Sep 12, 2007, 14:46 GMT
Tuscaloosa, AL - SEC rivals will collide in Tuscaloosa this weekend as the Alabama Crimson Tide welcomes the 16th-ranked Arkansas Razorbacks to town.
Arkansas has only played one game so far this season, as the club beat Troy by a 46-26 final back on September 1st. The Razorbacks will play their next four games in the state of Arkansas after this weekend's clash, and they are fortunate enough not to have the Florida Gators on the 2007 schedule.
Alabama moved to 2-0 under new coach Nick Saban with a 24-10 decision over Vanderbilt on Saturday. The Tide will play its next two and three of the next four at home beginning this weekend. With Arkansas, Georgia and Florida State on the schedule in succession, we will find out a great deal about this group from Tuscaloosa.
Alabama holds a 9-8 edge in the all-time series with Arkansas, but the Razorbacks posted a memorable 24-23 overtime victory last season.
Arkansas possesses the best player in college football in tailback Darren McFadden, who was second in the Heisman Trophy voting a year ago as a sophomore. A big back with tremendous power, explosive speed and staggering versatility, there is no limit to what McFadden can do on the field. In the opener against Troy, he scored on a 12-yard touchdown run in the second quarter and threw a 42-yard touchdown pass in the third. There is particular alignment called the 'Wildcat Formation' in which McFadden lines up as the team's quarterback, representing a legitimate dual threat. That formation allows both he and fellow tailback Felix Jones to be on the field at the same time. Jones, another versatile performer, returned a kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown against Troy and also had a 44-yard touchdown run. McFadden ran for 151 yards on 24 carries, while Jones totaled 129 yards on only 12 attempts. Those two players take pressure off quarterback Casey Dick, an adequate performer.
The Arkansas defense did not put forth its best effort against Troy in the opener, as the Trojans were able to put 26 points on the board. It should be mentioned, however, that Troy is a solid opponent with a tremendous quarterback who has proven capable of doing damage against the stiffest of competition. In that opening tilt, Arkansas yielded 162 rushing yards on 31 attempts and 214 passing yards. Still, only 17-of-49 throws were completed against the Razorbacks, a strong stat for the defense. With one interception, one sack and no fumble recoveries, there weren't many impact plays made by the Hogs. Michael Grant, Jerrell Norton and Weston Dacus recorded seven tackles apiece in the contest.
Alabama scored just two offensive touchdowns this past weekend, and one of the scores was the result of starting a drive at the Vanderbilt one-yard line. So although it is hard to give the offense a great deal of credit for the win over the Commodores, it is fair to say that the unit put forth a solid showing. Without question, the man most deserving of praise is Terry Grant, as the tailback rushed for 173 yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries. He also caught three passes for 26 yards, falling just short of 200 total yards for the night. Quarterback John Parker Wilson put forth a modest effort, completing 14-of-28 passes for 150 yards with one interception. Grant has rushed for 307 yards and five touchdowns through two outings, and he appears more than capable of carrying the load this season. Wilson has connected on 58.5 percent of his passes for just 339 yards, and the signal caller has yet to throw a touchdown. On the outside, DJ Hall is a dangerous receiver.
Vanderbilt posted 13 first downs and only 232 total yards against the Alabama defense on Saturday. The Tide permitted a mere 57 rushing yards and allowed less than half of the passes that they faced to be completed. With one takeaway and a pair of sacks, there was not an abundance of big plays, but there were enough to get the job done. The Alabama defense has been superb through two games, yielding 8.0 ppg and 239.5 total ypg. Darren Mustin and Rolando McClain currently lead the Tide in tackles with 13 apiece, and McClain has made two stops behind the line of scrimmage. Bobby Greenwood has only posted five tackles, but 3.5 of those have resulted in lost yardage.
© 2007 The Sports Network
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