HawgBeat - KJ Jefferson takes over run game against Kent State
Arkansas Razorbacks quarterback KJ Jefferson flashed his dual-threat ability in the Hogs' win over Kent State.
arkansas.rivals.com
FAYETTEVILLE - After an impressive passing performance in Week 1 against the Western Carolina Catamounts, it was the running ability of Arkansas starting quarterback KJ Jefferson that shined the most in Saturday's 28-6 win over the Kent State Golden Flashes.
"We had runs in specifically for KJ, but most of them were short-yardage type situations," head coach Sam Pittman said after the game. "We were ready for that, just obviously we didn't want to have to go to that if that makes sense."
Jefferson finished the Hogs' 28-6 victory with 13 rushes for 48 yards while averaging 3.7 yards per attempt. It's worth noting that Jefferson took two sacks for negative-15 yards, which took his total yardage and average down.
Those numbers are still up from just five carries for 24 yards against Western Carolina in Week 1 — something that doesn't come as a surprise to Jefferson, who took over in the second half by rushing 10 times for 44 yards.
"I mean I’m willing to do anything for my team, as long as we get the victory," Jefferson said. "Put my teammates in the best position to win, so I’m willing to do anything. Coach Enos calls the play, and I mean, it was up to me to just execute. I put my trust in those guys to block, Andrew (Armstrong), the linemen, the running backs to block, and I just execute. It wasn’t a surprise at all."
The 6-foot-3, 247-pound redshirt senior is known for taking hits and breaking tackles, and that reputation has held true through the first two matchups of the season.
"It actually felt good, because I haven’t been hit in so long, like you said," Jefferson said. "Once I got the first hit, I was like ‘Okay, I’m back now. I feel good. I’m ready now.’ It felt good just being able to help my teammates get out there and secure the victory."
"Knowing it’s the first kind of situation that I’m going to have to carry the ball and be the guy to go make a first down and give my team a spark, try to get some momentum for them and make a play of some sort. It felt really good getting back to it and getting it, so it felt good."
According to Kent State head coach Kenni Burns, the Golden Flashes' defense attempted to neutralize Jefferson's legs by putting more defensive players in the box. This worked for a time, but it's tough to hold the Preseason Second Team All-SEC quarterback down for long.
"They’re good coaches, they figured it out," Burns said. "They started running it a bit more, using the running back as lead blocker. They took our numbers away from us. So, that’s a good coaching job by them."
Through two games against FCS foe Western Carolina and Kent State's dead-last FBS rush defense, the Razorbacks have only accumulated 248 rushing yards from running backs. According to Jefferson, improving the rushing attack is all about building consistency.
"It’s not frustrating at all," Jefferson said. "At times it is frustrating, but I mean, I know what type of team we have and I know what those guys are capable of doing. We’re all trying to figure out different things and it’s early in the season still."
"We’ve got a long season ahead of us and we just want to keep stacking good days on good days and keep just building and gaining and maintaining."
Up next, the Hogs will take on the BYU Cougars next Saturday at Reynolds Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville. The game is set to kick off at 6:30 p.m. CT and it will be broadcast on ESPN2.
