Say what you want to about this game, but it boils down a single word: payback.

Words cannot express the degree to which USC was humiliated in Fayetteville last season. At a school with precious little tradition on which to hang its hat and an overall record that defines mediocrity, nothing in more than a century of awful football compared to last season’s loss to Arkansas.

It still pushes the limits of one’s brain to consider the number of rushing yards allowed: 542. If you think about it hard, you can still feel that pit in your stomach as the numbers just kept rolling up in staggering chunks. The SEC has been playing football for a long time (76 years now), and only once in all that time, in all those games has someone rushed for 321 yards, the number Heisman Trophy candidate Daren McFadden tied with his performance against USC last season. And if that wasn’t more than enough, his counterpart Felix Jones could have been the SEC Offensive Player of the Week by himself with 170 yards rushing and three touchdowns.

Sure, USC’s offense played well enough — generally 36 points in a road game is more than enough to win — but the story by far was USC’s historic ineptitude. Don’t think those galactic rushing numbers aren’t on the minds of USC’s defensemen this week. Don’t think for a moment that they won’t be reminded of that game every day this week leading up to Saturday afternoon. And don’t believe for a second that USC can’t wait for Arkansas’ offense to line up in front of them and feel the brunt of their fury.

Make no mistake, Arkansas’ offensive line is not what it was a year ago. In fact, you can argue both sides well that either the Razorbacks or the Gamecocks possess the country’s worst offensive line. And while Arkansas’ Michael Smith is an outstanding tailback — the kind that if USC had, it would not have lost three conference games — he is no McFadden, no Jones.

And Columbia is not Fayetteville, as those pig-headed Razorback fans who make the trip will discover (hey, I’m not being mean — they wear plastic pigs on their heads, OK?).
Knowing that this will be the last time USC fans get to see the best defense in school history perform at home, you’d better believe Williams-Brice will be filled to capacity and loud, loud, loud.

In fact, I almost feel sorry for Arkansas’ offense coming in. Almost. But more than sorrow, I must confess that instead I’m harboring a kind of sick glee anticipating the physical destruction that will be heaped upon Petrino’s Piglets. Already this year USC got revenge over Houston Nutt’s Ole Miss team which has beaten Florida, Auburn and Arkansas this season, and now it’s time for the Razorbacks themselves to come get their whoopin’.

Not since USC’s game against N.C. State in 1987 have I believed with every aspect of rationale summonable that the Gamecocks will destroy a conference opponent with a terrible vengeance and righteous anger. And while USC’s offense this season is a far cry from 1987’s, it is good enough to score more than enough points to win this game.

Arkansas’ strength is in its passing game, and yet under defensive coordinator Ellis Johnson’s 4-2-5 scheme featuring an extra defensive back, pass defense is its trademark (first in the SEC, seventh in the nation). What’s more, knowing teams are going to have to pass to have success —  like Tennessee tried to do last week — only opens the floodgates for USC’s pass rushers, who collected six sacks against the Volunteers, a team that with almost the same offensive line gave up only four in all of 2007.

There’s simply no scenario in my mind where Arkansas scores more than 17 points, and that’s only if they get help through offensive turnovers or poor officiating, which the Gamecocks suffered against UT (one missed fumble call, one missed penalty on an interception that would have ruled the play dead). Factor in USC’s recent penchant on defense for the turnover, and well, it’s going to be a bad day to call yourself a Razorback. Payback is, after all, a bitch, and Arkansas’ turn at the whipping post comes now. 

Let us know what you think. Email thesideline@free-times.com. Check out Ron Aiken’s new Side Line blog online at free-times.com! Also, listen to Ron five hours before each home game telecast on WNKT 107.5 The Game.