Arkansas faces a significant obstacle between it and the bye week in Ole Miss. Lane Kiffin is coming off a hard-fought win against a lowly Oklahoma team.
Right now, the Rebels are fighting to stay relevant in the College Football Playoff conversation. A win allows them to head into their final stretch against Georgia, Florida, and Mississippi State with some moment. But with the No. 2 Bulldogs on deck for Ole Miss, it might overlook the Hogs. Even then, Arkansas must do these three things to pull off the upset. Here are the keys to the game:
Keys to the Game: Arkansas football vs Ole Miss
Protect Taylen Green
This sounds like an obvious key, but Arkansas fans saw the potential of this offense when Green's jersey stays clean. Yes, Mississippi State's defense is statistically the worst in the SEC, but if the offensive line can protect Green, the offense has a chance to do damage to the Rebels.
The Razorbacks have arguably the best offense — if not the second-best behind LSU — that Ole Miss has seen this year, and Arkansas might catch them off-guard.
Get to Jaxon Dart
This game will be decided by the big guys up front. Just as the OL needs to protect Green well, the defensive line has to get to Jaxon Dart without letting him scramble. The Rebels give up the sixth-most sacks in the conference.
The problem is that Dart is an underrated rusher. The Rebels' playcaller is the third-leading rusher with 245 yards through eight games compared to 358 all last season. Travis Williams and Deke Adams need to work on a balance with Arkansas's front seven to optimize pressure but mitigate Dart's legs.
Get back to stopping the run
The defense has been one of the best at stopping the run this season. However, they gave up 158 yards to an LSU team with the second-worst rushing offense in the SEC and 162 yards to the fourth-worst in Mississippi State. Both totals were well off the respective team's averages for the season.
If Arkansas can keep Ole Miss' rushing game in check and make it one-dimensional, the Hogs can slow the Rebels' slightly overrated offense enough to win.