October 15, 2026 at 3:22 p.m.
by Tom Murphy
FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas defied the odds last week against Tennessee.
The Razorbacks won the turnover battle 3-1 but lost the game, 24-17.
First-year coach Ryan Silverfield, asked about the team’s turnover troubles of the previous two years before the season, stressed the turnover margin would be one of his leading keys to victory.
Silverfield and his staff harp on “OTB,” or own the ball, on the offensive side and “TTB,” take the ball, on the other side.
Statistics show teams that win the turnover battle in college football win approximately 70% to 77% of their games. Winning the margin by two, as the Razorbacks did, comes with an expected win rate higher than 80%.
Add in the fact the Razorbacks were at home, and they clearly let a big upset opportunity slip from their fingers.
“Any time you go into a game and you get three takeaways — the fumble and then obviously the two interceptions — that should be a game changer,” Silverfield said on his radio show on Wednesday. “And I told them, I said, ‘Guys, if we can get that and it can continue to be contagious with these takeaways, we’re going to be in every game, and actually we should be winning them, right?”
Arkansas (2-4, 0-3 SEC) hopes to capitalize on that turnover-forcing momentum when it takes on Vanderbilt (3-3, 0-3 SEC) on Saturday at 6 p.m. in Nashville.
The Commodores had their own turnover troubles last week, losing 2 of 3 fumbles and throwing 2 interceptions during a 52-17 home loss to Ole Miss.
The turnovers were on the top of coach Clark Lea’s list of laments during his Tuesday press conference.
“That was a game that was going to challenge us no matter what, but any time you’re turning the ball over four times you’re going to have a hard time winning in this league,” Lea said.
More from WholeHogSports: Arkansas defense to face a second young QB in a row in Vandy’s Jared Curtis
Tennessee coach Josh Heupel’s team came up one short of Vanderbilt’s four, but the Razorbacks didn’t make them pay.
The Volunteers won by a touchdown because they controlled the final 5 minutes of the game and because their turnovers resulted in only 7 points for the Razorbacks.
The lone takeaway for the Volunteers, Xavier Gilliam’s strip sack and fumble recovery against KJ Jackson on the first series of the game, was more impactful than two of the Razorbacks’ turnovers gained. That’s because the Razorbacks were in scoring position at the Tennessee 19 when Gilliam made his big play.
Arkansas failed to cash in with a field goal on the final play of the first half after Quincy Rhodes brought back a fumble return 58 yards to the Hogs’ 20 with three seconds remaining.
The Razorbacks’ last takeaway, Shelton Lewis’ interception and 11-yard return to the Arkansas 42, resulted in a three-and-out series and a punt.
Their middle takeaway, Miguel Mitchell’s interception just before going out of bounds, directly led to a 63-yard Arkansas touchdown and a 14-7 lead.
More from WholeHogSports: What Arkansas coach Ryan Silverfield said on his radio show on Wednesday
However, the Razorbacks were unable to sustain that momentum in the fourth quarter.
Silverfield, asked in the preseason if he thought Arkansas could turn its fortunes around in a hurry, made no promises about an immediate fix, but he did say his team would ace the “controllables,” such as penalties and taking care of the ball.
“You’re going to have to piece the pieces together,” Silverfield said. “I can tell you this: We’re going to be the best in the country and what we can control. And that’s … the attitude, the effort, the approach, every single day. Those things we’re going to be the absolute best in the country. But that’s something we’ve got to work to build.”
Arkansas’ 3-1 win in the takeaway department was its second “win” in that category this season following a 2-1 margin during a 35-6 win over Tulsa. It brought the Razorbacks up to a minus-1 in turnover margin on the season, a figure tied for 77th in the country.
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