Razorbacks Must Respond To Adversity Saturday Against Bulldogs

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — When the Arkansas Razorbacks and coach Ryan Silverfield trot through "The A" and on to the sideline of CommunityAmerica Razorback Stadium on Saturday, they will be facing their toughest test of the young season with the No. 2 Georgia Bulldogs in town.

Fresh off a 70-20 rout of Western Kentucky this past Saturday, Georgia might be out for more blood as veteran coach Kirby Smart looks to take the youngest team in the country to a College Football Playoff bid and more this season.

Arkansas is off to a disappointing 1-1 start with a 43-10 loss to Utah last weekend that was just a four-point game through the first 15 minutes. The Utes then proceeded to score twice in the final two minutes of the first half and took a 29-3 lead into the locker room.

The Razorbacks were only scored on twice in the second half, but it didn't matter as the offense failed to get anything going with just 305 total yards on the night.

“There should be hurt....there should be frustration, but also the ability and the attitude and the approach to get it fixed and get it fixed right now,” Silverfield emphasized during his Monday press conference. “And I think to a 'T,' every single person in this program understands what we put on display Saturday is not good enough.

"No excuses, no explanations, get it fixed and get it fixed... right now.”

Silverfield's team-first mentality was apparent Monday because he is extremely careful not to call out a single position group, coach or player from the podium.

The old saying goes, "win as a team, lose as a team," and Silverfield knows his team didn't just lose Saturday night at Utah. They were blown out, out-classed and lacked effort in nearly every facet of the game.

This loss goes deeper than the culture Silverfield has set.

What everyone saw Saturday night looked like a team whose fight disappeared midway through the second quarter, which resembles the mentality from previous coaching regimes at the UA.

The Georgia game is going to be a test they probably won't pass with flying colors, but if they show up unprepared, lack effort and show little resistance in defeat then this program is going to take a nosedive in a hurry.

That's if the season hasn't done so already.

Silverfield said fixing this whole thing starts with him. We'll see how this team responds and if they respond to the hard coaching in preparation for their SEC opener against Georgia.

He acknowledged as much on Monday during his preview of the Bulldogs on Monday with a message to fans that they all deserve better than what's been received so far.

“Listen, I love our fans, and here's the deal, I’m glad they care enough,” Silverfield said. “I'm glad they're passionate enough. We've got the best fan base in the country, and so it's better than them not caring and not wanting to see a better product.

"And rightfully so. They deserve it. When I took this job, I said the fans deserve a winner, and we're working very, very hard every single day to try to provide that for them.”

Silverfield spent his first nine months on the job telling everyone Arkansas would be the best in the nation at the controllables. Showing some sort of effort, discipline, toughness or refusing to fold when things start going sideways will do more for fan and team morale than anything.

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