Razorbacks ready for ‘simple’ Longhorns defense

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Arkansas’ offensive struggles against Ole Miss in a 63-31 loss were overshadowed by the fact that the Razorback secondary was outrebounded five times by Rebels wide receiver Jordan Watkins for touchdowns.

Despite the defense giving up eight touchdowns, the offense may need a bigger rebound. The offense managed just a 55-yard field goal and a touchdown near the end of the first half before scoring three touchdowns in garbage time against backups.

No. 3 Texas offers a different challenge than Ole Miss’ vaunted defensive front, which should help an offensive line that allowed eight sacks against the Rebels.

“They’re not that complicated,” coach Sam Pittman said. “They’re big and they’re very physical. Anyone that’s in the top five, 10, maybe 15 in the country, all those teams are very talented on the D-line and offensive lines. That’s the case with Texas.”

Don’t confuse simplicity with incompetence. The Longhorns lead the SEC and are ranked in the top 5 nationally in multiple categories. Texas ranks fourth in scoring defense (12.1 points per game), first in pass defense (135.3 yards) and second in total defense (251 yards). Texas has allowed more than 20 points in a game only twice this season (Georgia and Vanderbilt).

Defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski, who has been with Texas coach Steve Sarkisian since the beginning, has put together a unit that has produced great stats without getting to the quarterback at a high rate. The Longhorns rank eighth in the SEC with just 21 sacks on the year.

“They are very simple, but they play hard and shoot in their gaps,” Luke Hasz said of the defense. “We’re going to be ready for that and that’s something we’ve been working on in practice this week. They also have some guys in the secondary that can play.”

One of the playmakers is Jahdae Barron, the top-rated cornerback of PFF. He leads the team with three interceptions and also has 31 tackles.

“We just have to play better on the line,” guard Fernando Carmona Jr. said. “We didn’t have our best performance in that Ole Miss game and the talent level is about the same. It’s about looking at our previous film and how we’re going to correct it this week.”

Kickoff between Arkansas and Texas is scheduled for 11 a.m. Saturday from Razorback Stadium. The match will be broadcast on ABC.

• Arkansas’ defense has four tasks it must accomplish to win