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the team's starting right tackle, in the fold against the Tigers. "We definitely missed Dalton," Stromberg said. "Dalton is a veteran, a sixth- year guy." Stromberg, who is not a captain but serves an obvious leadership role with the Razorbacks, was sure to compliment the effort of back-up right tackle Ty'Kieast Crawford. But the presence of Wagner and his know- how having been around the block in the SEC numerous times could have altered the outcome of the game. Pittman on Wednesday said Wagner had practiced "a lot" in preparation for Ole Miss. He was also made available for player interviews Tuesday evening, indicating he is likely in position to play against the Rebels. Should be return to the lineup Saturday, the Razorbacks will get back their fifth-best offensive player this season, according to Pro Football Focus. He holds an overall offense grade of 80.2. Additionally, he has the offensive line's third-best mark in pass protection (79.4) and run blocking (76.0). Wagner was clearly not himself late in the game against Liberty, but played through the pain as the Razorbacks scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns. "I didn't think I gave my team the best shot to win," Wagner said Tuesday of why he did not play last week. "I think that I'm feeling really good right now. Made it through practice today, made it through practice yesterday — feeling great. I'm back 100%." Wagner added that the Rebels' edge defenders are sound pass rushers. In his eyes, their defensive line's strength lies in its ability to push the pocket from the inside, or left guard to right guard. "I think it's going to be key this week that the interior holds up and that the tackles can keep the width of the pocket, as well, too," he said. "And we all just read out of the same book." ARKANSAS CORNERBACKS Ole Miss enters this weekend's game with the No. 5 passing offense in the SEC in league games. It is averaging 238.3 yards per game. For the season, the Rebels' 225.9 passing yards per game place them ninth in the conference. Although Ole Miss quarterbacks rank 10th within the SEC in completion percentage (59.8%), the Rebels are made dangerous through the air when their array of playmakers get their hands on the football. Jonathan Mingo and Malik Heath make up two of the conference's top eight receivers in terms of yards per game. They are both among top seven in receiving yards. Mingo has two 100-plus yard games and one 200-plus yard game. He went for 247 yards and two touchdowns during Ole Miss' win at Vanderbilt. And Heath led the Rebels with 123 receiving yards in their narrow home loss to Alabama. He has topped the 75-yard mark in a game five times this fall. "Mingo is a superstar," Pittman said. "And so are the other two wideouts, Heath and (Jordan) Watkins. Watkins, who stands 5-11 and 190 pounds, is third on the team with 24 catches for 335 yards and 1 touchdown. He does not have a catch in the last two games. The Razorbacks' top corners and defensive backs have their hands full. But Arkansas' corners are a confident, athletic bunch, too. LSU transfer Dwight McGlothern and true freshman Quincey McAdoo hold two of the Razorbacks' top three coverage grades this season, according to PFF, at 76.2 and 83.2, respectively. Opponents have combined to complete 23 of 52 passes (44.2%) when targeting receivers the two are matched up with. "He's done a great job playing as a freshman," Kiffin said of McAdoo. "I think he was a receiver before, and he really looks like a special player." Mingo, Heath and Watkins have four combined drops this season on 151 total targets, per PFF. Arkansas' secondary will have Myles Slusher back in the fold this week, too. Slusher was suspended for the LSU game. PRESSURING DART Over a four-game stretch against Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Auburn and LSU, Dart threw six touchdown passes against five interceptions. Perhaps most troubling about that period of time was a two-pick game against the Commodores. Ole Miss, superior athletically and at essentially every position, still cruised to a 24-point win. The turnovers, though, put something of a damper on an otherwise strong day — career-high 448 yards on 25-of-32 passing. And it showed that he is susceptible to turnover-worthy throws. Dart this season has completed 60.7% of his 247 pass attempts for 2,123 yards and 15 touchdowns, and has been intercepted 7 times. To his credit, he has been clean the last two games with four touchdowns and no picks against Texas A&M and Alabama. In essence, the Razorbacks' defense must pounce on interceptable throws from Dart. He has a 2-to-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio in SEC play this season. To force him into such throws, Arkansas must continue to generate great pressure with its front. The Razorbacks in the last two weeks have 17 tackles for loss and 11 sacks, including 7 in the 13-10 loss to LSU. According to PFF, Arkansas posted its third-best pass-rush grade of the season against the Tigers (73.2). Defensive back Latavious Brini, a Georgia transfer, and back-up linebacker Chris "Pooh" Paul led the way with individual marks of 80.0 and 78.1, respectively. Dart, according to PFF data, has completed 31 of 73 passes (42.5%) when under pressure this season. On those plays, he has one touchdown pass, four interceptions and a grade of 41.5. 