Arkansas Sees Ground Game Emerge in 34-7 Loss at Texas A&M

The Razorbacks averaged 5.2 yards per carry behind Braylen Russell, Sutton Smith and a reshuffled offensive line in their SEC defeat to the Aggies.

Arkansas dropped to 0-2 in Southeastern Conference play with a 34-7 loss to Texas A&M on Saturday, Oct. 3, in College Station, Texas. The Razorbacks fell to 2-3 overall, while the Aggies moved to 3-2 and 1-2 in the league. One encouraging sign emerged for the visitors: a running game that finally found traction in the season's fifth week.

Excluding a sack of quarterback KJ Jackson, Arkansas compiled 110 yards on 21 rushes, an average of 5.2 yards per carry. That per-attempt rate would place the Razorbacks among the top 40 teams nationally, and it came against a Texas A&M rushing defense ranked in the top 50.

The ground game was expected to power the Arkansas offense in Ryan Silverfield's first season as head coach, with Braylen Russell and Sutton Smith slated to lead the way. Production had been scarce through the first month, but both backs found room against the Aggies. Smith turned in his most productive game in an Arkansas uniform, with 41 yards on six carries and five catches out of the backfield.

Russell ran seven times for 40 yards. His longest gain, a 30-yard sprint on a third-and-1 in the third quarter, came with him aligned at fullback on a play design out of Bobby Petrino's playbook. Cam Settles, who got the start against Tulsa, was the third back in the rotation this time and finished with 11 yards on four attempts.

Silverfield indicated the Razorbacks widened their rushing concepts against Texas A&M. "We spread out the formations a little bit," he said, adding that "the blame on the run game is for everybody involved with it... Sometimes, that was a tight end, and so some plays, we didn't involve a tight end. We use different varieties of things."

The staff also changed personnel up front, inserting Adam Hawkes at right tackle in place of Bryant Williams. The switch lined up with Arkansas' best yards-per-carry figure and its fewest sacks allowed in any game this season. "I think we needed to have improved play at the right tackle position," Silverfield said. "I think (Hawkes) did some pretty good things. We're going to continue to look."

Jackson, the Arkansas quarterback, noticed the difference up front. "They were opening holes, we were running the ball, and honestly, pass-protection was pretty good as well all game," Jackson said.

The positives carried qualifications. Texas A&M held a three-score lead for the entire second half, forcing Arkansas to play at pace and pursue a comeback through the air rather than stay committed to the run. On the opening drive of the second half, the Razorbacks were turned away on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line, with Russell stopped for a 2-yard loss as the Aggies kept their 31-7 advantage.

The broader picture remains sobering. Arkansas has scored 34 total points across three games against Power 4 opponents this season and is still searching for its first SEC victory as conference play continues.