Arkansas entered Saturday’s game against Texas A&M with the worst pass defense in FBS. They left ranked ranked 126th.
For the record, that’s a jump of five spots.
Is it a lot? No, but to better put it in context, look at the game-by-game yards-allowed totals by the Razorbacks in the first four weeks of the season.
- Cincinnati: 325 yards
- South Carolina: 376 yards
- Missouri State: 357 yards
- Texas A&M: 151 yards
Now, that’s much better, isn’t it? The arguments that Texas A&M doesn’t have the same style of passing offense as the other teams is moot. One of those teams is an FCS team. The other was breaking in a new starter who previously played at Eastern Michigan.
Two big reasons exist for Arkansas’ improvement in the defensive backfield on Saturday. First is natural. The roster has plenty of talent, they just hadn’t figured it out yet.
The second is the return of Myles Slusher. A part-time starter last year, Slusher has spent time at both nickel and safety. He could play cornerback in a pinch, too. But he had missed the two-and-a-half games before Texas A&M after being injured near halftime against the Bearcats.
Slusher had six tackles, one for-loss, a pass break-up and a hurry. It was the best individual effort, across the board, for any player this season.
If it keeps up and the bevy of other players in the backfield can be consistent, Arkansas should crack the Top 100 sooner rather than later. And at this point, that’s a win.