Arkansas is going to be a much tougher game than most expect.
In the Arky spring game their QB has made huge improvements and he was making passes all over the field and that will open up their ground and pound running game more.
The Arky O line is full of big hogs that can wear down a D line and LB's and never forget that last year they had 2 RB's that both ran for over 1,000 yards.
I think it's a toss up game but that we can get the WIN as long as our freshmen on the D line rotation can hold back the hogs O line and do a decent job of stuffing their run game.
Right now I'd pick our Vols by 3 points.
#BrickbyBrick...VFL...GBO!!!
I'm less worried about Arkansas than most seem to be.
Williams and Collins both ran for over 1,000 yards, but that seemed to be more a product of them staying healthy and their team being focused on the running game. Neither had particularly impressive years. Here are all of the SEC running backs who had at 150 carries and had more, as many, or close to as many YPC as Collins and Williams:
Chubb: 7.06
J. Robinson: 6.33
Derrick Henry: 5.76
Jonathon Williams: 5.64
Leonard Fournette: 5.53
Alex Collins: 5.39
Cam. Artis-Payne: 5.31
R. Hansbrough: 5.29
M. Murphy: 5.22
N. Marshall: 5.22
They were very good, but only a bit above average in YPC for the SEC. They are your average "good, but not outstanding" SEC starting RBs.
Moreover, both got a large chunk of their yards against three of the worst run defenses in football.
Williams had 5.6 YPC and 1190 yards. But take away Texas Tech (124th/128 in FBS on run defense), Nicholls State, and UAB, and he had 4.4 YPC and 748 rushing yards.
Collins has 1100 yards and 5.4 per carry. But he had 410 of those against Texas Tech, Nicholls State, and UAB. Without those three games he ran for 4.5 per carry and 670 yards.
Both of their backs were solid-good against SEC caliber teams, and fantastic against garbage teams. Against our run defense, I would be surprised to see them average 4.4/4.5 per carry. Hardly a dominating tandem, though they are solid to be sure.
Not to forget, even with this tandem, Arkansas was 5th in the SEC in rushing yards per game, and 5th in rushing YPC.
Add in a solid though not outstanding QB who is no threat to run and whom we can pin our ears back against on passing downs, add in the fact that they lost a decent bit of their defense, and add in that it is in Knoxville and I am pretty confident that we win this game.
TL;DR Collins and Williams pulled a Myles Garrett, getting most of their stats against weak competition. Against the cream of the crop, their numbers were pretty pedestrian.
