Things Hogs Fans Need to Know to Prepare for What’s Coming

Mississippi State much different team than Arkansas fans expecting

Mississippi State Bulldogs running back Davon Booth (21) runs the ball against the Georgia Bulldogs at Sanford Stadium. / Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Much like most of America, the people of Arkansas know very little about this season's Mississippi State team.

If there is one team in the SEC that has been buried in obscurity pretty much each week, it's been the Bulldogs. Their 1-6 record indicates there is good reason for that, but not only is first-year coach Jeff Lenny's team surprisingly fun to watch, they are clearly the most dangerous 1-6 team to ever take the field.

Here are a few key things Razorbacks fans need to know heading into Saturday so they don't find themselves overreacting to what is about to play out on the field. This is as far from the team that won last year's 7-3 pillow fight as can be.

Much Like the Russians in Rocky, Hogs Fans May Find Themselves Cheering for the Enemy 

Mississippi State Bulldogs running back Davon Booth (21) runs the ball against the Eastern Kentucky Colonels during the third quarter at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field. / Matt Bush-Imagn Images

Running back Davon Booth may be No. 21 in your program, but he is going to be doing all he can to climb up the rankings in your heart. He's such an absolute joy to watch run that Arkansas fans may at times have remind themselves he is doing it against their team.

Booth has made much better defensive lines than what the Razorbacks will put forth look late 1980s arcade game silly. He glides in 10 directions all at once like a water bug and is as slippery as soap on the floor of a 10-minute old hot shower.

On top of that, he has an uncanny sense of exactly when the right time is to dip into a spin move so he rolls right out of tackles while changing his trajectory at the same time. When Booth gets going, it can be mesmerizing for those watching at home and dumbfounding for opposing defenses trying to stop him.

What's more is he is a solid receiver out of the backfield. He's hard enough to tackle while slipping and sliding in among four and five guys, but if he gets into open space one-on-one with a defender, there's a good chance a chunk play possibly punctuated with a touchdown is in order.

Michael Van Buren is Yin to Taylen Green's Yang

Mississippi State Bulldogs quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr. (0) throws a pass against the Georgia Bulldogs in the third quarter at Sanford Stadium. / Brett Davis-Imagn Images

The last thing Arkansas needs after LSU wrote the book on how to attack the Arkansas defense is to face another stoic quarterback who's willing to march his team down the field five and six yards at a time with pinpoint accuracy. Fortunately for Travis Williams' defense, that's not what they're facing in freshman Michael Van Buren.

Picture quarterback Taylen Green and imagine the opposite. Where Green often struggles to deliver the deep ball with power, Van Buren excels with a Howlitzer for an arm that delivers perfect strikes even in the tightest coverage deep down field.

Where Green sprints to the outer edge of the defense looking to tuck it and run, Van Buren is calculating the perfect angle to zip a ball behind a defender's head for the first down while doing so at a full sprint. He is as dangerous throwing on the run as Green is running the ball at full health.

Of course, everyone knows in the yin-yang symbol, there's a little bit of the other side including in a small amount. In this case both quarterbacks share an affinity for head-shaking turnovers. Van Buren is occassionally going to throw a ball that is going to get picked off by someone who should have had no chance of getting an interception on the play.

Just like when a 45-year-old George Foreman knocked out Michael Moorer for the heavyweight championship with a powerful punch seemingly out of nowhere, Van Buren is going to hit giant chunk plays no one saw coming. Whether Arkansas can prevent them from becoming scores and weather them when they come will determine if the Hogs make it out of Starkville with a win.

The Mississippi State Defensive Line Skipped Both Legs and Arms Day

Arkansas Razorbacks running back Braylen Russell (0) rushes in the fourth quarter against the Tennessee Volunteers at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. Arkansas won 19-14. / Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

One thing that is apparent right away when watching the tape on the Bulldogs is someone ignored the strength part of the strength and conditioning program when it comes to the defensive line. Time and again backs are met in the backfield seemingly for a loss only to run right through them and anyone who followed for big positive gains.

This is especially true when it comes to the goal line. There's just not enough strength to drag anyone down one-on-one and, a lot of times, even three-on-one.

If there's money to be made in this game, it's betting that a large, powerful back like freshman Braylen Russell can put up a lot of yards against this defensive front in his coming out party. There's a lot of meat to be had on that bone, especially if offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino decides to get a little retro and puts the Power I formation on the field every now and then.

These Bulldogs Have a Different Energy

Mississippi State Bulldogs running back Davon Booth (21) celebrates after a touchdown with tight end Seydou Traore (18) against the Georgia Bulldogs in the third quarter at Sanford Stadium. / Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Arkansas Razorbacks fans have an idea as to how a 1-6 team should behave. The Bulldogs should have long since let go of the rope, started moping in press conferences and developed a comfort with allowing little things like blocking become an excellent way to exorcise a personal grudge.

That is not the pattern that has evolved in Starkville. Instead of pouting and planning an exit for the next program willing to waive a little NIL cash, these Bulldogs are full of vigor. It's why they had both Georgia and Texas A&M on the ropes late in their last two games before having the rug yanked out from under them in the closing minutes.

No matter how bad the score may get, expect the energy to pick up throughout the game. Against both the Bulldogs and Aggies, just as those teams thought they had delivered the knockout blow, Mississippi State hulked up and came roaring back into contention.

At some point, it's this never say die attitude and ability to tap into something when they should be done that's going to bring a second win. If the Hogs get ahead, they can't afford to let off the gas.

It will be the difference between this being a potential stepping stone into a successful season and it turning into an off ramp for this era of Arkansas football. Fans just have to be prepared for it to tip either way on a moment's notice.

HOGS FEED:

• What's the bottom line for the Razorbacks against Mississippi State?

• Calipari, Payne reunited at Arkansas with ultimate level of respect

• Loss to LSU breakdown, former Razorbacks remember NFL cuts | 4th and 5

• Hogs racing toward top recruiting class with potential commitments

• Exploring Razorbacks' rich history with Bulldogs on Locked on Razorbacks podcast

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