5 Things To Know For Saturday

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Arkansas will play its final non-conference game of the regular season on Saturday when the Razorbacks host Coastal Carolina for Homecoming. Kickoff between the Hogs and Chanticleers is scheduled for 3 p.m. and the game will be televised on the SEC Network Alternate channel. Coastal Carolina of the Sun Belt is 1-7 (0-5) following a 27-7 loss to Texas State last week. This will be the first meeting between the two teams.

The Razorbacks go into Saturday’s game coming off a thrilling 38-37 road win over Ole Miss. Sophomore left-footed kicker Connor Limpert made a 34-yard field goal with 4 seconds left and Arkansas rallied from a 24-point deficit for the largest comeback victory in program history.

Here’s 5 things to know heading into Saturday’s game:

1. A trio of Razorbacks have rushed for 300+ yards this season. Graduate transfer David Williams has rushed for 382 yards and five touchdowns to lead Arkansas in both categories. He also has a receiving touchdown and ranks tied for 10th in the SEC in scoring touchdowns (6). Sophomore Devwah Whaley has 347 yards rushing and has found the end zone four times (3 rushing/1 receiving). He has one 100-yard rushing game (119 yards vs. New Mexico State) to his credit this season. Arkansas is 3-0 over the past two seasons when Whaley hits the century mark on the ground. Freshman Chase Hayden, who will miss the next 3-5 weeks with a lower leg injury, has grounded out 326 yards and four touchdowns.

2. Linebackers sophomore De’Jon Harris and junior Dre Greenlaw have combined for 130 total tackles this season and are tied with Texas A&M’s Tyrel Dodson and Armani Watts as the SEC’s top tackling duo. Harris leads the SEC in double-digit tackle games in conference play (4) and ranks second in 10+ tackle games overall. He is averaging 10.20 tackles per SEC contest and has racked up 31 solo stops in league play to rank second in the conference in both categories. Greenlaw has logged eight double-digit tackle efforts since 2015, which is tied with Texas A&M’s Watts for the SEC lead in the span.

3. With 260 yards rushing in its 38-37 win at Ole Miss, Arkansas improved to 13-1 under coach Bret Bielema when eclipsing the 250-yard mark on the ground. The Razorbacks have won each of their last eight games that they’ve topped 250 yards rushing. Arkansas manufactured 260 yards rushing against the Rebels by carrying the ball 53 times. With the win, Arkansas bettered its record to 11-0 under coach Bielema when running the ball at least 50 times.

4. When Arkansas’ defense pitches in on the scoreboard, it usually means good things for the Razorbacks. The Hogs are 21-5 since 2005 when the Razorback defense scores a touchdown, including a 9-1 mark under coach Bielema. Arkansas has combined for six interception returns and four fumble returns for touchdowns in those 10 games under Bielema. Senior defensive back Kevin Richardson II added an entry to that list last Saturday at Ole Miss when he scooped a fumble and returned it 22 yards for a score with 6 minutes left in the fourth quarter to put the Hogs within two points, 37-35. Richardson has a takeaway in three straight games (2 interceptions, 1 fumble returned for a touchdown), the longest such streak in program history since Eric Bennett had three straight games with an interception in 2011.

5. Team captain and junior defensive back Santos Ramirez has stuffed the stat sheet this season, turning in 48 tackles (30 solo), including 1.0 for loss, forcing three fumbles, picking off one pass and breaking up five passes. Most recently, he logged a career-high 10 tackles, forced and recovered a key fumble and broke up a pass at Ole Miss last week. With 8 minutes and 30 seconds remaining in the second quarter and Arkansas trailing 31-7, Ramirez made what coach Bielema called the biggest play of the season. Ramirez plucked the ball loose from an Ole Miss receiver at Arkansas’ 30-yard line, setting up a Razorback TD on the following drive. Ramirez is one of only two players in the FBS (only player in the Power 5) with five pass breakups, three forced fumbles and one interception this season.