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Tennessee football at Arkansas: 10 keys to the game

By Caleb Calhoun

FAYETTEVILLE, AR - SEPTEMBER 1: View of Donald W. Reynolds Stadium, home of the Arkansas Razorbacks, and John McDonnell Field before a game against the Eastern Illinois Panthers at Razorback Stadium on September 1, 2018 in Fayetteville, Arkansas. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
FAYETTEVILLE, AR - SEPTEMBER 1: View of Donald W. Reynolds Stadium, home of the Arkansas Razorbacks, and John McDonnell Field before a game against the Eastern Illinois Panthers at Razorback Stadium on September 1, 2018 in Fayetteville, Arkansas. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images) /
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Oct 17, 2020; Knoxville, TN, USA; Tennessee quarterback Jarrett Guarantano (2) fumbles the ball and watches as its recovered by Kentucky during a SEC conference football game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the Kentucky Wildcats held at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn., on Saturday, October 17, 2020. Mandatory Credit: Brianna Paciorka-USA TODAY NETWORK
Oct 17, 2020; Knoxville, TN, USA; Tennessee quarterback Jarrett Guarantano (2) fumbles the ball and watches as its recovered by Kentucky during a SEC conference football game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the Kentucky Wildcats held at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn., on Saturday, October 17, 2020. Mandatory Credit: Brianna Paciorka-USA TODAY NETWORK /

6. Turnovers

When you talk about a pass rush, that contributes heavily to the turnover battle for both teams. On paper, this favors the Arkansas Razorbacks significantly. The Hogs have a plus-six turnover margin on the year, averaging nearly a two-to-one ratio at 13:7, good for No. 11 in the nation and best in the SEC. This has been a huge aspect of their game.

Meanwhile, Tennessee football has collapsed because of turnovers. The Vols had three in the second half against the Georgia Bulldogs, four in the first half against the Kentucky Wildcats and then one against the Alabama Crimson Tide. So they have had eight in the past two and a half games, and they had seven in just four quarters from Georgia to Kentucky.

Now, the reason there’s a caveat to this is because the Vols were actually great at taking care of the ball in their 2-0 start. They forced two turnovers and had none against the South Carolina Gamecocks and then forced a third and had none against the Missouri Tigers. Since then, they have still forced turnovers. The problem is them having too many.

If the Vols get back to where they were early in the season, they have a great chance. Arkansas has shown that it has a really hard time winning without forcing turnovers. As a result, the message for Rocky Top has to be take care of the ball. Did Jim Chaney work on this during the bye? That will be key to this game.

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