Hogs' Defense Next Step Requires Offense's Help

Disastrous season moving ball eventually bled over into poor defensive showing

Author:
Daniel Shi
Updated:
Dec 13, 2023 2:37 PM EST
Original:
Dec 12, 2023

In this story:

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Complementary football is an adage used by coaches as old as time and is definitely applicable to the 2023 Razorbacks.

As Arkansas' offense cratered to its lowest point under the Sam Pittman era, first-year coordinator Travis Williams' defense somehow kept the team from losing all the games, but how much better was the 2023 defense compared to the 2022 one that hampered the Razorbacks two years ago? Here's the rundown of the basic stats (SEC Ranking).

2023:
Points Per Game: 27.9 (13th)
Yards Per Game: 357.2 (8th)
Yards Per Play: 5.7 (11th)
Passing Yards Per Game: 202.8 (5th)
Rushing Yards Per Game: 154.4 (10th)

2022:
Points Per Game: 30.6 (13th)
Yards Per Game: 465.2 (14th)
Yards Per Play: 6.5 (13th)
Passing Yards Per Game: 294.7 (14th)
Rushing Yards Per Game: 170.5 (9th)

There's no question a couple of horrible 48-point performances against Auburn and Missouri inflate these numbers. The team had nothing to play for other than pride, but it shows the defense still has plenty of work to do moving forward.

All of the raw stats don't matter if the defense can't perform when it matters, on third down and in the red zone.

The Razorbacks made huge strides on third down, allowing an opponent conversion rate of 38.46% compared to 45.66% in 2022. Being able to get off the field allowed the Razorbacks to have a higher time of possession this year compared to last year, despite the massive drop-off in offensive production.

The red zone is a different story entirely. The Hogs allowed 27 touchdowns (57.5 percent of red zone trips) in the red zone which is fine as a percentage and sits right in the middle of the SEC. However, the defense allowed opponents to get into the red zone 47 times. Only Vanderbilt allowed more in the SEC.

This is where the complementary component comes in. Often, the Hogs would give up field position due to stretches of inept offensive play that would go the entire first quarter without getting a first down. The opponents would then be left right on the doorstep of the red zone without having to move a finger.

Conversely, Arkansas had a pretty poor red zone offense, which puts immense pressure on the defense. The Razorbacks only had six rushing touchdowns in the red zone all year. Louisiana-Monroe is the only program in the country with less.

Arkansas just got the surprise return of Landon Jackson, its captain and leader in sacks. Williams will have another year under his belt as coordinator. If offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino can revamp the offense into basic levels of consistent production, the defense should take a pretty good leap.