STARKVILLE — Mississippi State football coach Dan Mullen sees on film the rebuilding project Bret Bielema has started at Arkansas.
Bielema’s job reminds Mullen of the work he faced in 2009 in Starkville when he had to implement a new offense and played a large number of freshmen and underclassmen.
“It looks like he’s trying to play a lot of young guys,” Mullen said Monday.
Underclassmen have made 76 starts this season for Arkansas (3-7, 0-6 Southeastern Conference) in Bielema’s first year with the program. Freshmen have made 19 starts, while redshirt freshmen have started seven times and sophomores 50. Underclassmen have accounted for 94.9 percent of Arkansas’ total rushing yards, 92.1 percent of total offense, 86 percent of total passing yards, 98.2 percent of kickoff return yards, 79.3 percent of all-purpose yards, 55.3 percent of receiving yards, 50 percent of forced fumbles, and 47.1 percent of scoring.
Unfortunately for Bielema, the former coach at Wisconsin, it is difficult to win in the SEC when you have to rely that much on young players.
“I know where we’re going and I can see it,” Bielema said. “I point out to my coaches Sunday we’re the least penalized team in the SEC. That hasn’t gotten us a win yet, but when that kicks in with an offense that plays the right way and the defense that plays the right way, you’re halfway home.”
Running back Alex Collins is the first freshman in SEC history to record three-straight 100-yard rushing games, and is the first in NCAA history since Oklahoma’s Adrian Peterson had nine straight in 2004. The last freshman to rush for at least 100 yards in his first three games was Wisconsin’s P.J. Hill, a redshirt freshman under Bielema in 2006. Collins rushed for 131 yards vs. Louisiana, 172 vs. Samford, and 115 vs. Southern Miss. Collins added a fourth 100-yard game with 116 yards vs. No. 10 Texas A&M.
Mullen sees Collins’ production and the powerful running game Bielema has installed and knows how Wisconsin went to three-straight Rose Bowls under his leadership. Collins leads all NCAA freshmen with 946 total rushing yards. His average of 94.6 rushing yards per game is fifth in the SEC and 34th in the nation. Collins averages 100.9 all-purpose yards per game, 14th in the SEC, and is the only freshman ranked in the top 47 in the conference.
“They have some extremely talented guys with two very talented running backs and a big, physical offensive line,” Mullen said. “They have run it on everybody.”
Bielema and Arkansas will rely on that running game at 11:21 a.m. Saturday (WCBI) when it plays host to MSU (4-6, 1-5) in Little Rock, Ark. He referred to an offense predicated on running the ball as “real American football” this summer in Hoover, Ala., at the SEC Media Days. Mullen recognizes Bielema will bring some excitement to the league once he finds the right players for his system.
“To survive as a head coach in the SEC, you better have some confidence,” Mullen said. “I think I’m a pretty, shy, and introverted person, and other people that know me think it’s the exact opposite. Bret isn’t going to change who he is and the football he’s going to coach. Three years from now, it’ll sound a little different to everybody.”
Bielema’s job is to end the school’s longest SEC losing streak, which is 10 games. If Arkansas loses to MSU, it will reach the top five longest losing streaks in SEC history. South Carolina’s 21-game skid from 1998-2000 is the longest.
“I don’t know if it’s called keeping your blinders on, but it really hasn’t been negative to me,” Bielema said. “I don’t spend any time on any blogs or any of that jazz. I leave that to my wife. I think the part I really enjoy is the daily challenge. These seniors, our best recruiters are our seniors. Our seniors understand what’s being built.”
Follow Matt Stevens on Twitter @matthewcstevens.
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