left hashmark before it was snapped. The picture on the ground shows the Referee closely monitoring the tackle. Strangely, Mallett played on the next play, handing the ball off to Broderick Green for a touchdown. The small picture on the right shows Mallett leaving the field after the touchdown.

Mario Fannin rushed for 60 yards during the game. 12 of them cam on this sweep to the left side.

This is all one play. It was only a 5 yard gain. How does he do it? I don't know, but I know for certain that Jerico Nelson (#31) doesn't know! On Cam's first touchdown, Cam dis the "Bo Jackson-Brian Bosworth Shuffle" on Nelson. No Knows!

Once again, this is all one play. This time it was for 40 yards. You can see Nelson in the first picture, but Kodi Burns chased him completely out of the play. That will look good on film!

In a heart stopping moment, Mario crossed the goal line...and after further review, the zebra in the sky said the ball did, too.

You don't really expect me to try to explain this do you?!?

Eric Smith opened a hole for Onterio McCalebb with a bone crushing block on linebacker Anthony Leon (under the arrow) and then Emory Blake unveiled another Auburn offensive weapon, the Boo! Block, which cleared the way for Onterio's 13 yard touchdown.

This is a closer look at the Boo! Block technique. Note the elevation required to Boo! your opponent off his feet!

What is it about Auburn that backup quarterbacks find so appealing? Tyler Wilson (top picture) first connected with Joe Adams for 24 yards and followed that with a 34 yard scoring strike to Greg Childs. Wilson could be even more dangerous in the future...he is a sophomore.

After being surrounded by Razorbacks, Newton rambled for 27 yards. He was only one Boo! Block away from pay dirt.

Wes Byrum made 3 field goals, one a 43 yarder and 8 (yes, 8) PATs. This one ended the first half with Auburn leading 27-21.

Arkansas closed the gap near the end of the 3rd quarter when Wilson connected with Ronnie Wingo for a 37 yard touchdown. 30-28.

Onterio took the ensuing kickoff back 99 yards to the one yard line where Cam Air departed the playing field on runway #1. 37-28 and feeling better.

The Razorback offense responded with a 3 play 80 yard drive that included a 54 yard Wilson to Childs bomb (top) and a 24 yard scoring strike to Joe Adams. 37-35 and not so happy.

Three plays into the 4th quarter, the Wilson-Childs connect scored again on a 23 yard catch and run. To make matters worse, the duo succeeded on the two-point PAT attempt. We were down 37-43...oh, woe is us!

Auburn marched down the field to retake the lead in 7 plays. The score came on a 15 yard short post route from Newton to Boo Blake. It was 44-43 when all hell broke loose.

Mike Blanc nabbed Broderick Green and Craig Stevens stripped the ball from him. Zac Etheridge picked up the ball and motored 47 yards to the endzone. After further review, Auburn led 51-43.

There wasn't a cloud in the sky when lightning struck again. Josh Bynes snagged a Wilson pass intended for Joe Adams and returned it to the Arkansas 7 yard line. Cam put Auburn up by 15 two plays later.

Three plays later, Bynes stepped in front of another errant Wilson pass and the Auburn offense was back on the field. After a warm up 9 yard run, Michael Dyer exploded for this 38 yard touchdown to wrap up the day's scoring spree.

On the day, there were 14 touchdowns, 3 field goals, 13 one point PATs and 1 two point PAT. Now that is what I call an old fashioned SEC defensive struggle!

Just think, next week we have Boudreaux and Thibodeaux bringing Looney Les to Auburn...get ready for a circus!