Subs step up big in Hogs' win over Mississippi State

In Arkansas's first SEC win in more than two years, the Razorbacks relied on players not listed first on the depth chart to key overcome absences and injuries.

The Hogs knew at some point their depth would be tested and Sam Pittman gave his players major props and credited their preparation:

"Man, they played a huge number of reps. Again, with this COVID, you had to play a lot of different kids during different times. We went into camp going, ‘We’re going to two-spot everything, so our 4s are going to get the same amount of reps as our 1s.’ We felt like it might happen because of the virus. Well, we didn’t necessarily think it would happen because of injuries, but it did tonight and the kids were ready. Again, they did a great job preparing and the coaching staff did a great job preparing them.

Before the game even got underway, the Razorbacks were missing both defensive ends on the first team–Dorian Gerald, due to an ankle injury sustained in game one, and Julius Coates, for an undisclosed reason. Luckily for the Hogs, they were able to plug in three second year players without a hitch.

Zach Williams, Mataio Soli and Eric Gregory all already have plenty of SEC game experience under their belts but they were beat out in camp by the elder Gerald and Coates. In the 21-14 win, they played 47, 41 and 44 snaps each, respectively. Williams led the group with six tackles, good for fifth on the team last night, while Gregory posted three tackles and notched an early sack for the Hogs–their lone sack of the night.

After kick off was when the real nightmare scenario struck. Just 12 snaps and eight carries in, Rakeem Boyd exited the game with an apparent lower leg injury and he did not reenter. Backup Trelon Smith doubled his reps from week one, carrying the ball 14 times for 48 yards and catching the ball out of the backfield five times for another 22 yards

Around the same time that the Hogs lost Boyd, they also lost leading receiver Treylon Burks for the night. After catching seven passes for 102 yards in week one, Burks exited the Mississippi State game with just one catch for 10 yards. Getting Burks the ball was obviously a huge part of Kendal Briles game plan, so next man up. Backup De'Vion Warren had only been used sparingly as a true wideout in his time on Hill but he had a career night with six targets, four catches, 100 receiving yards and a score.

"It’s just like anything else, you’re pretty much going to play like you practice and the kids have bought into that," Pittman said of Warren post-game. "He’s had good practices, so it’s not shocking or surprising to see him do well. It’s just fun to watch him because he’s a hard-practicer and a really great kid.

The next hit was taken by the Hogs defense. Starting corner Montaric Brown, who played every snap in week one, went out with an injury after making a tackle. He got in 34 snaps and three tackles but his absence left a huge hole in the secondary. Brown's backup, Jarques McClellion, opted out of the season just a couple days prior and other scholarship corners were either already being used in the dime package or banged up.

In steps Hudson Clark. The 6-foot-2, 176-pound Highland Park native got his first snaps of his career in primetime and he finished with the 8th most snaps on the defense. Clark also notched his first career tackles, two combined, one solo. Pittman said postgame that his contributions were inevitable.

"I loved him," Pittman saaid of the redshirt freshman walk-on. "He played a really good game. To be honest with you, we had a meeting this morning about playing the players, and Barry (Odom) and Sam Carter, they were going to play him regardless if someone had gotten hurt or not. He had earned playing time and he was looking really good, and I agreed with them. It was nice to see him do some special things and be a huge part of a big win."

Another seldom-seen player, redshirt freshman wide receiver John David White played 15 snaps but wasn't targeted.

With Simeon Blair, Grant Morgan, Tyson Morris, Blake Kern, Clark and White all getting reps, the Razorbacks had 245 snaps contributed on offense and defense by current or former walk-ons against Mississippi State.