10 Things to Know – Mississippi State

Arkansas hits the road for the final two games of the 2018 season, first taking on Mississippi State on Saturday, Nov. 17, at 11 a.m., in Starkville. The game will be broadcast on ESPN, as well as the ESPN app. Here are 10 things to know about the game before kick off.

1. The Razorbacks lead the all-time series against the Bulldogs, 16-11-1, with the first matchup coming in 1916 in Memphis, Tennessee. Arkansas has won only once in the last six meetings with Mississippi State, claiming a 58-42 win in the most recent trip to Starkville in 2016. Each of the last four losses to MSU have come by seven points or fewer. It will be the 14th game between the two teams in Starkville. Arkansas holds a 7-6 advantage in games played in the Magnolia State. The last matchup with the Bulldogs in Starkville featured a 300-yard passer (Austin Allen) & two 100-yard rushers (Rawleigh Williams III & Devwah Whaley) for the Razorbacks.

2. Saturday will also be the first true road game for the Razorbacks since Sept. 22, when Arkansas traveled to Auburn. The Razorbacks have traveled to Arlington, Texas, and Little Rock to face Texas A&M and Ole Miss, respectively, while hosting Alabama, Tulsa, Vanderbilt and LSU since the last true road matchup.

3. Arkansas linebackers Dre Greenlaw (12) & De’Jon Harris (12), along with safety Santos Ramirez (10) all posted double-digit tackle performances against LSU on Nov. 10. It was the third time this season the trio has accomplished the feat, also doing so against Texas A&M (9/29) and Alabama (10/6). Harris leads the SEC in tackles and ranks 17th nationally with his 105 stops, while Santos Ramirez is ninth in the league with 74 and Greenlaw’s 72 tackles in eight games is the 10th-best mark in the SEC. Greenlaw also leads all active players in the league with 312 tackles, while the group remains the top tackling trio in the SEC with 251 stops in 2018.

4. Senior night in Fayetteville featured several strong performances by Razorbacks playing their final game at Donald W. Reynolds Stadium, with linebacker Dre Greenlaw sticking out among the crowd. The hometown kid racked up a team-high 12 tackles, five solo, for his fourth double-digit tackle performance this season. Greenlaw also scooped up the fumble Agim caused and returned it 24 yards as the second quarter was winding down, setting up a 24-yard field goal from Connor Limpert for Arkansas’ first score of the game. The week before against Vanderbilt, Greenlaw recorded his 300th career tackle, and now has 312 total, which leads all active SEC defenders.

5. The Razorbacks have scored an impressive 91 percent of the time when reaching the red zone this season. Arkansas has put points on the board 29-of-32 times when reaching its opponent’s 20-yard line, which leads the SEC & ranks 16th in the NCAA.

6. Senior defensive lineman Armon Watts added another sack to his season total after racking up 1.0 for 11 yards against the Tigers. The St. Louis, Missouri, native has registered a sack in seven of 10 games this season, including each of the last three, to lead the Razorbacks in the category with seven, which is also good for fifth in the SEC. One more sack will tie him with Deatrich Wise Jr. (2015) and Henry Ford (1991) for 10th-most in a single season by an Arkansas defender. The school record is 14 set by Ford (1993) and Steven Conley (1995).

7. Junior defensive lineman McTelvin Agim also recorded a sack against LSU on Saturday, increasing his season total to 4.5. He leads the Razorback defensive unit with 9.5 tackles for loss, registering 1.5 for six yards vs. the Tigers. He also forced a fumble that led to Arkansas’ first points of the night on Saturday. He has at least one sack in each of the last three games. Agim was also disruptive against Tulsa, accounting for seven tackles, 3.5 for loss, along with 2.0 sacks and three quarterback hurries. One of his QBH forced an interception near the end of the second quarter, while his final sack of the day kept the Golden Hurricane out of the end zone on their final possession of the game. He added another 0.5 sack and a QB hurry vs. Vanderbilt, which puts him at a team-high 11 quarterback hurries this season.

8. Compared to the first 10 games of last season, Arkansas is averaging a better red zone scoring percentage (91% to 86%), more passing touchdowns (17 to 16), field goals (17-of-21 to 7-of-10), tackles for loss (64 to 38), sacks (26 to 14), forced fumbles (14 to 10), fumble recoveries (9 to 7), PBUs (39 to 37), QBH (27 to 20) & fewer points allowed per game (32.7 to 35.8) in 2018 than 2017. Connor Limpert needs one more field goal to tie for sixth-most in a single season by a Razorback at 18 – needs seven more to tie the school record of 24. Dre Greenlaw is 18 tackles away from the 10th-most in career tackles by a Hog at 330 – needs 96 for the school record of 408. De’Jon Harris needs 28 more tackles to tie for 10th in single-season tackles at 133 – needs 69 to match the school record of 174. Armon Watts is one sack away from the 10th-most sacks in a season by a Razorback at eight – needs seven to tie the school record of 14. Another 100-yard rushing performance from Rakeem Boyd would give him four this season, making him the 29th Razorback to post four 100-yard games during their Arkansas careers.

9. Junior kicker Connor Limpert was named a semifinalist for the Lou Groza Award on Nov. 1, which is presented annually to the nation’s top kicker. The Allen, Texas, native is one of 20 up for the honor, as he is 17-of-21 in FG attempts this year and owns the longest FG made among the group & the second-longest in the FBS this season at 55 yards. Limpert is one of the most accurate kickers in school history, aided by 10-straight made over a five-week stretch. His 17 in 2018 also sits at seventh all-time among Razorback kickers for FGM in a single season. Although his streak ended on a 60-yard try against Vanderbilt, Limpert broke into the Arkansas record books by nailing a 55-yarder in the game for the seventh-longest field in school history.

10. Cheyenne O’Grady & his fellow tight ends have emerged to be the top targets among the Arkansas receiving core with four tight ends catching passes. O’Grady recorded a career-high seven receptions against Alabama, while fellow TEs Austin Cantrell (two catches) & Grayson Gunter (one catch) also were part of the passing game. Grayson Gunter added to the fun with a touchdown reception against Tulsa, while O’Grady led the team in receptions (six) and yards (83), including a touchdown. He leads the team with six scores this season. The Razorbacks have relied on the tight end position in the passing game through the first 10 games with four different tight ends being targeted for a total of 74 targets according to PFF. O’Grady, Cantrell, Gunter & Jeremy Patton have combined for 44 receptions for 574 yards & eight touchdowns. Only three SEC teams have targeted tight ends more this season. O’Grady’s two touchdowns against LSU made him the only Razorback with two multi-touchdown reception performances in 2018.