Five observations, with plenty of video, from Arkansas’ 58-42 win over Mississippi State.
— Rawleigh Williams has career day, breaks big runs
Arkansas entered Saturday with a 6-0 record when sophomore running back Rawleigh Williams ran for at least 96 yards this season.
He surpassed that — and the century mark — on just four carries thanks to touchdown runs of 72 and 42 yards. His fifth carry, a 23-yarder, actually lowered his average to 29 yards per carry. But he ‘rebounded,’ breaking a 33-yard touchdown run late in the half to head into intermission with a silly eight-carry, 191-yard, four-touchdown line.
He finished his career night with 205 yards and four touchdowns on 16 carries, a gaudy 12.8 average. He broke tackles on each of his first two touchdown runs, both impressive big-play jaunts to paydirt.
The burst through traffic-stiff arm combo on the second run was as impressive a sequence as he’s had at Arkansas.
His third score was a 7-yarder to extend the Hogs’ lead to 31-14 in the second quarter. His fourth, the 33-yarder, was another product of exceptional blocking.
He even threw for a touchdown on a jump pass, finding tight end Austin Cantrell for a 1-yard score on fourth down.
Williams has 1,209 yards and 11 touchdowns through 11 games, putting him on pace for 1,429 yards, a single-season total that would rank fourth in school history. Whatever he winds up with, this fall has been quite a comeback story.
— Everyone breaks big runs
Williams wasn’t alone in this department. Not by a long shot. It was almost as if Oprah was lurking in Davis Wade Stadium, doling out “You get a big run! You get a big run!” to everyone.
Arkansas has been a tough team to figure out, capable of controlling the line of scrimmage against some teams and being uncharacteristically whipped by others in a fashion few Bret Bielema-coached teams have been. Saturday was one of the good days, with the Razorbacks dominating the Bulldogs’ defensive line, creating big holes for anyone who got a touch and scoring enough to weather another lackluster showing by their defense.
Devwah Whaley ran for a career-high 112 yards on 19 carries and showcased some physicality on a number of runs. He also had several big holes to scoot through. Look at the openings created on these runs.
Arkansas was pulling all over the place, especially with center Frank Ragnow, as the offensive line produced massive running lanes for much of the night.
True freshman T.J. Hammonds even got in the action, breaking free for a 30-yard run on his only carry of the night.
Nice pull by right guard Johnny Gibson and right tackle Brian Wallace along with a nice lead block by fullback Kendrick Jackson. Hammonds turns a decent gain into a big one with vision, quickness and an ability to break tackles.
In all, Arkansas ran for 357 yards and averaged 8.7 yards per carry. The key now will be ending the Jekyll and Hyde act and stringing together multiple good performances in a row.
— Hogs shake off shaky start vs. QB run
Nothing has changed in regards to Arkansas’ ineptitude against dual-threat quarterbacks. At least, that was how it looked early.
Mississippi State sophomore Nick Fitzgerald — the SEC’s leading rushing quarterback — got off to a hot start in the Hogs first matchup with a dual-threat quarterback in weeks. The early season issue was still very much an issue early in the game Saturday.
Fitzgerald gashed the defense several times for big runs while running for 96 yards and two touchdowns the first quarter. First, he answered Williams’ opening score with a long dash of his own, sprinting untouched 58 yards for an early touchdown.
As has been an ongoing issue, linebackers Brooks Ellis and Dwayne Eugene misread the play, chasing the back on the option and setting the stage for a mistake by a safety. Here, it’s De’Andre Coley taking an angle that leaves him diving haplessly at Fitzgerald’s feet.
This third-and-medium touchdown run was both a telling call and a highly discouraging result.
Arkansas doesn’t set the edge, its linebackers are stuck inside and another safety, this time Santos Ramirez, whiffs on a tackle before Fitzgerald pushes a pile into the end zone with him.
As the game wore on, Arkansas scored enough and also did a better job on early downs to put the pressure on Mississippi State to throw the ball more than it wanted to.
Fitzgerald finished with 131 yards and four touchdowns on 17 carries, a commendable performance. But the Razorbacks did a better job in the final three quarters, relatively, holding him to 35 yards on 11 carries. They bottled him up nicely at times.
Good combo stop by freshmen Sosa Agim and Scoota Harris — more on them later.
Of course, the Razorbacks bled yards and points in other ways. Mississippi State rolled up 533 yards of offense while becoming the sixth team to score 38 or more on Arkansas this year. But the few punts the Hogs forced, combined with their own explosive offense, were enough to outscore Mississippi State, in large part because of Arkansas’ offensive balance…
— Austin Allen bounces back
Austin Allen overthrew an open Cheyenne O’Grady in the end zone in the first quarter. Adam McFain missed a field goal a few plays later.
Allen later missed an open Keon Hatcher in the end zone, sailing the ball out of bounds over the head of his senior receiver. McFain ended that drive by hitting a field goal.
Those two passes were the exception Saturday, not the rule. Allen looked more himself against a Mississippi State defense nowhere close to being in the same league as LSU, Florida or Auburn’s. He completed 18 of 25 passes for 303 yards and two touchdowns, his best performance since injuring his knee at Auburn in late October.
He wasn’t sacked Saturday. Amazing what a difference having time in the pocket can do for a quarterback.
Nice pocket, perfect pass for a second score to Keon Hatcher.
When he was pressured, he mostly stayed cool and collected, keeping his eyes downfield and finding receivers. This came two plays after he endured his biggest hit of the night.
That’s a throw he wasn’t making the last few weeks. It’s worth noting that this was the first time in six games, Allen didn’t throw an interception. All in all, it was an encouraging step forward for the most important player on the roster.
— Fred Ross burns Arkansas, for the last time
Fred Ross’ three-year reign of terror over the Arkansas secondary ended in unsurprising fashion in the senior receiver’s final matchup against the Razorbacks. He went out with a bang, snagging 10 catches for 171 yards and two touchdowns.
Definite push off on Arkansas corner Jared Collins on this 40-yard touchdown pass, but no call.
Still, Ross found plenty of openings in an Arkansas secondary that has actually done a pretty solid job against top-tier receivers this year. He was responsible for more than half the Bulldogs’ receiving production as Fitzgerald threw for 328 yards and two scores.
Ross finished his Bulldog career with 432 yards and five touchdowns on 24 catches in three games against the Razorbacks. He went for more than 100 yards in every matchup. Hog defensive backs — and fans — can breathe a sigh of relief that he will no longer be able to torment the secondary.
— BONUS: Freshmen defenders step up
Sosa Agim and Scoota Harris are true freshmen defenders with cool nicknames. Both were impressive in big roles Saturday.
Harris didn’t start, but played the lion’s share of snaps at weakside linebacker and finished with a team-high 10 tackles, including four solo. Agim, starting his third straight game at defensive tackle, finished with seven tackles and a half a tackle-for-loss.
Both made impressive plays that served to showcase their talent and potential.
Harris reads the quarterback run correctly, fends off a block and brings Fitzgerald down for no gain. Saturday may have been the performance that signals his ascension to permanent starter status.
Here, Agim shows off his explosion, bursting past Mississippi State’s left guard with a quick first step.
He single-handedly blows up the play, getting to Fitzgerald for a loss. It doesn’t seem far-fetched to think he will be a player who demands a double team before too long.
Arkansas’ run defense is still in the midst of its worst season ever, but Sosa and Scoota offer a semblance of optimism for the future. Those two, along with Whaley and Hammonds on offense, put together promising performances in Starkville.