First Glance: What jumps out about Kansas football’s Liberty Bowl opponent Arkansas

By Matt Tait     Dec 5, 2022

Arkansas quarterback KJ Jefferson (1) hands off to Raheim Sanders (5) against South Carolina during an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 10, 2022, in Fayetteville, Ark. (AP Photo/Michael Woods)

One of the first things that stands out about the Arkansas Razorbacks is the fact that sophomore tailback Raheim Sanders finished the regular season 10th in the nation in rushing.

Sanders, a 6-foot-2, 227-pound Florida native rushed 219 times for 1,426 yards, good for a 6.5 yards-per-carry average to go along with 10 touchdowns.

Dating back to the end of the 2021 season, Arkansas has had a 100-yard rusher in 10 of its last 13 games, and Sanders has been responsible for seven of them. A physical runner who has a good burst, as well, Sanders is the perfect back to try to wear down opposing defenses who are not interested in tackling for four quarters.

It’s not just Sanders who made the Arkansas rushing attack one of the best in the nation. Quarterback KJ Jefferson also did his share of damage on the ground, rushing for 510 yards and seven scores himself.

At 6-foot-3, 243 pounds, the Hogs’ redshirt junior QB is no easy body to bring down either. Both benefitted greatly from running behind an offensive line that averages 6-foot-5, 315.4 pounds. That’s comparable to KU’s starting offensive line, which was one of the best in the country at avoiding sacks and averaged 6-foot-5, 306 pounds.

In addition to his rushing prowess, Jefferson threw for 2,361 yards and 13 touchdowns while throwing just four interceptions. His QBR of 165.28 was the second best in the SEC behind Tennessee’s Hendon Hooker (175.51). It’s worth noting that Jefferson missed two games this season or his numbers likely would be even more impressive.

Here are a few other things that stand out about Arkansas’ season to date:

• The Razorbacks led the SEC with 39 sacks, setting a new high since 2010 (37) for the Arkansas defense. Linebacker Drew Sanders (6-5, 233, Jr.) and defensive end Jordan Domineck (6-3, 251, RS-Sr.) both ranked in the top five of the conference, with 10 sacks and 7 sacks, respectively. Sanders also ranked third in the SEC with 103 tackles.

• While Arkansas’ 6-6 record does not exactly strike fear into opponents, it maybe should. The Razorbacks lost four games by three points or fewer, including a 2-point loss at Texas A&M for their first loss of the season and a 3-point home loss to No. 7 LSU in November. The Razorbacks’ three biggest wins were by double digits over Auburn (41-27), Ole Miss (42-27) and South Carolina (44-30). But they also were whipped by Alabama (49-26) and Mississippi State (40-17). It’s no secret, though, that the Hogs can score, which lends plenty of reason to believe their matchup with Kansas could be a shootout.

• Junior defensive back Dwight McGlothern is essentially the Razorbacks’ version of Cobee Bryant. McGlothern, an LSU transfer, finished tied for second in the SEC with three interceptions and was on The Athletic’s midseason All-American team.

• A couple of familiar names handle the heavy lifting for Pittman’s coaching staff. Kendal Briles, son of former Baylor coach Art Briles, is the Razorbacks’ offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Briles has been the OC at Baylor, Florida Atlantic, Houston and Florida State. And former Missouri head coach Barry Odom, who was an assistant at Mizzou during the last days of the Border War rivalry with KU, is Pittman’s defensive coordinator.

• According to a quick scan of the Arkansas roster from the game notes ahead of the Missouri game, there are no players from the state of Kansas on the Arkansas team. The Kansas roster features two players from the state of Arkansas, redshirt freshman offensive lineman Hank Kelly, of Fayetteville, and redshirt freshman defensive lineman D.J. Withers, of Little Rock.

• Name to remember: Bumper Pool. That’s right, like the table game. Pool, a 6-2, 232-pound linebacker, is the Razorbacks’ all-time leading tackler and also was a preseason all-SEC selection. In 2021, after turning in a team-best 125 tackles, Pool was named a third team All-American and second-team all-SEC selection. Although nothing has been made official, it looks an awful lot like Pool’s career is finished because of a multitude of injuries. Before their win over Missouri, Arkansas coach Sam Pittman was asked if he could see Pool returning for the bowl game and his answer was simple: “Not a lot of hope there. I don’t know for sure, but no. I mean, he’s beat up,” he told reporters before the MU loss.

Razorbacks by the numbers:

Scoring Offense: 51st at 30.7 points per game (KU 27th at 34.2)

Scoring Defense: 90th at 28.8 points per game (KU 119th at 33.8)

Rushing Yards Per Game: 223.5 (allowing 179.8)

Passing Yards Per Game: 230.3 (allowing 273.9)

Total Offense: 453.8 yards per game (allowing 453.7)

Turnover Margin: -1 for the season

Red Zone Success: 42-for-51 (82%) 33 TDs and 9 FGs

Field Goal Success: 12 makes in 15 attempts

Net Punting: 35.6 yards per punt

Arkansas’ 2022 schedule:

vs. Cincinnati – W, 31-24

vs. South Carolina – W, 44-30

vs. Missouri State – W, 38-27

at Texas A&M – L, 23-21

vs. Alabama – L, 49-26

at Mississippi State – L, 40-17

at BYU – W, 52-35

at Auburn – W, 41-27

vs. LSU – L, 13-10

vs. Ole Miss – W, 42-27

at Missouri – L, 29-27

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Written By Matt Tait

A native of Colorado, Matt moved to Lawrence in 1988 and has been in town ever since. He graduated from Lawrence High in 1996 and the University of Kansas in 2000 with a degree in Journalism. After covering KU sports for the University Daily Kansan and Rivals.com, Matt joined the World Company (and later Ogden Publications) in 2001 and has held several positions with the paper and KUsports.com in the past 20+ years. He became the Journal-World Sports Editor in 2018. Throughout his career, Matt has won several local and national awards from both the Associated Press Sports Editors and the Kansas Press Association. In 2021, he was named the Kansas Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. Matt lives in Lawrence with his wife, Allison, and two daughters, Kate and Molly. When he's not covering KU sports, he likes to spend his time playing basketball and golf, listening to and writing music and traveling the world with friends and family.