Texas Longhorns vs. Arkansas Razorbacks: What the Stats Say

The Texas Longhorns hit the road to face an old rival.

Jon Alfano | 3 Hours Ago

Sep 11, 2021; Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA; Texas Longhorns wide receiver Xavier Worthy (8) runs after a catch in the second half against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. Arkansas won 40-21. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images / Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

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Throughout their first season in the SEC, the Texas Longhorns have faced teams they have only faced a few times before, with the last meeting coming decades ago in many cases. That is not the case for the Arkansas Razorbacks.

The Longhorns have faced the Razorbacks 79 times throughout their history, trailing only in-state opponents and Oklahoma for the most matchups in school history. They were conference rivals until the early 90s, but have still played each other a fair bit since then. Most recently, the Razorbacks defeated the Longhorns 40-21 in 2021, a game many viewed as a "welcome to the SEC" for Texas.

Well, now the Longhorns are actually in the SEC (and doing quite well for themselves, too), and they're set to pay their old rivals another visit on Saturday. It should be another good matchup, but who will win? Let's look at the numbers to gain some insight.

Despite their 5-4 record (3-3 in SEC play), the Razorbacks boast some very impressive offensive numbers. Arkansas ranks second in the conference in total offense (483.2 yards per game), fourth in both passing (292.3 per game) and rushing (190.9 yards per game) and fifth in scoring (33 points per game). Much of that production comes from a few blowout wins, like when the Razorbacks hung 58 points and 673 total yards on Mississippi State on Oct. 26, but still impressive nonetheless.

Defensively, the numbers aren't so pretty. Arkansas ranks 14th in total (387.4 yards allowed per game) and scoring defense (26.3 points allowed per game) and dead last in passing defense (266.2 yards allowed per game). The only somewhat redeeming part is their run defense, which ranks eighth in the conference (121.2 yards allowed per game).

Meanwhile, Texas' game plan is very clear. The Longhorns thrive on their defense, which ranks first in the SEC in scoring (12.1 points allowed per game), total (251 yards allowed per game) and passing defense (135.3 yards allowed per game). On the other side of the ball, they rank second in scoring (38.9 points per game), third in passing (301.1 yards per game) and fourth in total offense (465.2 yards per game).

Texas and Arkansas kick off from Fayetteville at 11 a.m. CT on Saturday.