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Published Sep 5, 2019
Keys to the Game: Arkansas at Ole Miss
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Nikki Chavanelle  •  HawgBeat
Managing Editor
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@nikkichavanelle

The Razorbacks are most likely in for another wild one against Ole Miss this weekend in Oxford. They'll be rocking all-whites and toting a shiny 1-0 record against the 0-1 Rebels. This game is equally important for both teams as each has the other listed as their most winnable conference game.

Arkansas hasn't won an SEC game since defeating Ole Miss in 2017 when they overcame a 24-point deficit for the largest comeback in school history.

Can Arkansas finally break their SEC losing streak? Here's what they need to do to make it happen:

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EXECUTE (ESPECIALLY IN THE RED ZONE)

I wrote this last week, "If guys are listening to Hicks, focusing on getting in their correct position and on the little things, execution should come naturally."

But execution did not come naturally.

Razorback pass-catchers need to come into the game ready to catch anything remotely in their radius. Hicks is not known for being an extremely accurate passer, he relies on his receivers to make some plays. Arkansas has three very talented starters with decently experienced back-ups, fans should expect better execution out of them this week.

The Hogs also return starting tight end CJ O'Grady this week, which should go a long way as far as completions and yards are concerned.

Both true freshman starters Treylon Burks and Trey Knox came into the media room on Tuesday fired up and confident, so hopefully that translates onto the field this week.

Play calling also needs to be expanded and improved. The Hogs need to use their highest percentage plays in the red zone and take what Ole Miss gives them without becoming too predictable.

STAY HEALTHY

Obviously this is an uncontrollable element of the game, but Arkansas had Ole Miss on the ropes last season until Rakeem Boyd, Ty Storey and Devwah Whaley all went down with injuries.

Boyd is poised for a huge game if Ole Miss's week one performance is any indicator. They allowed Memphis running back Patrick Taylor to run for just shy of 130 yards.

Arkansas is already game-planning to replace one hurt offensive lineman with a true freshman this week, Austin Capps for Ricky Stromberg, and it's also day-to-day on Dorian Gerald's back-up Jamario Bell. If Bell can't go, Arkansas will start true freshman Mataio Soli who is now playing with a club on his right hand from a fracture he sustained against Portland State.

The more injuries you have, the more inexperienced players the Razorbacks will have to plug into their place and this is not the game you want to have to do that in.

BLOCK TO THE SECOND LEVEL

I was watching the Arkansas running back drills during practice Wednesday and I heard coach Jeff Traylor telling them, "I don't know how far they're going to block, I hope they're blocking them 30 yards down the field," in reference to the Arkansas offensive line.

Though the linemen posted some of their highest scores on PFF in the Chad Morris era, one big thing Morris mentioned in Monday's press conference is that they have to get to the second level better. Both of Boyd's back-ups were limited to averaging 3.1 and 2.3 and there's no doubt blocking played a role there.

Don't forget to block defensive tackle Benito Jones either. He's 6-foot-1 and 329 pounds of "rascal" as Craddock called him.

"He’s hard to move, he’s quick, he’s quick twitched. He has good moves inside. We are going to have to do a good job of collecting him in movement with the different stuff that they do."

LIMIT PENALTIES

Memphis posted a whopping 10 penalties against Ole Miss. It only cost them 75 yards but I doubt Arkansas could afford that many penalties and still find a way to win against Ole Miss. Arkansas had seven penalties for 70 yards against Portland State but four of them occurred in the fourth quarter and one was a dumb personal foul on the first play from scrimmage.

Arkansas was one of the least penalized teams in the SEC last season and it'd be good to continue that trend while also playing as physical as possible.

GOOD DECISION MAKING

Starting quarterback Ben Hicks isn't going to suddenly become a stronger, more accurate passer, so he's got to rely on making the smartest decisions and making them quickly.

He's not going to have as much time in the pocket as he did against Portland State but as Craddock said on Monday, he'll need to trust his offensive line and stay in there as long as possible to find an open man. Hicks made good decisions on some bail outs last Saturday and didn't have too many "balls in jeopardy," so if the Hogs want to win, he'll need to continue that.

GET AFTER MATT CORRAL

Bringing a bunch of pressure in the early downs will be key to getting redshirt freshman Matt Corral off his game. Corral had trouble finding receivers when he was under pressure in week one and he didn't use his legs a whole lot either so Arkansas's mostly-veteran defensive line should be able to contain him and create a lot of disruption.

In 53 plays of offense, Corral passed 19 times for just 9 completions. They had six third-and-long attempts out of their 10 third downs and only managed to convert one. That's going to be big for Arkansas's defense and keeping the Hog offense on the field.

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