HawgBeat - Arkansas-Mississippi State position-by-position comparison
HawgBeat provides a position-by-position breakdown for Arkansas and Mississippi State ahead of the matchup on Saturday.
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The Arkansas Razorbacks (2-5, 0-4 SEC) are set to take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs (3-3, 0-3 SEC) at Reynolds Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville on Saturday at 11:00 a.m. CT.
First-year Mississippi State head coach Zach Arnett has led the Bulldogs to a less-than-stellar start to the 2023 season with wins over Southeastern Louisiana (48-7), Arizona (31-24 OT) and Western Michigan (41-28). Their three losses were to LSU (41-14), South Carolina (37-30) and Alabama (40-17).
Head coach Sam Pittman got the Razorbacks off to a 2-0 start with wins over Western Carolina and Kent State, but they've lost five straight to BYU, LSU, Texas A&M, Ole Miss and Alabama.
Though the Razorbacks and Bulldogs face off every season, the transfer portal has made it more difficult to keep up with where the players you know are at.
For this reason, HawgBeat has you covered with a position-by-position breakdown between the two programs to see who has the advantage where...
Note: All players listed are starters or backups on each respective team depth chart.
Quarterback
Players:
Arkansas: KJ Jefferson - 6'3", 247 lbs.
124/188, 66.0%, 1,450 yards, 14 TDs, 6 INTs, 148.9 passer rating, 62 rushing yards, rushing TD
Mississippi State: Will Rogers - 6'2", 215 lbs. OR Mike Wright - 6'4", 195 lbs.
Rogers: 105/171, 61.4%, 1,275 YDS, 10 TDs, 4 INTs, 138.7 passer rating
Wright: 8/11, 72.7%, 61 YDS, TD, 20 ATT, 138 YDS, 3 TDs
After exiting the game against Western Michigan with an apparent shoulder injury, it's possible that starting quarterback Rogers won't play against Arkansas this weekend.
Former Vanderbilt quarterback Wright will likely take his place as a capable dual-threat playmaker. Wright has completed 192 passes for 2,128 yards and 22 touchdowns while adding 1,043 yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground throughout his career.
Jefferson owns a higher overall grade (77.4), pass grade (75.4) and run grade (67.5) than Rogers, according to Pro Football Focus. Despite playing in an offensive system that isn't catered to his talents, the experienced signal caller still finds ways to make plays in crucial situations and is deserving of the pick here.
Pick: KJ Jefferson, Arkansas
Running backs
Players:
Arkansas: AJ Green/Rashod Dubinion/Dominique Johnson
Average Height/Weight: 5'11.25", 224 lbs.
120 ATT, 497 YDS, 3 TDs, 13 REC, 76 REC YDS, REC TD
Mississippi State: Jo'Quavious Marks - 5'10", 210 lbs.
80 ATT, 458 YDS, 4 TDs, 17 REC, 136 REC YDS
Though Raheim Sanders is listed as RB1 on Arkansas' depth chart, Pittman stated on Monday that Sanders isn't going to play against Mississippi State this weekend, so he isn't listed here.
Green and Dubinion have done a solid job this season, but lack the overall ceiling that Sanders possesses. Johnson still isn't the same player he was when he led the Hogs in rushing yards during the 2021 season (575).
Much like their starting quarterback situation, the Bulldogs may potentially be without starting running back Marks this weekend after sustaining a leg injury against Western Michigan. Also Mississippi State's all-time receptions leader, Marks has high-caliber playmaking ability that the Bulldogs need if they want to pull of the victory.
Pick: Mississippi State (if healthy)
Wide receivers
Players:
Arkansas: Andrew Armstrong/Isaac TeSlaa/Tyrone Broden/Jaedon Wilson
Average Height/Weight: 6'4.5", 198 lbs.
73 REC, 896 YDS, 7 TDs
Mississippi State: Justin Robinson/Lideatrick Griffin/Zavion Thomas/Creed Whittemore
Average Height/Weight: 6'0", 194 lbs.
61 REC, 844 YDS, 5 TDs
Griffin and Armstrong are the top two wide receivers amongst both teams, as they lead the way in targets and overall PFF grade with an 82.1 and 77.1, respectively.
After that, there's a major dropoff in production and grade. Whittemore (63.5), Robinson (63.3) and Thomas (60.7) all rank higher than TeSlaa (59.1), Broden (56.3) and Wilson (56.1).
Neither of these groups have been particularly impressive this season on paper or on the field, so I'm going to give the edge to the team with the best player.
Pick: Mississippi State
Tight ends
Players:
Arkansas: Tyrus Washington - 6'4", 247 lbs.
8 receptions, 114 yards, 2 TDs
Mississippi State: Ryland Goede - 6'6", 260 lbs.
N/A
This pick is the easiest of the day, as Mississippi State rarely uses tight ends in their offensive game plan. A Georgia transfer, Goede hasn't recorded a catch for the Bulldogs.
On the other hand, Washington has emerged as a true go-to option for Jefferson and should have an expanded role in the second half of the season.
Pick: Arkansas
Offensive line
Players:
Arkansas: Andrew Chamblee/Brady Latham/Beaux Limmer/Joshua Braun/Patrick Kutas
Average Height/Weight: 6'5.5", 317 lbs.
Mississippi State: Kwatrivous Johnson/Nick Jones/Cole Smith/Steven Losoya III/Kameron Jones
Average Height/Weight: 6'4.5", 314 lbs.
Arkansas was better in pass block situations against Alabama last weekend, but still only managed a 54.1 grade according to PFF. Run block wasn't much better at 55.9. Neither of those metrics have graded out over a 70.0 since Week 2 against Kent State, so it's easy to see why the offensive line has struggled so much.
Mississippi State, however, has been much better overall with a 77.9 and 75.9 grade for pass and run block, respectively. The Bulldogs also allow just 2.33 sacks per game (14 total) while the Razorbacks allow 3.86 per game (27 total).
In terms of rushing offense, Mississippi State ranks 67th in the country with 152.8 yards per game, while Arkansas comes in at a measly 115th in the nation with 109.9 yards per game.
Until we see noticeable improvement, it's going to be tough for Arkansas to win an offensive line battle.
Pick: Mississippi State
