No. 23 Liberty and Arkansas will meet on Saturday afternoon in Fayetteville, Arkansas in a game televised on the SEC Network at 4:00 p.m. EST. We round up national pundits’ predictions of the game outcome below.
Brad Crawford and Chris Hummer of 247 Sports both predict an Arkansas win but Liberty to cover.
Hummer – “Liberty is quietly the opposite of what you’d expect for a Hugh Freeze team. The Flames have a top 25 defense and a middling offense (55th nationally in yards per play). Could that be solved this week with the return of Charlie Brewer? Maybe. Arkansas’ paper-thin defense helps, too. And it’s probably important to note that Liberty destroyed a BYU team that Arkansas had trouble with a few weeks ago. The Razorbacks win. But I like Liberty to cover, especially coming off a bye. … Arkansas 45, Liberty 35.”
Crawford – “There’s something about this line that screams “take Liberty” to me given the Razorbacks’ struggles earlier this season against Missouri State and the fact Arkansas has been really inconsistent at times defensively. But Sam Pittman’s team has won and covered in each of its past two games since a three-game losing streak in SEC play and they could certainly do it again. This is not a strong lean by any means, but I like Hugh Freeze in this spot with the Auburn brass keeping an eye on this one. … Arkansas 38, Liberty 24.”
Ralph Drusso of the AP takes the Hogs to win and cover.
“Flames only loss this season was by one point to Wake Forest … Arkansas 42-24.”
Bill Bender of the Sporting News takes Arkansas to win but Liberty to cover.
“The Flames moved back into the AP Poll, but Liberty is a two-score underdog in Fayetteville in the first meeting between the schools. Liberty better score to keep up. Arkansas averages 46.5 points the last two weeks in victories against BYU and Auburn. Still, the Flames are 11-4 ATS as an underdog under Hugh Freeze.”
Arkansas wins 38-28 but FAILS TO COVER the spread.
Max Escarpio of Bleacher Report takes the Hogs but Liberty to cover.
“This week, Liberty earned a spot in the Top 25 for the first time this season, but it looks like that will be short-lived. The Flames are 7-1, with their best wins coming against BYU and Southern Miss. Each of their games has been extremely tight, and they’re two points away from being one of the few undefeated teams standing.
But other than their battle against Wake Forest, Liberty has played a weak schedule.
They’re set to face an SEC opponent, and although Arkansas isn’t at the top of the conference, the Flames don’t have the talent to beat the Razorbacks in Fayetteville.
Arkansas had high hopes heading into the season behind an established quarterback in KJ Jefferson, but a three-game losing streak in late September and early October had the Razorbacks’ heads down. They turned it around with back-to-back wins to get to 5-3, and the victory against Liberty should be another solid building block.”
Prediction: Arkansas 36, Liberty 24
Pete Flutak of Yahoo Sports takes Arkansas.
“Can the Hogs force takeaways? They’re 3-0 when forcing multiple turnovers but only came up with a total of one in the other five games. Liberty will give it up a few times because that’s what it does. It’ll hang around and make this a tough fight – the defensive front will be okay – but Jefferson will hit his throws in the second half to ease the tension. Arkansas 38-24.
All three writers at Athlon Sports are siding with the Razorbacks.
