Two Arkansas players suspended for Texas Bowl vs. Texas

The Arkansas Razorbacks will be without two players in the secondary when the Hogs take on the Texas Longhorns in the Texas Bowl on December 29 in Houston.

Senior cornerback Carroll Washington and junior safety Rohan Gaines were suspended on Saturday by head coach Bret Bielema for unspecified violations of team rules.

A junior college transfer, Washington had 17 tackles, one pass broken up, and one interception on the season. He was a starter early in the season before being replaced in the lineup by sophomore DJ Dean, who has actually been much more productive this season with two interceptions and five passes broken up. Dean is a Texas native from Newton who is a cousin of 2014 Longhorns signee Kevin Shorter.

Gaines helped put away the game against Ole Miss when he returned an interception 100 yards for a touchdown:

From Georgia, Gaines was active as a starter in the secondary with 59 tackles, five passes broken up, and a forced fumble. Behind him at safety is freshman Josh Liddell, who has 10 tackles this season.

The losses could be significant for an Arkansas secondary that has struggled at times this season in giving up 386 passing yards and four touchdowns to Texas A&M and 331 yards on only 18 completions to Mississippi State. On the year the Hogs tied for 71st in the country in giving up 18 passing plays of 30 or more yards.

However, on the whole the Razorbacks defended the pass well, ranking No. 21 in S&P against the pass.