Gameday Extra

11.05.2022 KEYS TO VICTORY MATT JONES & SCOTTIE BORDELON WHOLEHOGSPORTS.COM Arkansas coach Sam Pittman said in the preseason that his team looks like an SEC team. By that, Pittman meant the Razorbacks have the size and speed along the front lines comparable to the teams they play most weeks. That was not the case when Pittman was hired after the 2019 season. The change in Arkansas physically is noticeable in its games. It wasn't long ago that the Razorbacks were being manhandled along the lines of scrimmage and chasing speed in games against Auburn. The roles reversed last week as Arkansas built a 25-point lead in the fourth quarter. The Razorbacks held their own against South Carolina and Texas A&M, and would have fared much better at Mississippi State if not for their quarterback and several defensive backs sitting out. Alabama had superior athletes, but that's the case for almost any Crimson Tide opponent. Where we have seen Arkansas' improved athleticism on display most has been during its nonconference games, especially offensively. The Razorbacks' two best offensive games of the year came against BYU and Missouri State. The Razorbacks had 644 yards at BYU — ninth most in program history — and would have had 600 yards against Missouri State if not for an end-of-game kneel down that dropped the total to 595. The Razorbacks had 447 yards in their other non- conference game against Cincinnati, a playoff participant last year that has a top-25 defense this season. Arkansas is averaging 40.3 points in its non-conference games this season, a far cry from yesteryear when it failed to hang with North Texas and Western Kentucky. You either have speed or you are chasing it, and non-SEC defenses — and many within the league — are chasing the Razorbacks. It will likely be the same for Liberty, whose coach, Hugh Freeze, referred to Arkansas as "deeper and stronger and more talented" this week. The Razorbacks' offense appears to be hitting its stride of late with 103 points and 1,164 yards over the past two games. Quarterback KJ Jefferson has played well since returning from an October injury, running back Raheim Sanders is playing well and is rotating with other capable backs, and receiver Matt Landers has emerged as a big-play threat alongside Jadon Haselwood. Arkansas' offensive line is one of the best in the game. The Flames have likely not seen a team as athletic as the Razorbacks this season. Liberty's strength of schedule is ranked 128th out of 131 teams by WarrenNolan.com. Wake Forest is the only Power 5 team to play Liberty this season. The Flames' other games have been against independents, Group of Five teams and a team from the Football Championship Subdivision. Can Liberty hang with the Razorbacks in a high-scoring game? That might be what it will take to win on the road. HOME CROWD Liberty has not played in front of a crowd as large — or loud — as the one it will see Saturday in Fayetteville. Not even close. The Flames' highest attendance for a game this season was 32,891 for a 37-36 loss at Wake Forest on Sept. 17. An announced crowd of 24,012 — a Liberty home record — was on hand for the Flames' victory over BYU two weeks ago. Attendance for most of Liberty's games has been under 20,000. Arkansas is averaging 74,225 tickets sold for its home games this season. A game against Liberty likely won't fill all of those seats, but the combination of the Razorbacks' time away from home and the university's homecoming weekend should make for a well-attended game. Freeze said his team prepared for noise this week the same way his Ole Miss teams prepared ahead of SEC road trips. "We had the Arkansas fight song, crowd noise and the 'Woo Pig Sooie' — everything as loud as we could get it going in our indoor, and then our outdoor field, too," Freeze said. I think we're prepared for the noise. We'll see, obviously, but we have certainly put them in that environment for them hopefully to handle it." Visiting teams have appeared to struggle with crowd noise at Arkansas this year with 11 false-star penalties and three delays of game. LIBERTY QB The crowd might play more of a factor because of Liberty's quarterback troubles during the week. Redshirt freshman Nate Hampton took the majority of the Flames' snaps in practice because the team's top two quarterbacks, Johnathan Bennett and Charlie Brewer, were out or limited. Bennett missed practice Wednesday and Thursday with the flu, and Brewer's throwing hand swelled up after Tuesday's practice. Brewer recently returned to practice from a broken hand that was suffered during the season opener. Hampton has thrown eight passes this season and was Liberty's fourth-team quarterback when the season began. Quarterback Kaidon Salter, who started twice after Brewer's injury, underwent groin surgery last month. "Unfortunately we continue to have one of those years where it seems to be one thing after another," Freeze said. Freeze said he is not ruling out Bennett for the game, but is concerned about whether the quarterback will have needed stamina. "I think we'll be able to catch him up on the understanding," Freeze said of the game plan, "but it's nothing like getting the live reps." Brewer, who played previously at Baylor and Utah, is struggling "to get his mobility in his hand back," Freeze said. "He tried it and just said, 'I don't feel like I can hold the ball sufficiently to function,'" Freeze said. "I thought he had a pretty good Tuesday, and then it seemed like it kind of swelled back up on him again and tightened up. "Will it go down between now and Saturday enough for him to feel like he could not hurt us if he's in the game? We'll see." DON'T PLAY THE JERSEY After a pair of solid offensive performances against Cincinnati and South Carolina to begin the season, most everyone anticipated Arkansas to roll over Missouri State and push the Bears around up front. That did not happen early on. The Razorbacks, with their stout running game and offensive line, were not able to gain traction in the first quarter against their FCS opponent. They rushed for just 21 first-quarter yards on seven carries. Sanders, one of the most impressive running backs in the nation, did not have a run longer than four yards until the second quarter. It was fairly evident in the game's opening minutes that Arkansas believed it could simply show up and overpower Missouri State. The Razorbacks cannot carry that mentality into Saturday's game against Liberty, a superior team in most every way than the Bears and, quite frankly, some of the other teams ATHLETICISM, CROWD WEIGH HEAVILY IN FAVOR OF RAZORBACKS See KEYS, Page 4 Arkansas is averaging near-capacity attendance for its games this season, while Liberty has not played in front of more than 33,000 people. 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