College Football Preview: New Mexico vs. No. 14 Arkansas

This is a preview of the game between University of New Mexico (0-1) and the University of Arkansas (1-0).

Last Week’s Results for the University of New Mexico

University of New Mexico had a rough opening weekend in Mountain West Conference play, losing to Colorado State 14-10. New Mexico was driving with 23 second to play when quarterback Tarean Austin had the ball stripped out of his hands with the Rams recovering the fumble and ending the Lobos comeback. 

UNM and Colorado State are coming off frustrating 2010 seasons. UNM finished 1-11 while CSU finished 3-9. Gauging the level of New Mexico’s play before facing SEC West powerhouse Arkansas is difficult. The Lobos ended up with 329 yards of total offense, 150 net rushing after 48 yards lost in sacks. If they hope to have a chance against the Razorbacks, they will need that type of overall production from either their running game or their passing game alone. The Lobos offensive line is suspect in pass protection, allowing the Rams to sack Tarean Austin 10 times.

Last Week’s Results for the University of Arkansas

Arkansas had little trouble defeating Missouri State University, a Division 1FCS program, 51-7. Tyler Wilson stepped in as the new starting quarterback for the Razorbacks with no problems. He finished the game 18-24 with 260 yards passing and two touchdowns in only four series of work. Backup quarterback Brandon Mitchell received quality game time passing for 104 yards, completing 10 passes on 11 attempts with one score. 

The Razorback defense was ready to play, only allowing 163 yards from the line of scrimmage—84 rushing, 79 passing.

Notes on the Game 

The Razorbacks allowed three sacks, Wilson twice and Mitchell once.

Ball control was an issue for the Arkansas offense, fumbling the ball three times and losing one fumble.

Wide receiver Jarius Wright had six catches for 108 yards and two touchdowns.

Wide receiver and punt returner Joe Adams had two punts returned for touchdowns, 61-yards and 84-yards.

Overview of the Game: New Mexico Lobos vs. Arkansas Razorbacks

New Mexico head coach Mike Locksley has to fear the Razorback defense, which ended the 2010 season ranked 36th in total defense. NMU’s offensive line is young and inexperienced. Look for the Razorbacks to take advantage of their lack of experience with blitzes from every angle. The Lobos fumbled the ball six times, losing three against CSU and adding to the excitement of the Razorback defense. The Lobos will look to run as often as they can, building off their solid run performance against CSU. 

The Razorback offensive line is largely inexperienced with only two returning starters. Improvement in pass and run blocking has to be made for Arkansas to have a successful 2011 season.

Keys of the Game

New Mexico

The Lobos will have their hands full with the Razorback defense and the Razorback passing attack. Will the Lobos play to stop the run and hope for the best on pass defense? Or will they play the pass and hope to stop the Arkansas running attack, which has not showed up yet this season? Smart money for the Lobos is to try to stop the passing attack of Arkansas first.

Arkansas

If you don’t think defensive coordinator Willy Robinson has turned around the Razorback defense around in three short seasons, think about this: The Razorbacks defensive front is so deep that they are redshirting senior defensive lineman Lavunce Askew (6’3”, 290 lbs). Askew has played in 31 games with seven starts for Arkansas. 

The Razorbacks will have to improve upon the 102 net-rushing yards they posted against Missouri State. Tyler Wilson and the immensely talented receiving unit for Arkansas will still get their chance to shine, but Petrino will work the running game to find out his team’s strengths and weaknesses before conference play

Dennis Johnson will likely miss his second straight game of the season with a hamstring injury. 

Arkansas fans are eagerly awaiting the “arrival” of Ronnie Wingo Jr. With the loss of Knile Davis and Broderick Green for the season and Dennis Johnson's status uncertain, Wingo is the only Razorback running back with significant experience over the past two seasons. Wingo has been used primarily as a pass-catching option out of the backfield over the past season. His 4.3 yards per carry average against Missouri State was well below his 6.2 yards per carry last season.

Final Score

Arkansas 48 – New Mexico 13

* The game will be played in Little Rock, Arkansas at War Memorial Stadium.