What you need to know about every SEC West opponent in Week 4

Last week, it was the highly anticipated matchup between Alabama and Ole Miss which stole the show. However, there are plenty of big games on the slate for SEC West teams this weekend.

As you prepare for another Saturday, here is a preview of every SEC West team’s opponent for Week 4.

KENT STATE (AT ALABAMA)

Kent State 2016 PPG:  25.3
Kent State 2016 PPG allowed: 26.3

Strength: Despite their 1-2 record, the Golden Flashes are capable of making plays on the defensive side of the ball. Although senior safety Nate Holley has been a tackling-machine — he posts a team-high 47 tackles including two for a loss — the Kent State defense has manufactured an average of two turnovers per game. Sophomore safety Juantez McRae has one interception, while senior linebacker Elcee Refuge (1 INT, 2 fumble recoveries) and senior cornerback Najee Murray, an Ohio State transfer, has an interception and fumble recovery of his own.

Must stop: Dual-threat quarterback Mylik Mitchell. The freshman signal-caller has been making plays throughout his debut season with the Golden Flashes. So far, he has completed 37-of-62 pass attempts for 353 yards, 5 touchdowns and an interception. On the ground, Mitchell’s 113 rushing yards ranks second on the team.

Notable: These two teams have only met once before as Alabama rolled past Kent State 48-7 when the Golden Flashes last visited Tuscaloosa in 2011.

TEXAS A&M (VS. ARKANSAS IN ARLINGTON, TX)

Texas A&M 2016 PPG:  42.3
Texas A&M 2016 PPG allowed: 13.3

Strength: Through three games, the Aggies are ranked No. 14 in the nation — and first in the SEC — in total offense with an average of 531 yards of total offense per game. Between senior quarterback Trevor Knight and freshman running back Trayveon Williams, Texas A&M boasts an offense that can put up points on anybody.

Must stop: Trevor Knight. The Oklahoma transfer has been lighting it up in College Station, using both his arm and his feet to help the Aggies rack up yards with ease. While he has already thrown for 830 yards and 5 touchdowns, Knight has also run for 151 yards and 3 TDs. He’ll be a difference-maker for Texas A&M on Saturday night.

Notable: Even though Arkansas holds a 41-28-3 lead in the all-time series between these two rivals, the Aggies are currently riding a four-game win streak. They upended the Hogs 28-21 in Arlington a year ago.

LSU (AT AUBURN)

LSU 2016 PPG: 23.7
LSU 2016 PPG allowed: 16.3

Strength: Ever since Leonard Fournette arrived in Baton Rouge in 2014, the Tigers have been a running team. And this year is no different. Through its first three games, LSU has run for 547 yards with Fournette (51 carries, 285 yards, 2 TD) leading the way. Sophomore Derrius Guice has also given the unit a boost as he has recorded 177 yards and a score on 26 carries.

Must stop: Fournette may have been held out of the end zone in the Tigers’ season opener against Wisconsin, but he certainly made a statement when he returned to the backfield to face Mississippi State after missing Week 2 when LSU hosted non-conference foe Jacksonville State. Last week, the Heisman Trophy hopeful ran for 147 yards and 2 TDs against the Bulldogs.

Notable: LSU’s last win in Auburn came in 2012, when it left The Plains with a 12-10 victory in a defensive battle. Since then, the home team has won the previous three matchups heading into Saturday.

AUBURN (VS. LSU)

Auburn 2016 PPG: 26.7
Auburn 2016 PPG allowed: 20.7

Strength: Auburn boasts a trio of sophomores — quarterback Sean White and running backs Kerryon Johnson and Kamryn Pettway — that help its offense move the chains. White has already thrown for 510 yards and 3 scores, while Johnson (278 rushing yards, 4 TD) and Pettway (275 rushing yards, 1 TD) combine to give the Tigers one of the SEC’s fiercest tandems in the backfield.

Must stop: Johnson’s breakaway potential. Even though his size (6-foot, 211 pounds) wouldn’t suggest a running back with breakaway speed, the sophomore has recorded a long of 18 or more yards in each of Auburn’s first three games. His longest came against Arkansas State in Week 2 as he ran for a 47-yard touchdown on the offense’s second possession.

Notable: Auburn has won six of its last eight home meetings against LSU, though the two teams are 2-2 in their last four games at Jordan Hare Stadium.

UMass (VS. MISSISSIPPI STATE)

UMASS 2016 PPG: 11.7
UMASS 2016 PPG allowed: 21.0

Strength: The Minutemen are about as one-dimensional as any team can be as their passing attack has accounted for 80 percent of the team’s 703 total yards of offense. Although sophomore quarterback Ross Comis led the offense in the first two weeks of the season — losses at Florida and at home against Boston College, respectively — UMass turned the offense over to another sophomore signal-caller, Andrew Ford, against Florida International last weekend. Ford ended up leading the Minutemen to their first victory as his 278 yards of passing (3 TD, 1 INT) helped UMass earn a 21-13 win over the visiting Panthers.

Must stop: Regardless of who is behind center, sophomore wide receiver Andy Isabella has been the quarterbacks’ favorite target this season. He caught 3 passes for 95 yards against Florida in the team’s opener, and he finished with 6 catches, 83 yards and a score in the win last weekend.

Notable: Mississippi State marks the second of three SEC teams the Minutemen will play this season and the only one it will host at Gillette Stadium. UMass will also meet South Carolina on Oct. 22.

GEORGIA (AT OLE MISS)

Georgia 2016 PPG: 29.0
Georgia 2016 PPG allowed: 25.0

Strength: With junior Nick Chubb anchoring the offense, the Bulldogs boast one of the best running games in all of college football. Georgia has already run for 557 yards in three games, though freshman quarterback Jacob Eason stole the show when he threw for 308 yards and 3 TDs to help the Bulldogs escape Missouri with a 28-27 win. Between the running game and the passing game, Georgia’s offense is tough to game plan for.

Must stop: As good as Eason was against the Tigers, Chubb is who defensive coordinators need to be worried about. Sure, his numbers have fallen off since he rushed for 222 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the Bulldogs’ 33-24 win over North Carolina in Week 1. Even so, the 5-foot-10, 228-pound wrecking ball can cause major problems for any defense.

Notable: Georgia will enter Oxford having won the last 10 meetings between these two teams. You have to go all the way back to 1996 to find the last time Ole Miss came out on top when they earned a 31-27 win in Athens.

ARKANSAS (VS. TEXAS A&M IN ARLINGTON, TX)

Arkansas 2016 PPG: 34.7
Arkansas 2016 PPG allowed: 20.3

Strength: Although the Razorbacks once again feature a run-first offense, the Hogs have also let first-year starting quarterback Austin Allen make plays. Through three games, he has completed 67 percent of his passes (53-for-79) and thrown for 7 touchdowns and just 2 interceptions. But they call them the Hogs for a reason — it’s their ground game that can make the difference.

Must stop: Sophomore running back Rawleigh Williams III has carried the brunt of the load for the Razorbacks’ backfield this season as he has already rushed for 354 yards and 3 touchdowns on 71 carries. The 5-foot-10, 223-pound back will enter Saturday after rushing for more than 100 yards the past two weeks. In Week 2, he carved up TCU for 137 yards before rumbling for 121 yards and a pair of touchdowns against Texas State last weekend.

Notable: Even though the Razorbacks won three straight meetings from 2009-2011, the Aggies enter Saturday night with a four-game win streak in this SEC West rivalry.

Brad Joyal