Arkansas quarterback KJ Jackson has a chip on his shoulder ahead of this Saturday's game against the Auburn Tigers.
Jackson, who starred at St. James School in Montgomery before signing with the Razorbacks, returns to the area on Saturday to face Auburn in Jordan-Hare Stadium and hopes to put on a show for family and friends.
Jackson passed for 251 yards in Arkansas' win over Vanderbilt and for 229 yards in the Razorbacks' recent loss to Missouri. Despite completing 63% of his passes for 480 yards in his last two games, he has not thrown a touchdown pass since Oct. 10, when Arkansas fell to Tennessee. Auburn head coach Alex Golesh understands that Jackson is due for a breakout game against an SEC foe, and much of his focus this week will be on the Montgomery
native.
"The quarterback has gotten better every single week, and they have enough playmakers between the tight end spots and the wideouts, based on availability, to be able to go and make plays," Golesh said this week. "We have to play really, really sound. We have to stop the run. We have to affect the quarterback, and we have to play good pass defense."
Disrupting Jackson's passing game will be key for Auburn's defense on Saturday. Over its last three games, Auburn's defense has allowed 923 passing yards. Auburn defensive coordinator DJ Durkin pointed out Monday that the secondary played inconsistently in its last two losses to LSU and Ole Miss. Golesh feels the unit needs to play confidently and soundly on Saturday to get back on track.
"At times, (we have) played well and then at times there have been some panicky moments," Golesh said. "To me, if you give up a go ball and a guy goes up and over, those are moments you can live with. When there's some communication things, those are the parts that I struggle with."
"We’ve played sound back there. I could go back to the O-line, when everybody's on the same page, and we're playing ahead of the sticks, we've been sound there."
Auburn kicks off the most important three-game stretch of the season on Saturday against the Arkansas Razorbacks. Game time is 11:45 a.m. CT on SEC Network from Jordan-Hare Stadium.
Taylor Jones is the lead writer for Auburn Wire, part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) and BlueSky. FollowAuburn Wire on X andFacebook.
This article originally appeared on Auburn Wire: Why Arkansas QB KJ Jackson poses a serious threat to Auburn
