KU’s run defense ready for a challenge against Arkansas in Liberty Bowl

By Shane Jackson Dec 27, 2022

Nick Krug

Kansas defensive lineman Jereme Robinson (90) celebrates after dropping Tennessee Tech quarterback Jeremiah Oatsvall (4) for a stop on third down during the first quarter on Friday, Sept. 2, 2022 at Memorial Stadium.

A 20-point loss to Kansas State on Saturday, Nov. 26 was the last time anybody saw the Kansas football team in action. It means there will be 32 days between the regular-season finale and KU’s battle with Arkansas in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Tennessee.

Having that much time in between games can lead to a lot overanalyzing from media, fans and players alike. The truth is, though, the Jayhawks will have no shot in their first bowl game since 2008 unless they can stop the Razorbacks’ rushing attack.

And it is clear that is KU’s primary concern heading into this matchup.

“If we can’t stop them from running the ball, we don’t have a chance to win,” defensive coordinator Brian Borland said. “So we are going to have to do it.”

Football can be a complex sport, but this year’s bowl matchup might truly be that simple.

Kansas struggled against the run during a 6-6 campaign, giving up 202.9 rushing yards per game to rank 119th out of 131 teams in the FBS. The Jayhawks conceded 4.8 yards per rushing attempt, which ranked 104th in the country.

Arkansas, meanwhile, leaned on its ground game to post its 6-6 record this season. Only eight teams in the country averaged more rushing yards than the Razorbacks, who recorded 225.8 yards per contest.

To make matters worse for KU, Arkansas brought back most of the players responsible for its rushing production. In the current age of the transfer portal and bowl opt-outs, quarterback KJ Jefferson and running back Raheim Sanders are planning to play this game. That duo was responsible for nearly 2,000 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns combined for Arkansas this fall.

“They are a good running team and I’m sure they are going to run the ball,” Borland said. “We certainly have to be able to be physical up front and match that physicality. We have to be able to hit them, wrap them, and get them on the ground. Those are big challenges for us and we’re aware of that, and we’re working in that direction.”

Arkansas’ physicality is most evident in the trenches. Four-year starter Ricky Stromberg (center) is headed to the 2023 NFL Draft and won’t play against Kansas, but the Razorbacks are expected to have their other four starters from this year’s offensive line in the upcoming bowl matchup.

Assuming there isn’t much of a drop-off in Stromberg’s absence, the Arkansas offensive line could have a big day against Kansas. The Razorbacks’ offensive line produced 3.2 line yards per rush, per College Football Data, which essentially is a metric to quantify how many yards a line produced. KU’s defense gave up 3.5 line yards per rush in that same metric.

Yet with over a month of preparation, the Jayhawks’ defensive line seems ready for the challenge.

“You can’t play D-line soft, you are going to get moved up out of there,” defensive lineman Jereme Robinson said. “(We) just have to hone in on, ‘OK, we have to be physical and we have to stay low. We have to get off these blocks.'”

“They are going to run the ball a lot until we can prove that we can tackle them,” Robinson added.

From a production standpoint, Sanders led the way with 1,426 yards and 10 touchdowns on 219 rushing attempts. He opened the year with three consecutive 100-yard performances, but only reached triple-digits once over his last four outings with a season-high 232 yards in a win over Ole Miss.

But most defensive game plans start with the quarterback, and that’s especially true with Jefferson and this Arkansas rushing attack. Jefferson, who is 6-foot-3 and 242 pounds, has a bigger frame than most QBs. He uses that to his advantage, punishing linebackers in the run game.

Jefferson recorded double-digit rushing attempts in six of his last seven games to close out the regular season, including a 105-yard performance on 18 attempts during a loss to Texas A&M.

“We really have emphasized just making sure we wrap and roll on the quarterback,” defensive lineman Caleb Sampson said. “Their quarterback is a big piece of their run game. He’s really elusive, and he can bounce off of guys. We just have to emphasize everyone getting to the ball, so we know it isn’t one person taking him down.”

Arkansas ended the year with three consecutive games of 200 yards or more on the ground, but it isn’t impossible to limit this ground game. The Razorbacks only mustered 91 rushing yards against Liberty in a 21-19 loss on Nov. 5.

If KU can contain the rushing attack or force Arkansas into more passing situations, it might just prove to be the difference in this year’s Liberty Bowl.