Hogs know drill; QB is fleet on feet

Mississippi State quarterback Nick Fitzgerald (7) rushes for a first down as Texas A&M defender Shaan Washington (33) attempts to make a shoe-string tackle during their NCAA football game at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field in Starkville, Miss., Saturday, Nov. 5, 2016. Mississippi State won 35-28. (James Pugh/The Laurel Chronicle, via AP)

FAYETTEVILLE -- The Arkansas defense faced a brief respite from fast-paced offenses this month and logged a 1-1 record against the more languid tempos of Florida and LSU.

The Razorbacks also had a short stretch of opponents whose offenses didn't include quarterback runs as a key element in their structure.

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When QBs attack

Arkansas has struggled against some of the top running quarterbacks in the country. This graphic does not include quarterbacks faced by Arkansas who have not started half of their team’s games, such as Louisiana Tech’s J’mar Smith and Alcorn State’s Noah Johnson

;vs. Ark.;Avg. vs. all teams

Quarterback;Rush-Yds-TDs;Rush-Yds-TDs

Kenny Hill (TCU);15-93-2;8.9-36.7-.78

Tyler Jones (Texas St.);10-(-33)-0;11.6-5.7-.56

Trevor Knight (Texas A&M);10-157-2;9.8-64.8-1.1

Jalen Hurts (Alabama);8-20-2;12.6-73.5-1.1

Chad Kelly (Ole Miss);14-89-2;9.0-36.9-.56

Sean White (Auburn);4-61-1;5.2-14.8-.05

Luke Del Rio (Florida);3-(-25)-0;2.7-(-7.2)-0

Danny Etling (LSU);3-(-2)-0;4.0-3.8-.13

That didn't last long.

Arkansas will get another taste of an up-tempo attack with a dangerous runner at quarterback when the Razorbacks take on Mississippi State on Saturday in Starkville, Miss.

Nick Fitzgerald leads the Bulldogs with 854 rushing yards on 146 attempts, not far from the 187 carries of tailbacks Aeris Williams (87), Ashton Shumpert (51) and Brandon Hollloway (49) combined.

Fitzgerald leads all SEC quarterbacks in rushing, ahead of Alabama's Jalen Hurts (735), Texas A&M's Trevor Knight (583), Tennessee's Joshua Dobbs (470) and Mississippi's Chad Kelly (332).

"He's probably the biggest of the group," said Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema, referencing the collection of running quarterbacks the Razorbacks have faced. "They list him at 6-5, 230, and he looks every bit of that. When you're looking eye to eye with D-linemen, that's usually a good indicator."

Lightly recruited out of Richmond Hill, Ga., Fitzgerald redshirted in 2014, then sat behind Dak Prescott in 2015. The sophomore took over as the starter for junior Damian Williams after the Bulldogs dropped their season opener 21-20 to South Alabama.

Fitzgerald is beginning to make his resume, including an upset of Texas A&M two weeks ago.

"He reminds me a lot of Collin Klein, the old Kansas State quarterback that was very efficient at the quarterback run game," Arkansas defensive backs coach Paul Rhoads said.

"I think he's coming along very nicely," said Mississippi State Coach Dan Mullen, whose background has been in grooming quarterbacks. "I've seen him improve from week to week, which is what you want in quarterback development.

"This is his first time getting real reps in games, and you see him not making the same mistakes over again. You see him progressing. And not just in the run-game decisions, but in passing-game decisions."

Fitzgerald ranks 33rd in the country in total offense with 270.4 yards per game. He ranks fifth in rushing yards for FBS quarterbacks, trailing Louisville's Lamar Jackson, South Florida's Quinton Flowers, Kent State's Nick Holley and Navy's Will Worth.

Mullen's offense has plenty of designed quarterback runs, including zone reads, but Fitzgerald also has proven adept at adapting on the fly.

"They obviously have some things in there where he's not necessarily the primary runner, but if you don't handle what you're supposed to, he can go ahead and take the ball and be that guy," Arkansas linebackers coach Vernon Hargreaves said. "We've got to get people around him taking care of what you're supposed to take care of."

The Razorbacks have taken their lumps from running quarterbacks Kenny Hill, Knight, Hurts, Kelly and even Alcorn State's Noah Johnson.

Of the school-record 29 rushing touchdowns allowed by the Hogs, 10 have been scored by quarterbacks, including two each by Hill, Knight, Hurts and Kelly. Even the freshman backup Johnson got on the board with a 12-yard touchdown against Arkansas in Little Rock as part of his 10-carry, 55-yard performance in a 52-10 loss.

Fitzgerald has five 100-yard rushing games, including 195 against South Carolina and 182 against Texas A&M, both victories for the Bulldogs.

"He's a really good runner. He's probably one of the best runners we'll see all year as a quarterback," Arkansas linebacker Brooks Ellis said.

"He's a big, powerful dude and he breaks tackles," Arkansas defensive end Jeremiah Ledbetter said. "I want to say he's a load to get down, but I think we can handle that."

Although Fitzgerald's accuracy is a work in progress -- his 53.3 percent completion percentage rate ranks 11th among SEC starters -- he has the tools to punish a secondary.

"He's got a real strong arm, and he can throw the ball a mile, and make some great throws on the run and some off-balance throws," Mullen said. "But one of the things that's the hardest to develop, for any quarterback, is to be a great drop-back passer. To stand in the pocket, go through your progressions, make your reads and stay on balance and accurately throw the ball. That's going to take time, and he's working on it."

Fitzgerald has completed 152 of 285 passes for 1,850 yards and 16 touchdowns with 10 interceptions. He has been involved in an SEC-high 431 total plays, 80 more than Arkansas' Austin Allen.

"When he's playing well, he throws an accurate ball. He seems to have a good command of what they're asking him to do, and it looks like the players are responding well to him," Bielema said.

"I think he runs faster than people give him credit for, especially in the quarterback run game," Arkansas defensive coordinator Robb Smith said. "I think everything starts offensively with him, and we've got to be able to account for him as a runner and a thrower."

Sports on 11/18/2016