Battle Line Rivalry preview: Arkansas at No. 17 Missouri
When/where: 1:30 p.m. Friday at Memorial Stadium in Columbia
TV/radio: CBS (Chs. 5, 13); KMBZ (980 AM)
The series: Missouri leads 3-2
The line: Off (Arkansas QB Brandon Allen is questionable)
MISSOURI (9-2, 6-1 SEC)
Date | Opponent | Result/time |
Aug. 30 | South Dakota State | W, 38-18 |
Sept. 6 | at Toledo | W, 49-24 |
Sept. 13 | Central Florida | W, 38-10 |
Sept. 20 | Indiana | L, 31-27 |
Sept. 27 | at South Carolina | W, 21-20 |
Oct. 11 | Georgia | L, 34-0 |
Oct. 18 | at Florida | W, 42-13 |
Oct. 25 | Vanderbilt | W, 24-14 |
Nov. 1 | Kentucky | W, 20-10 |
Nov. 15 | at Texas A&M | W, 34-27 |
Nov. 22 | at Tennessee | W, 29-21 |
Friday | Arkansas | 1:30 p.m. |
ARKANSAS (6-5, 2-5 SEC)
Date | Opponent | Result/time |
Aug. 30 | at Auburn | L, 45-21 |
Sept. 6 | Nicholls State | W, 73-7 |
Sept. 13 | at Texas Tech | W, 49-28 |
Sept. 20 | Northern Illinois | W, 52-14 |
Sept. 27 | vs. Texas A&M | L, 35-28 (OT) |
Oct. 11 | Alabama | L, 14-13 |
Oct. 18 | vs. Georgia | L, 45-32 |
Oct. 25 | Alabama-Birmingham | W, 45-17 |
Nov. 1 | at Mississippi State | L, 17-10 |
Nov. 15 | LSU | W, 17-0 |
Nov. 22 | Mississippi | W, 30-0 |
Friday | at Missouri | 1:30 p.m. |
What’s at stake
The outright SEC East division title and a berth in the SEC Championship Game for the second straight season … oh, and the as-yet-uncreated trophy for winning the Battle Line Rivalry. Missouri, which has won five straight, has clinched a share of the SEC East title, but must beat Arkansas to return to the Georgia Dome.
Cheers if …
Missouri’s run defense continues to flourish. During SEC play, the Tigers permit a league-low 109.3 yards per game, but Arkansas brings in a potent rushing attack led by junior Jonathan Williams and sophomore Alex Collins, who have combined for 1,978 yards and 23 touchdowns.
Jeers if …
Missouri’s offense reverts to the form it showed during a dismal three-game stretch at South Carolina, versus Georgia and at Florida. The Tigers averaged 182 yards during that span, but have averaged 425.5 yards in four games since, including 587 yards at Texas A&M and 410 yards at Tennessee in the last two games.
Three things about Arkansas
1 Arkansas became the first unranked FBS team with back-to-back shutouts against ranked opponents, beating then-No. 20 LSU 17-0 then blasting then-No. 8 Mississippi 30-0, but the Razorbacks haven’t beaten a ranked opponent on the road in four years (No. 22 Mississippi State, 2010).
2 Hogs indeed — Arkansas’ starting offensive line averages 328.4 pounds, which is bigger than any NFL offensive line by mass. The Buffalo Bills have the NFL’s beefiest bunch at 324.6. Left tackle Dan Skipper is the second-tallest player in FBS this season at 6-feet-10.
3 Sophomore Alex Collins needs 35 yards to reach 1,000 for the season. Junior Jonathan Williams topped 1,000 yards last week with 81 yards against Mississippi. The last time the Razorbacks had two backs with 1,000-plus yards was 2006 and 2007 when Darren McFadden and Felix Jones were running wild.
Key matchup
Quarterback Maty Mauk vs. Arkansas’ pass defense: The Razorbacks ranks 13th in the SEC in defensive pass efficiency and are one of five teams with fewer than 20 sacks on the season. Mauk needs to stay calm in the pocket and continue making good decisions. If he avoids turnovers, Missouri has a good chance to win.
