According to On3’s Nick Schultz, former Mississippi State and Florida head coach Dan Mullen shared during an episode of ESPN’s “SportsCenter” on Thursday why No. 3 Texas could be heading into a possible upset when it travels to face an unranked Arkansas team on Saturday.
Texas is coming off a convincing 49-17 win over Florida last Saturday, while Arkansas hasn’t played a game since its 63-31 loss on Nov. 2 to Ole Miss.
Despite the Razorbacks losing two of their last three contests and four of their five matchups against ranked opponents this season, Mullen still thinks they have a chance this weekend against the Longhorns.
He mentioned how Arkansas was able to defeat No. 7 Tennessee on Oct. 5, but that contest was one of the few where the Razorbacks didn’t turn the ball over once.
This season, Arkansas has had at least one turnover in seven of its nine games, and on Saturday, it will be facing a Texas defense that is tied for the fifth-most turnovers forced in the nation this year, including nine in its last three contests.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Razorbacks will have to figure out a way to slow down Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers, who just threw for 333 yards and five touchdowns in the school’s win over Florida last week.
That will be easier said than done since the most recent quarterback Arkansas went up against, Ole Miss’ Jaxson Dart, torched its defense with 515 passing yards and six touchdown tosses.
It’s not a favorable matchup for the Razorbacks by any means, but Mullen knows almost any top-ranked team like the Longhorns is capable of suffering an upset when everyone least expects it.
Oddly enough, if Texas leaves the field with a win on Saturday, it will be the school’s first victory over Arkansas since the 2008 season. The Razorbacks have won three of the five all-time matchups between the two teams, with their last win coming in 2021.
Will the Longhorns emerge victorious in a game that they’re supposed to win this weekend, or will the Razorbacks earn their second win this season over a heavily favored top-10 opponent?
