NO. 1 ALABAMA (7-0, 4-0 SEC) vs. ARKANSAS (2-5, 0-4)
Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019
7 p.m. EDT at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama
VIDEO & RADIO
ESPN & 97.3/99.3 FM
THE MATCHUP
When Alabama rolled to an undefeated regular season a year ago with all 12 wins by at least three touchdowns, the opponent that scored the most on the Crimson Tide was Arkansas during a 65-31 defeat in Fayetteville. Quarterback Ty Storey, who is now a graduate transfer at Western Kentucky, threw for 230 yards and two touchdowns, while Rakeem Boyd had 15 rushes for 102 yards. “I thought we did a great job of mixing up our run/pass and tying in some screens to take advantage of how hard they pursue and rush,” Arkansas coach Chad Morris said. “You just can’t make mistakes against the caliber of opponent like this, and I thought we did a good job last year of mixing things up and getting the ball out on the edge. That was part of our plan a year ago.” Boyd has two 100-yard rushing games this year but was held to 39 on 13 carries in last week’s 51-10 loss to Auburn. Morris has not named his starting quarterback against Alabama but is deciding between Ben Hicks, who went the distance last week but has a sore shoulder, and Nick Starkel.
ONE TO WATCH
Jalen Hurts and Tua Tagovaolia have combined to go 47-3 as Alabama’s starting quarterback, but Hurts is now a grad transfer at Oklahoma and Tagovailoa is recovering from surgery to treat a high-ankle sprain. That leaves the reins with redshirt sophomore Mac Jones, who has completed 20 of 32 passes for 237 yards with one touchdown and one interception this year in a relief role. “When you’re the backup, you’re a little bit like a sparring partner,” Alabama coach Nick Saban said, “but you you can’t be that anymore. You’re the lead fighter. You’re the top dog.”
IN THE END
Alabama is 12-0 against Arkansas under Saban, with the Tide on a 13-game winning streak in Southeastern Conference play and the Razorbacks on a 15-game league losing streak. “Everybody on our team needs to do a little more to be the best player they can be and play with a little more consistency,” said Saban, who will start a backup quarterback for the first time as Alabama’s coach. “That is what we’re striving for every day in practice. You want to try to be perfect knowing that you can’t be perfect, but somewhere along the way you cross over to become excellent.” No Tua, no problem for the Tide.
PREDICTION
Alabama 38, Arkansas 7
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524. Follow him on Twitter @DavidSPaschall.