4TH-DOWN DEFENSE Arkansas' defense likely understands all of the challenges that come with playing Ole Miss' high- powered offense. It also knows that the job isn't finished after stopping the Rebels short of the first- down marker after three plays. That aspect of Ole Miss' makeup creates a tall task for every opponent. Few teams in college football push the envelope with gutsy and sometimes game-altering fourth-down decisions like Kiffin and Ole Miss. And few are equipped to do so like the Rebels, who have assembled a terrific cast of skill players. In 2022, though, Ole Miss has scaled back a bit on attempting to keep drives alive beyond third down. Last season, it led the country with 49 fourth-down attempts and was tied with Air Force for the national lead with 31 conversions. Fast forward one season, the Rebels are tied for 39th with 21 fourth-down plays. Their 10 conversions this season rank 60th in the country. "Those are going to be key for us to stop," Pittman said. "(Kiffin is) going to do it. That's what he believes in, and so it's going to be big for us. We've talked a lot about first down and talked a lot about fourth down this week. I mean, those are downs that we need to win on defense. "That's very similar of every week, except a lot of times you don't talk a lot about fourth down, except when you're playing him, Coach (Mike) Leach from Mississippi State, those guys." Still, with the temperature expected to be below freezing at kickoff, points and touchdowns could be at a premium. And that could lead to the Razorbacks' defense being tested for at least four plays with great regularity as Kiffin looks to gain an offensive edge. In SEC games, Ole Miss ranks sixth in the league with 14 fourth-down attempts. But the Rebels are 13th in conversion rate (35.7%). On the flip side, Arkansas has allowed 8 conversions in 15 tries this season, and opponents have moved the chains on 5 of 9 attempts in SEC games. Any turnovers on downs the Razorbacks are able to generate could be as valuable as an interception or fumble recovery. Dating to Arkansas' win at BYU, opponents are just 2 for 6 on fourth down against the Razorbacks. Arkansas has also pushed the envelope more on fourth down in recent weeks. The Razorbacks were 4 for 6 on fourth down against Liberty, largely out of necessity while trailing in the fourth quarter. A pair of fourth-down misses against LSU were magnified in a close loss last week. Through 10 games, Arkansas has attempted 20 fourth-down conversions this season and has converted 9. Compare that to last season when the Razorbacks attempted 19 fourth-down conversions in 13 games. Keys n Continued from Page 2 11.19.2022 BEST OF THE WEB Here are some selected comments from the message boards at wholehogsports.com. RAZORBACK FANS COMPLAIN ABOUT LSU'S "PHANTOM" FIRST DOWN LATE IN SATURDAY'S 13-10 LOSS TO THE TIGERS GuynHawaii2: From the stands, my pair of 63-year-old eyes thought LSU failed to make their late fourth quarter first down. It was quickly ruled a first down and I believe the review confirmed the first down. Question. For those of you who watched the game on TV, was it truly a first down? adgebg: Not even close. About as bad a review decision as the one at Auburn that was a travesty. SwineFusion: No part of his body got to the stick. He was driven sideways and out of bounds about 18 inches short. It was a bad call to begin with and should have been an easy reversal for Birmingham, except that as we know Birmingham always protects the ranked team. wizardofhogz: You are correct…except there is one caveat to that "rule"…if Arkansas is the ranked team, that clause is ignored. jimbeau77: At least a half yard shy if not more. Announcers flipped back and forth on it to, but ultimately sided with the refs. SwineFusion: They always have a weasel- out on "indisputable evidence to overturn." Except that there was indisputable evidence. nlrbuzzard: I honestly thought Sam Pittman was going to get a penalty for coming after the head of the crew. He's a better man than me. neastarkie: That was an absolutely terrible call. It's inexcusable it wasn't reversed in B'ham. I watched it several times and no part of the receiver or the ball ever reached the sticks. The pad on the ground was right at the line to gain. The right (front) foot of the receiver never touched it and the ball was right up against the receiver's chest as he went out of bounds backwards. It was indisputable he failed to make it to the line. hogbacker: If the ball and the first down line had been a meteor passing by earth it would have missed by 10 million miles and called close. It was not close. LDhog: Just plain horrible on-the-field call and worse replay call. Why have replay? If I was Sam I'd been kicked out of the game. hgray479: The announcers pulled the "camera angle" excuse, saying it looked short but the camera angle could be deceiving on how far forward the ball was in relation to the sticks. But as mentioned, watching the feet and the ball tucked against the chest told the story. Nice try, they had to come up with some cover for the horrible call. neastarkie: Yes. They did that and it was really lame of them. It didn't matter what angle you saw, the right foot closest to the first down pad was a good two feet short of it. The ball wasn't out in an extended arm. It was against the receiver's body. One of the worst calls I've ever seen. Ranks up there with the backwards spike at Auburn. The only difference is that call definitely cost us the game. This call only cost us a better opportunity to win it. ScottieBordelon: Sam was asked about that call at the tail end of his press conference. He looked toward Arkansas' SID, who was about 10-12 feet away, and asked what he could say. Ultimately he found it best to not say anything. ClayHenry: The replay ref I know talks about getting good quality looks. It seldom happens. No clean looks on the line. So on first down calls, not many are over turned. wizardofhogz: I get that, and I generally understand even if I think someone "probably" got a bad spot. In most spotting plays that get challenged, there are