Last Saturday, in Starkville, Mississippi the Razorbacks dropped their third straight game after losing 40-17 to the Bulldogs. The Hogs now travel to Provo, Utah to take on the BYU Cougars and look to get back to their early season’s winning ways. In what will be the first-ever meeting between these two programs, what will the Razorbacks have to do to get the win? We will look at three keys to an Arkansas win at BYU. What are these keys?
#1 Stability At QB
In last week’s game, Razorback fans would see Cade Fortin and Malik Hornsby take snaps at this position with starter KJ Jefferson out. Fortin would get the start but finish 2/6 for 8 yards in short work. The spark offensively would take place when the dual-threat Hornsby would take the field. Hornsby would finish the day 8/17 for 234 with one touchdown and two interceptions. Jefferson will make his 21st start for the Hogs on Saturday in Provo. Arkansas has scored 30 or more points in 12 of his 20 starts and they look for this to continue this week. Keeping Jefferson upright will be a point of emphasis as the hometown Cougars only average one-and-a-half sacks per game and rank 102 nationally in this category. This important key to an Arkansas win at BYU is one that Razorback fans will be keeping a close eye on.
#2 Run With Purpose
When you get into the defensive stats of BYU there is one thing they do not do well and that is stop the run. Coming into this week the Cougars rank 100th in the nation at stopping the run, averaging 174.5 yards per game. If Arkansas can establish the running game early, they can run right past the Cougars. Jefferson is always a threat as well as Raheim Sanders and others allowing the Hogs to continue their 233.8 yards per game they have averaged in 2022. The Razorbacks will need to keep running at their 11th-in-the-nation running attack to get the win. This key to an Arkansas win at BYU could be the easiest based on how this season has gone.
#3. Defense Has To Play Better
Arkansas comes in ranks 121st in total defense nationally. This is one stat that all Hogs fans don’t like to see. Defensive Coordinator, Barry Odom, has a quite warm seat from the fans and will need to get his defense fixed fast. The Cougars average 417 yards per game {264 through air, 153 on ground}, and the Hogs have had trouble stopping any form of offense over the past few games.
For the Razorbacks to stop their losing streak at 3 they must play well on this side of the ball. Odom’s job may be riding on this unit’s performance starting this week. Arkansas will have to defend the pass better than their 127th rankings in Provo. This key to an Arkansas win at BYU will be the most difficult to achieve. This key will also be the most important to walk out of Provo with a win.
How to Watch?
These two teams will meet for the first time as mentioned above. Provo, Utah is not an easy place to play and luckily for Arkansas, the game is not at night. These two will kickoff at 2:30 pm on ESPN. Arkansas will need to accomplish these three keys in addition to others to get the win. Can Arkansas get back to its winning ways? We will have this and more answers on Saturday.
