Razorbacks Ready to Face 'Simple' Longhorns Defense

Hogs hoping for better results against top defense in the country

Arkansas Razorbacks offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino on the sidelines against the Ole Miss Rebels at Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville, Ark. / Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Arkansas' offensive struggles against Ole Miss in a 63-31 loss were overshadowed by the Razorback secondary getting beat five times by Rebels wide receiver Jordan Watkins for touchdowns.

Despite the defense giving up eight touchdowns, the offense may be in need of a bigger bounce back. The offense managed just a 55-yard field goal and a touchdown towards the end of the first half before scoring three touchdowns in garbage time against backups.

No. 3 Texas presents a different challenge than Ole Miss's vaunted defensive front, which should help an offensive line that allowed eight sacks against the Rebels.

Arkansas Razorbacks quarterback Taylen Green (10) fumbles as he is hit by Ole Miss Rebels linebacker TJ Dottery (6) during the first quarter at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. / Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

"They’re not quite as complicated," coach Sam Pittman said. "They’re big and very physical. Anybody that’s in the top five, 10, maybe 15 in the country, all those teams are very talented on the D-line and offensive lines. That’s the case with Texas."

Don't confuse simplicity with incompetency. The Longhorns lead the SEC and are top-5 nationally in multiple categories. Texas ranks fourth in scoring defense (12.1 points per game), first in pass defense (135.3 yards) and second in total defense (251 yards). Texas has only allowed more than 20 points in a game twice this season (Georgia and Vanderbilt).

Defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski, who has been with Texas coach Steve Sarkisian from the beginning at Texas, has put together a unit which has produced the stellar stats without getting to the quarterback at a high rate. The Longhorns rank eighth in the SEC with just 21 sacks on the year.

Texas Longhorns defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski at practice / Mikala Compton/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK

"They’re really simple but they play hard and they fire off in their gaps," tight end Luke Hasz said about the defense. "We’re going to be ready for that and that’s something we’ve been working on in practice this week. They have some guys in the secondary too who can make plays."

One of the playmakers is Jahdae Barron, the top rated cornerback by PFF. He leads the team with three interceptions and also has 31 tackles.

"We just got to play better on the line," guard Fernando Carmona Jr. said. "We didn't have our best performance on that Ole Miss game and the talent level is about the same. It's just about looking at our past film and how are we going to correct it this week."

Kickoff between Arkansas and Texas is scheduled for 11 a.m. Saturday from inside Razorback Stadium. The game will be broadcast on ABC.

HOGS FEED:

• Arkansas' defense has four tasks it must accomplish to win

• Rivalry between Texas, Arkansas highly questionable

• Why John Nabors hates Longhorns so much | Locked on Razorbacks

• Former Longhorn Has Strange Recollection of Mistake Against Arkansas

• Sarkisian taking lessons from rest of SEC on Arkansas

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