The Arkansas Razorbacks were just a part of all the history made on Saturday during Week 6. There were a ton of ranked teams upset on Saturday, whether it was Vanderbilt beating No. 1 Alabama, No. 11 USC losing to Minnesota, No. 10 Michigan losing to Washington, No. 9 Missouri losing to Texas A&M, No. 22 Louisville losing to SMU, and No. 24 UNLV losing to Syracuse. It was chaos on Saturday, and the Razorbacks pretty much topped it all off by beating No. 4 Tennessee at home.
The Razorbacks got their first win over a top-five ranked opponent as an unranked opponent since 1999, when they beat the Tennessee Volunteers. They are now on a four-game win streak against the Vols, which is a stat you wouldn't think to be true. But, the Hogs have had their number.
On Saturday night, it started with the defense. Coming into the game, the Tennessee Volunteers had one of the best offenses in the entire country, with a handful of games where they scored well over 50 points prior to this game. But, Travis Williams, the Razorbacks' defensive coordinator, has turned this unit around and proved that on Saturday. The battle of the trenches between the Razorbacks defensive line and Tennessee's offensive line frankly wasn't close.
As you often hear in football talk -- the Hogs just wanted it more. They were coming off of a loss to Texas A&M, and they should have won easily but blew it at the end. So, there was a lot to prove, and they did just that. It was easily the biggest win by the Razorbacks in recent memory, as most would put it above the Texas win a few years ago.
The Razorbacks as sweet as the win was, may not have wanted it after all. Sure, it definitely doesn't look that way when you see the fans storm the field and take down the goalpost to carry down Dickson Street, but, if you think about it, Sunday morning fans may be having weird feelings about the win.
This fan base is ready for a fresh start, and as unfortunate as it is, they want head coach Sam Pittman out of town. It's just time for a new start, and Pittman did what he could at his best, which was winning nine games his second season , two years removed from two straight two-win seasons.
But, that was the peak of what this experience with be with him as head coach. Fans want another head coach, and they thought it would happen this past offseason. However, the hiring of offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino, who was a very successful head coach with the Hogs 15 or so years ago, saved him his job.
So did beating No. 4 Tennessee.
This win only helps keep him around. He beat another big-time opponent during his time in Arkansas, showing that he can win big-time games. That's not really what the fan base wants, even though it was such a big win.
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