NO. 17 ARKANSAS AT NO. 21 AUBURN

Winning formula: Hogs 5-0 when they run more than pass

Arkansas running back Rawleigh Williams III (22) carries for a gain during the first quarter of an NCAA football game against Mississippi on Saturday, Oct. 15, 2016, in Fayetteville, Ark. (AP Photo/Chris Brashers)
Arkansas running back Rawleigh Williams III (22) carries for a gain during the first quarter of an NCAA football game against Mississippi on Saturday, Oct. 15, 2016, in Fayetteville, Ark. (AP Photo/Chris Brashers)

FAYETTEVILLE -- A strong commitment to an old friend helped Arkansas keep the quick-strike Ole Miss offense off the field for more than two-thirds of the game in the Razorbacks' 34-30 victory last week.

Arkansas emphasized the value of the running attack and controlling the clock throughout the week, to lend balance to the productive passing game led by Austin Allen and to limit the possessions for Ole Miss quarterback Chad Kelly.

The approach proved beneficial with a season-high 200 rushing yards against a Power Five opponent and utter clock domination.

The No. 17 Razorbacks hope to use the same style in Saturday's SEC West showdown at No. 21 Auburn.

"It's got to be part of our DNA," Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema said. "When we don't have that formula, we're not going to win.

"We'll get an occasional one, when the cards are aligned the right way. Our DNA means time of possession, moving the sticks, being methodical, process things, big plays."

Sophomore tailback Rawleigh Williams had lanes to exploit, rushing for a career-best 180 yards and earning SEC offensive player of the week.

"That's our identity, to run the ball," Williams said. "It helped us open a lot of things."

Arkansas ran a season-high 51 times for 200 yards and dominated time of possession to the tune of 40:38 to 19:22. The Razorbacks are No. 2 nationally in time of possession at 35:41 per game.

"I think we had 42 called rushing attempts to our tailbacks and wideouts," Arkansas offensive coordinator Dan Enos said. "That's really good. When you run the ball like that, I tell our team all the time, your passing game is going to be good. Everything opens itself up. You can get defenses on their heels and you remain two-dimensional."

Williams leads the SEC with 785 rushing yards, fourth-most by an Arkansas back through seven games. Devwah Whaley added 65 yards against Ole Miss on 11 carries.

The 42 run plays by the tailbacks and receivers totaled 270 yards, an average of 6.4 yards per carry.

Auburn defensive coordinator Kevin Steele noted the renewed emphasis Arkansas placed on its run game last week.

"They've got a huge offensive line, and of course, they're Arkansas, so with Bret as the head coach they just keep bringing another tailback in," Steele said. "It doesn't matter if one leaves, two leave at the same time, they just bring another one in. It's hard to tell a lot of difference.

"I will say there is some tape out there, in terms of this year, that has a little bit of different flair to it than just traditional Arkansas since he's been there. Although the last game they seemed to have gotten back to the traditional Arkansas."

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Playing the percentages

• Arkansas is 5-0 when it has more rushing attempts than passing attempts, and 0-2 when passing more than it runs. Here is a tale of the tape comparing Arkansas’ tendencies when it wins and loses:

5-0;RECORD;0-2

69.2;PLAYS PG;83

RUSHING

213;YDS PER GAME;96.5

44;ATT. PER GAME;38

4,8;YDS PER CARRY;2.5

PASSING

25.2;ATT. PER GAME;45

218;YDS PER GAME;385.5

BREAKDOWN

62.4;RUN %;45.7

37.6;PASS %;54.3

Game-by-game rushing

• Arkansas ran a season-high 51 times against Ole Miss for 200 yards, the Razorbacks largest rushing total against an FBS opponent this season. A look at Arkansas’ game-by-game statistics in the rushing department

OPP.;RUSH-YDS-TDS;YPC;YPG;(NCAA/SEC)

La. Tech;40-106-1;2.65;106.0;(97/10)

@TCU;43-180-1;4.19;143.0;(89/10)

Texas State;44-226-3;5.14;170.7;(68/10)

Texas A&M;40-120-1;3.0;158.0;(87/11)

Alcorn State;38-353-3;9.29;197.0;(48/6)

Alabama;36-73-1;2.03;176.3;(64/9)

Ole Miss;51-200-1;3.92;179.7;(60/9)

Steele is referencing games like Austin Allen's 400 passing yards and 3 touchdowns against Alabama, and his 371 passing yards with 2 touchdowns against Texas A&M.

Both of those big games through the air came in losses and were the only times Arkansas has attempted more passes than runs.

"I learned from Hayden Fry a long time ago that somebody can throw for 300 yards and you still have a chance to win it. If somebody runs for 200 or higher, you've really got a chance to win," Bielema said. "I preached that to our guys all week. We knew we had to run the football."

The Razorbacks' 200 rushing yards, their highest total against an FBS opponent this season, included 70 lost yards on a fluke ricochet fumble, three sacks and three yardage-losing kneel downs by Allen at the end of the game.

"We came out Saturday and really stuck with it and ran for 250 yards, so I thought we bought into the game plan and executed really well," Allen said.

"Our philosophy is to be balanced," senior receiver Drew Morgan said. "If we can run the ball, we can pass the ball. You could definitely tell when Rawleigh or Devwah would step in and make a big play that it brought the safeties and corners down to cover one and we would just take advantage of Ole Miss left and right."

Steele said he has been impressed by the work of Williams, the SEC's leading rusher.

"That's a statement," he said.

The Razorbacks aren't quite up to their norm under Bielema after being held to 106 yards against Louisiana Tech and 73 yards to Alabama.

They rank ninth in the SEC with an average of 179.7 rushing yards per game, the lowest of Bielema's four Arkansas' teams. The Razorbacks' previous teams under Bielema averaged 208.7 (2013), 218 (2014) and 197.3 (2015).

Enos said the Razorbacks are moving in the right direction for a balanced attack.

Allen leads the league with 1,861 passing yards; Williams and Whaley combine for 156 rushing yards per game.

"Certainly, if you can run the football and be effective doing it, then you'll continue to call the runs and good things usually happen when you're in those scenarios," Enos said. "If we could have 40 carries a game, 42 carries a game, I think that would be an idea formula for this football team to win."

Sports on 10/21/2016

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