As Arkansas and Kent State prepare to face off this Saturday at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville, HawgBeat decided to take a look at how the two teams stack up based on stats from each team's first game and size for the starters.
On paper, the Razorbacks have a sizable talent advantage over the Golden Flashes, who come from the Mid-American Conference of the FBS. Arkansas has one former five-star and eight former four-star recruits compared to two four-stars for Kent State. The Hogs also have 11 players who were at least a three-star prospect compared to six for the Golden Flashes.
In total, Kent State has 10 players who were rated as two-stars by Rivals out of high school.
The average weight of Arkansas' 22 starters is 250.64 pounds, compared to Kent State's average weight of 235.64 pounds. The Razorbacks outweigh the Golden Flashes by nearly 26 pounds on the defensive line and 23 pounds on the offensive line.
Here's a look at how both teams stack up based on stats last season, plus weight and height entering this season.
2023 Stat Comparison - Kent State | Arkansas
Offense (Kent State | Arkansas)
Scoring: 6.0 PPG | 56.0 PPG
Total yards: 240.0 | 379.0
Passing: 145.0 | 274.0
Rushing: 202.1 | 236.7
Third downs: 41.2% | 46.2%
Sacks allowed: 3 | 1
Turnovers: 1 | 0
Defense (Kent State | Arkansas)
Scoring: 56.0 PPG | 13.0 PPG
Total yards: 723.0 | 291.0
Passing: 334.0 | 227.0
Rushing: 389.0 | 64.0
Third downs: 75.0% | 26.7%
Sacks: 1 | 2
Turnovers: 3 | 5