Arkansas Football: Razorbacks cruise in Chad Morris’ debut

Chad Morris was successful in his debut as Arkansas football coach, leading the Razorbacks past Tony Romo’s alma mater Saturday, 55-20.

Eastern Illinois, known for producing both Romo and Jimmy Garoppolo, could have used one of those two against the Razorbacks of the SEC.

Morris, in his first season after a short stint at SMU, watched as Arkansas racked up over 400 yards, many of which came through the air.

A quick look at the roster might have left one to believe the Razorbacks would prefer to keep it on the ground. That was not the case, as they ran for only 80 yards on 37 attempts.

Instead, Ty Storey was, literally, the story. Storey, who battled Cole Kelley all summer for the starting quarterback job, completed 12 of 17 for 261 yards with three touchdowns and added another score on the ground. He helped the Razorbacks jump out to a 38-6 lead with his three passing touchdowns in the second quarter.

Kelley came on in relief and finished 9-of-12 for 92 yards including a touchdown.

There is some concern, though, with the ground attack. Devwah Whaley failed to get going, averaging just 2.8 yards per carry on 10 attempts. He did score a touchdown.

Maleek Williams had 17 yards and former “Last Chance U” star Rakeem Boyd was held to 12 yards on six carries.

If Arkansas is going to be a legit threat in the SEC, figuring out the rushing game will need to happen sooner rather than later.

The Panthers, who have won their conference title 19 times and own four FCS playoff victories, went just 6-5 a season ago. Eastern Illinois showed good balance on offense, passing for 230 yards and running for another 127, which included 3.1 yards per carry.

Five fumbles, though, all lost by the Panthers, doomed any hopes of an upset.

Arkansas has two more non-conference games to prepare for the league schedule, traveling to Colorado State next week before hosting North Texas. It will be a big SEC opener for Morris and the Razorbacks, as they head to Auburn.