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Alabama faces Arkansas in SEC opener

Sep 20, 2008 - 10:06 AM No. 13 Alabama (3-0) at Arkansas (2-0), 12:30 pm EDT

FAYETTEVILLE, Arkansas (Ticker) -- The last two Alabama-Arkansas games have come down to the final play, and Crimson Tide center Antoine Caldwell expects another physical battle this time.

The 13th-ranked Crimson Tide visit Arkansas on Saturday in the Southeastern Conference opener for both teams.

"It usually takes more than a day or two to recover from an Arkansas game," Caldwell said. "I started watching film of them and as usual, they are pretty big up front."

Last season at home, Alabama (3-0, 0-0 SEC West) rallied for a 41-38 victory over the Razorbacks as John Parker Wilson tossed a 4-yard touchdown pass to Matt Caddell with eight seconds remaining.

"The two-minute drill to end the game was awesome," Parker Wilson said. "It was something that I'll remember."

Alabama's last visit to Fayetteville in 2006 also produced a dramatic finish, as Mitch Mustain threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Ben Cleveland in the second overtime to give Arkansas a 24-23 victory.

Alabama enters Saturday's contest leading the Football Bowl Subdivision in rushing defense, yielding an average of 42.7 yards per game and 1.88 yards per carry.

Arkansas (2-0, 0-0 West) has won its first two games under coach Bobby Petrino but has been unimpressive doing it. The Razorbacks needed to rally in the fourth quarter to beat Western Illinois (28-24) and Louisiana-Monroe (28-27).

Arkansas had last week's game against Texas postponed until September 27 due to Hurricane Ike. However, the storm merely delayed what could be the most difficult four-game stretch in school history.

Over the next month, the Razorbacks face four opponents currently ranked in the top 13 as games against No. 7 Texas, No. 4 Florida and No. 9 Auburn follow.

Arkansas' struggles in the first two games can be partly attributed to the fact that it has yet to force a turnover this season while committing four.