MISSOURI OFFENSE
P | No. | Player | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. |
WR | 21 | Bud Sasser | 6-2 | 220 | Sr. |
WR | 88 | Jimmie Hunt | 6-0 | 205 | Sr. |
LT | 65 | Mitch Morse | 6-6 | 305 | Sr. |
LG | 63 | Brad McNulty | 6-4 | 305 | Jr. |
C | 77 | Evan Boehm | 6-3 | 320 | Jr. |
RG | 60 | Connor McGovern | 6-4 | 300 | Jr. |
RT | 62 | Taylor Chappell | 6-5 | 300 | Jr. |
TE | 80 | Sean Culkin | 6-6 | 245 | So. |
WR | 8 | Darius White | 6-3 | 205 | Sr. |
QB | 7 | Maty Mauk | 6-0 | 195 | So. |
TB | 6 | Marcus Murphy | 5-9 | 190 | Sr. |
K | 99 | Andrew Baggett | 6-1 | 215 | Jr. |
MISSOURI DEFENSE
P | No. | Player | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. |
DE | 33 | Markus Golden | 6-3 | 260 | Sr. |
DT | 96 | Lucas Vincent | 6-2 | 300 | Sr. |
NG | 90 | Harold Brantley | 6-3 | 290 | So. |
DE | 56 | Shane Ray | 6-3 | 245 | Jr. |
LB | 10 | Kentrell Brothers | 6-1 | 240 | Jr. |
LB | 30 | Michael Scherer | 6-3 | 230 | So. |
LB | 25 | Donavin Newsom | 6-2 | 230 | So. |
CB | 7 | Kenya Dennis | 6-0 | 195 | Jr. |
SS | 9 | Braylon Webb | 6-0 | 200 | Sr. |
FS | 21 | Ian Simon | 6-0 | 195 | Jr. |
CB | 11 | Aarion Penton | 5-10 | 185 | So. |
P | 92 | Christian Brinser | 6-2 | 195 | Sr. |
ARKANSAS OFFENSE
P | No. | Player | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. |
WR | 4 | Keon Hatcher | 6-2 | 210 | Jr. |
LT | 63 | Dan Skipper | 6-10 | 326 | So. |
LG | 73 | Sebastian Tretola | 6-5 | 350 | Jr. |
C | 65 | Mitch Smothers | 6-3 | 315 | Jr. |
RG | 55 | Denver Kirkland | 6-5 | 337 | So. |
RT | 74 | Brey Cook | 6-7 | 314 | Sr. |
TE | 84 | Hunter Henry | 6-5 | 250 | So. |
WR | 81 | Cody Hollister | 6-4 | 207 | So. |
QB | 10 | Brandon Allen | 6-2 | 210 | Jr. |
RB | 32 | Jonathan Williams | 6-0 | 223 | Jr. |
FB | 40 | Patrick Arinze | 5-10 | 257 | Sr. |
K | 48 | Adam McFain | 6-0 | 180 | So. |
ARKANSAS DEFENSE
P | No. | Player | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. |
DE | 6 | JaMichael Winston | 6-4 | 250 | So. |
NG | 94 | Taiwan Johnson | 6-2 | 255 | So. |
DT | 91 | Darius Philon | 6-2 | 272 | So. |
DE | 86 | Trey Flowers | 6-3 | 270 | Sr. |
LB | 34 | Braylon Mitchell | 6-2 | 234 | Sr. |
LB | 51 | Brooks Elis | 6-2 | 237 | So. |
LB | 47 | Martrell Spaight | 6-2 | 231 | Sr. |
CB | 29 | Jared Collins | 5-11 | 172 | So. |
FS | 27 | Alan Turner | 5-11 | 210 | Sr. |
SS | 28 | Josh Liddell | 6-1 | 204 | Fr. |
CB | 2 | D.J. Dean | 5-11 | 200 | So. |
P | 92 | Sam Irwin-Hill | 6-2 | 203 | Sr. |
Tod Palmer’s pick: Missouri 26-24
Arkansas is playing incredibly well, but Missouri also seems to be peaking and has so much on the line. The Tigers have been remarkably good at grinding out wins during the last two months (aside from the Georgia game). One more gets coach Gary Pinkel’s squad back to Atlanta for the SEC Championship Game.
Tod Palmer, tpalmer@kcstar.com
This story was originally published November 27, 2014 at 8:39 PM with the headline "Battle Line Rivalry preview: Arkansas at No. 17 Missouri."