The Opponent: The University of Arkansas was founded in 1871 as Arkansas Industrial University. The school has over 30,000 total students and serves as the flagship program of the state-wide system. Arkansas started playing football in 1894 and competed in the historic Southwest Conference for most of the 20th century. The Razorbacks claimed the 1964 National Title under legendary coach Frank Broyles. Tennessee is 13-6 all-time versus Arkansas but has lost three straight to the Hogs. Tennessee last won in Fayetteville in 2001. Arkansas is coached by former Tennessee offensive line coach, Sam Pittman. In his fifth season in Fayetteville, Pittman is 26-27 overall and 12-24 in the SEC.
Are they any good?: Yes, Arkansas is a good team. We are finding out that there are not many bad teams in the SEC this season. This is a high-variance Arkansas team, with both a high ceiling and a low floor. The Prodigal Son, Bobby Petrino, has breathed life into an offense that had become rather stale under Dan Enos. Alongside quarterback Taylen Green, Petrino has made this a dangerous and balanced attack for the Hogs. Defensively, Arkansas is giving up yardage but not many points. The great equalizer is turnovers. Arkansas is tied with Tennessee with seven takeaways on the season. Tennessee will be the best offense Arkansas has faced on the season. Arkansas will likely be the best offense Tennessee has faced on the season. The Hogs sit at 3-2 for the year. Six wins would likely be a bare minimum to save Sam Pittman’s job. With games remaining against LSU, Ole Miss, Texas, and Missouri, Arkansas likely needs to pull off an upset somewhere to make this season a success.
What will this tell us about Tennessee?: This game will tell us a lot more about Tennessee’s defense. The Volunteers’ defensive stats are other-worldly through September. Tennessee has the top-scoring defense in the SEC at 7.0 ppg. The Vols are giving up less than 180 yards per game and under just 50 ypg rushing. Opponents are only converting 17% of their third downs on Tennessee. It is all too good to be true. The reality is Tennessee has not played a good offense to this point in the season. Yes, we can comfortably say Tennessee has a good defense. Is it truly elite though? How they play against Taylen Green and this Arkansas attack will offer more insight into that question.
What does Vegas say?: This line has consistently stayed around -13.5 all week. The game total is between 58 and 59 points. Arkansas is 4-1 ATS this season, including 3-0 ATS as underdogs. Tennessee is 4-0 ATS on the season. Las Vegas sees this game as around 35-22 Tennessee – or something to that effect. Tennessee has eclipsed 30 points just once in its last five SEC road games. Arkansas has scored over 30 just twice in its last ten conference games.
Matchup to watch on Offense: How well does Tennessee protect Nico Iamaleava on Saturday night? The main concern leaving Oklahoma was clearly the play of Tennessee’s offensive tackles, and protecting its quarterback. After watching two strip-sacks, Josh Heupel had clearly seen enough. The Vols went ultra-conservative offensively and were able to ride a smothering defense to a conference road win. Is that a sustainable game plan? I am skeptical. It is likely Tennessee will need to score 30+ to win a game this season, maybe even Saturday night. The return of Lance Heard will help. The LSU transfer has had two weeks to rest a sore ankle. The assumption is he will be a full participant Saturday night. John Campbell may just be playing on a pitch count this season, so expect to see Dayne Davis and/or Larry Johnson regularly this fall. Regardless of the personnel, this Tennessee offense is limited if it can’t give Nico time to let routes develop downfield. This is an Arkansas secondary that has given up its share of chunk passing plays this season. That includes four of 50+ yards. Outside of one big strike to Dont’e Thornton, the Vols were limited in the downfield game against the Sooners. Nico has shown a nice touch on the deep ball. This is also a good game to work the tight ends and slot in the middle of the field. It all starts with protection though. Tennessee has to do a better job of protecting its quarterback Saturday night. LSU transfer Landon Jackson is an All-Conference pass rusher for the Razorbacks. At linebacker, Georgia transfer Xavian Sorey Jr has had a nice start to the season as well. Sorey has made multiple plays in the backfield through September. Arkansas knows it has to make plays on Nico Iamaleava to win this game. If the Vols can keep Nico clean and turnover-free, then it is hard to see Tennessee losing this game.