so many people around the ball it's almost impossible to see where it is when the knee (or forearm, or whatever) make contact with the turf or goes out of bounds. But that's what is so frustrating about this one. It was one of those rare occurrences when I have no problem stating that LSU was short, without any shred of doubt. j6harri: Here is what I cannot fathom. Every tennis tourney I watch, they can do a replay within 10 seconds and tell by a single blade of grass is a ball is in or out. Why can there not be sensors on the field and in the ball to tell exactly where the first down line is, or if the ball crosses the goal line or where a punt goes out of bounds? RyanRitchie: Because in tennis where the ball hits is the determining factor of whether it is in or out. How do you know where that ball is when the player's knee or elbow or butt bit the ground? Or where it was when forward progress was stopped? FANS ARE EXCITED TO HAVE A NIGHT GAME AT HOME WITH AN SEC OPPONENT THIS WEEK youdaman: It's about time! And it's going to be Brrrrrrrrrrr cold, low of 22 for the night so it'll probably be around 30 at game time … hope we send all our seniors off in grand style and get bowl eligible at the same time. neastarkie: It's hard to know how or if the cold will affect the game's outcome. Either way, I wanted more night games early in the season when it was hot and the sun beat down. Now that it's cold, I'd prefer an earlier kickoff. But we are owned by TV. If we're not owned by TV, we're at least rented out to it. armyhog: You had the correct thought first: owned by TV! The big cash cows take the limelight in the SEC and every other big conference! I sure would like to see our Hogs beat Ole Miss. youdaman: The weather will not be as big a factor against Ole Miss because North Mississippi has about the same weather as Fayetteville. they're used to cold weather this time of year, but I am glad we're having a night game. I think the atmosphere will be unbelievable. gonavy: Not so sure about that…the weather is different North of the tunnel much less north Mississippi (Memphis area). LDhog: TV money is a two-edged sword. For those of us that live a long way from Fayetteville we get to see every game on TV. Back in the day (yes I'm old) we'd either go to the game or listen to Bud, Paul or whomever the voice was then on the radio. TV games were few and far between. I love watching from my comfortable living room these days. But the dollars involved means games being played at odd hours. At least odd from the old days. Everything has a price. hogbacker: If KJ Jefferson is healthy and our defense shows it can play like it did last Saturday along with Dalton Wagner back on the field I think the fans will be able to stay warm. Probably have Myles Slusher back trying to redeem himself from his self- inflicted benching I would think. I'll bet Cade Fortin will get plenty of reps this week after his weekend performance… youdaman: … The biggest problem with facing Ole Miss is they run a play every 20 seconds, the second fastest in the nation. We have not faced anybody that runs plays even close to that. That's how Ole Miss makes those big plays: They get you in a position where your defense is not set. SwineFusion: One of the all-time weather quits I've seen was Ole Miss at Razorback Stadium in '98. It sleeted all day and the Rebs just packed it in. 34-0 final. That was the game where Sen. Tommy "Ears" Tuberville went off in pregame about nothing stinks like a wet hog. youdaman: LOL. I remember that game. That was a beat down I would love to see that again Saturday night. SwineFustion: My wife and son didn't want any more to do with that afternoon than the Rebnecks did. I was in the west upper deck by myself for that one. SCORE PREDICTIONS FOR SATURDAY'S GAME WITH OLE MISS neastarkie: If KJ is healthy: Ark 35, OM 28. If KJ can't play or is obviously unable to play well: OM 35, Ark 18. redpig: Looks like a plan! I will sign on to that one although I would note it will be a significant challenge for Arkansas to score 28 points with KJ not playing or limited by injury. razorback339: Looks like KJ will play! I like our chances with KJ and a "Larry" waiting in the wings. LDhog: Hogs 28; Rebels, Black Bears, Landsharks, Rebnecks, Flopnecks 13. The defense and crowd take over. Lame Kiffin bolts Oxford. Jhawg: Old Miss 31, Arkansas 24. I hate those Rebs with a passion, but they have Kiffin and we don't. SwineFusion: Advantage, us. jimbeau77: 30-26 Hogs. Defense scoops a fumble for a score. Defense gets a pick 6 for another score. lilhawg: With KJ we win, 31-28. harleyhawgidson: With the news that KJ, Dalton Wagner and Myles Slusher are playing (all were out last week), I like the Hogs. If KJ is at least 80% healthy, Hogs 31-28. adgebg: Indeed, if KJ is 80%, that's likely healthier than he was against Liberty. Adding Wagner and Slusher is great also. A shot in the arm for our bowl hopes. youdaman: This is a very tough game to pick. KJ I think will play but he's obviously not going to be 100%. The weather is going to be extremely cold which makes the ball very slick and hard to throw and catch and hold on to. This is strictly a gut feeling: Hogs 24-23. razorwill: Hate Ole Miss more than Texas. I've watched three or four of their games this year. They have an awesome rushing attack, good receivers and QB. They will be hard to stop. Can we keep up offensively? Not with the offense I've seen lately. Hate it but, Ole Miss 42, Hawgs 27. www.innisfreeseniorliving.com "Treating you like family" NOBODY'S PRICES OR CARE CAN COMPARE IN NWA! Innisfree Senior Living We are cheering on our College Team this season! GO TEAM! 300 Innisfree Circle • Rogers, AR • 479-636-7363

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