Texas vs. Arkansas pick: College football odds, predictions, best bets Saturday

The Arkansas Razorbacks will look to bounce back from a 32-point loss to Ole Miss when they host the Longhorns on Saturday afternoon. As for Texas, it can ill afford a slip-up now that it’s up to third in the College Football Playoff ranking.The Razorbacks have proven they could be dangerous, given their 19-14 home victory over the seventh-ranked Volunteers.However, the Longhorns are a far superior offensive team that should be motivated to start fast as they try to avenge a 40-21 loss the last time they faced Arkansas in 2021. (12 p.m.ET, ABC)Per Game On Paper, Texas enters this contest as the second-ranked team in the country based on the Net Expected Points Added (EPA) per Play metric (+0.39).This team is solid on both ends of the ball, and quarterback Quinn Ewers should be brimming with confidence after throwing for five touchdowns against Florida.Ewers’ performance in the passing game will be critical because the secondary is where the Razorbacks are most vulnerable, ranking 121st in both EPA per Dropback (-0.15) and Passer Success Rate (47.2%). Remarkably, the Arkansas defense has allowed nine passing plays of 50 or more yards—the second-worst mark among FBS schools.With this matchup almost tailormade for Ewers and his ability to throw the deep ball, it’s difficult to see how the Razorbacks will slow down this Longhorns offense.Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green should be back under center after sitting out the second half of the Ole Miss game with a knee injury.While there’s a lot to like about the dual-option quarterback, who has the physique of a bruising runner at 6-foot-6, he can be a bit turnover-prone, as he’s thrown at least one interception in six of the nine games he’s played in thus far.A closer look reveals that Green might not be as much of a threat on the ground when facing quality SEC defenses.He had 13 carries for six yards against Texas A&M, nine for minus-5 yards against Tennessee, six for minus-10 when facing LSU and 10 ...