College Football Game of the Week: No. 13 Arkansas vs. No. 17 Ole Miss
Both No. 13 Arkansas and No. 17 Ole Miss are looking to get back on their feet, as both teams met, arguably, the two best teams in college football last weekend.
Arkansas was shut out by No. 2 Georgia and the Rebels couldn’t get the ball moving against No. 1 Alabama. However, this matchup in Oxford gives both teams a chance to get right back in the mix.
Arkansas looked like a completely different team against Georgia as opposed to a few weeks ago. Granted, Georgia has arguably the best defense in the country and talent on offense.
However, to be successful in the SEC, there have to be points scored in bunches.
Arkansas didn’t make many mistakes that showed up in the stat sheets but couldn’t do the little things and piece together successes.
The Razorbacks had zero turnovers against the Bulldogs, but yet only managed a total of 162 yards. The real number holding the Razorbacks back was 13 penalties for a total of 101 yards.
The key for Arkansas is getting quarterback KJ Jefferson back in rhythm through the air and on the ground.
Jefferson had 212 yards passing, two touchdowns and 50 yards with his feet against Texas A&M before being held to just 65 passing yards and five rushing yards on eight carries against Georgia.
The Razorbacks defense has been very reliable but was put in a lot of tough positions against Georgia as their defense didn’t help them out with field position. However, Ole Miss has a lot of offensive talents that can give them fits.
The heart and soul of this Rebels team is quarterback Matt Corral.
He is off to an incredible start to the season which includes 16 total touchdowns, 1210 passing yards and 161 yards on the ground. The most impressive thing for Lane Kiffin’s quarterback is he has yet to throw an interception this season.
The team as a whole is averaging 44.8 points per game, which is difficult for any team to keep up with, although it only managed 21 points against Alabama, it very easily could’ve added to that total as it missed a couple of huge opportunities, and fourth-down conversions in the first half and in the red zone.
Corral has a wide variety of impact receivers that include Dontario Drummond, Jonathan Mingo and Braylon Sanders who all have multiple touchdowns this season.
The most impressive stat for the trio is they are all averaging over 15 yards per reception with Mingo leading the way averaging 19.3 yards per reception.
Overall, the SEC should provide another exciting matchup on Saturday that involves big-time playmakers and two teams hungry for a victory.
The main thing to watch is how the Razorbacks plan to stop the Heisman-hopeful Matt Corral and if their offense gets their flow back together. However, Corral may be too dominant in the end and give the Rebels the edge when it matters most.
Charlie Knezevic is a third-year majoring in broadcast journalism, to contact him email charlieknez@gmail.com
