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5 impact players to watch: Mississippi State vs. Arkansas
By Pat Donohue
Published:
The Week 12 matchup between Mississippi State and Arkansas features one of the hottest teams in college football and another that is coming off a blowout loss at home.
The Razorbacks are riding a four-game winning streak into this game, and the Bulldogs are still licking their wounds from a 31-6 beatdown from Alabama in Week 11.
Between the Bulldogs and Razorbacks, here are five players to watch in this SEC West matchup. These are not necessarily the best five players from these teams. They are simply five guys that could have an impact in this game.
1. Mississippi State CB Taveze Calhoun – Calhoun’s 2 interceptions this season ties him for the most on Mississippi State’s defense, which will have a tall task against an explosive Arkansas offense in Week 12. But even when he isn’t picking the ball off, Calhoun is able to make plays to prevent receivers from making the catch. His 7 pass defenses and 5 pass breakups are both the most on the Bulldogs defense. Calhoun will have his hands full with Razorbacks wide receiver Drew Morgan this weekend. But if he can neutralize Morgan, that will severely slow down the Arkansas offense.
2. Arkansas RB Alex Collins – Collins’ 1,209 rushing yards are 3rd in the SEC. He is the straw that stirs the drink for the Razorbacks offense, and he runs behind one of the best offensive lines in the country. Collins averages more than 6 yards per carry and has found the end zone 14 times this season. He’s coming off a monster performance against LSU in which he had 16 carries, 141 yards and 2 touchdowns, and he’ll look to go off the same way against Mississippi State in Week 12.
3. Mississippi State LB Beniquez Brown – Brown is 2nd on the Bulldogs defense in tackles with 70, and he has been one of Mississippi State’s best playmakers on that side of the ball. He has shown that he has a nose for the backfield with 7 tackles for a loss and 2 sacks already this season, and he also has an interception and a blocked kick to add to his stats this year. Brown will be an integral part of stopping Collins and the Razorbacks’ rushing attack on Saturday.
4. Arkansas QB Brandon Allen – Allen is having perhaps the best season of any SEC quarterback this year. His 163.2 passer rating is the best in the SEC and his 2,617 passing yards rank 3rd in the conference. Allen has 22 touchdowns to just 6 interceptions this season and gets the luxury of playing behind one of the best offensive lines in the country. The Arkansas blockers have only allowed Allen to get sacked 11 times this season.
5. Mississippi State WR Fred Ross –De’Runnya Wilson, Ross’ partner in crime in the Bulldogs receiving corps went down last week against Alabama in what looked at the time to be a scary looking injury. On Monday, Dan Mullen said Wilson is fine but his status for this weekend is uncertain. If Wilson is unable to go, that will place even more on the shoulders of Ross, who already leads Mississippi State with 59 receptions to go with 662 yards and 2 touchdowns this season.
Pat Donohue is a contributing writer for Saturday Down South. He covers Ole Miss and Mississippi State. Follow him on Twitter @SportsDownPat.
