KJ Jefferson’s Career Day Leads Arkansas Over BYU

Arkansas snapped a three game losing streak in a 52-35 win on the road against BYU.

Quarterback KJ Jefferson had a career day throwing for 367 yards and five touchdowns as the Razorback offense hummed all afternoon. This performance couldn’t have come at a better time for the Hogs.

Arkansas came into this game licking their wounds after three straight devastating losses to Texas A&M, Alabama, and Mississippi State. The Razorbacks’ lofty preseason expectations had seemingly gone down the drain and many were seeing the game in Provo as make or break for the Hogs. The players and coaching staff seemed to recognize this too and after a slow start, played most of the game with their hair on fire.

It was the Razorback’s best offensive performance of the year and much of that success could be attributed to a crucial change: letting the pass set up the run as opposed to the opposite that had been the Hogs M.O.

KJ Jefferson’s career day leads Arkansas over BYU

“I told [offensive coordinator Kendal Briles] all week, ‘let’s open it up, let’s open it up,'” head coach Sam Pittman said after the game.

KJ Jefferson hadn’t thrown more than 26 passes in a single game all season until Saturday afternoon where he threw 40 of them, completing 29. It was the most comfortable the junior quarterback had looked all year and this was coming off a concussion that had sidelined him for a week.

Jefferson completed passes to ten different receivers, most notably, Toledo transfer Matt Landers who had eight receptions for 99 yards and three touchdowns.

Landers was one of the biggest bright spots in fall camp for Arkansas but had been relatively hit-or-miss so far until Saturday. The Razorbacks have to hope this coming out party is a pre-cursor for a phenomenal second half of the season for Landers.

Although the Razorbacks passed the ball more than usual, they didn’t forget their patented rushing attack as they ran for 277 total yards.

Rocket Sanders led the way once again rushing for 175 yards and two touchdowns on just 15 carries. The sophomore back is already at 870 rushing yards on the year and may eclipse 1,000 as soon as the Hogs’ next game against Auburn.

While the offense hummed, Arkansas’ depleted defense still showed a lot of the same problems that plagued them during their losing streak.

Arkansas gave up 471 yards of total offense with 356 of those yards coming through the air. The defense got just enough stops to win the game but with the team’s passing defense still being near the worst in the country, the Razorbacks may have to count on the offense to continue to deliver these same goods every week.

Arkansas has to be disappointed at being 4-3 going into their bye week but there is still a lot to play for. The most brutal stretch of their season is over and they will have many of their biggest games the rest of the way at home including matchups against LSU and Ole Miss.

Arkansas is likely to be favored in every game the rest of the way besides the one on November 19 against the Rebels, and the Razorbacks could very easily win out if they get the breaks that never seemed to come for them in the first half of the season.

The first order of business, though: get healthy.

“We’re beat up,” Pittman said. “We won’t be when we come to play Auburn. We’re going to try and make a run. We’ve got a good football team.”