Texas Tech will be much closer to full strength on defense for the Liberty Bowl than Arkansas, but it remains to be seen if that’s much of an advantage.
Only four Red Raiders who saw any action on that side of the ball will be unavailable for Friday’s matchup, based on the roster and depth chart released by the bowl game over the weekend.
That quartet, which includes two players in the portal and two with season-ending injuries, accounted for just 8.0% of Texas Tech’s defensive snaps in 2024, according to Pro Football Focus.
In fact, the Red Raiders will have 21 of their top 23 players, in terms of snap count, available for the Liberty Bowl. The only exceptions are outside linebacker Harvey Dyson III (transfer portal) and defensive lineman E’Maurion Banks (injury).
That’s a stark contrast to the Razorbacks, who must replace 29.8% of their defensive snaps – a number that includes five of their top 14 defenders in terms of snap count.
Despite the large difference, that may just level the playing field considering how the two units performed this season.
Led by second-year defensive coordinator Travis Williams, Arkansas showed some flashes of brilliance on that side of the ball, but still finished middle of the pack nationally. Out of 134 FBS teams, it is 69th in scoring defense (24.9 ppg) and 65th in total defense (366.0 ypg).
Texas Tech, meanwhile, played so poorly that defensive coordinator Tim DeRuyter was fired immediately following the regular season. His unit is tied for 121st in scoring defense (34.5 ppg) and 124th in total defense (451.9 ypg).
The only two teams with worse defenses that the Razorbacks faced in 2024 were Oklahoma State and Mississippi State — teams against which they combined for 89 points and 1,321 yards. Of course, that was before Arkansas lost seven starters on offense.
On the flip side, Arkansas’ depleted defense will be tasked with slowing down a top-10 Texas Tech offense that will be without its starting quarterback and top wide receiver — and possibly its star running back.
The matchup will be decided on the field Friday, but until then, let’s take a closer look at the defensive depth chart for both teams playing in the Liberty Bowl…
(NOTE: As a reminder, the players who’ve committed to Arkansas – and other schools – out of the transfer portal since the end of the regular season are not allowed to play with their new teams in the postseason.)
Arkansas vs Texas Tech Defensive Depth Chart
Defensive Front ‘Seven’
Arkansas
| POS | First | Second | Third |
|---|---|---|---|
| DE | Quincy Rhodes Jr. | Kavion Henderson | Kaleb James |
| DT | Cam Ball | Danny Saili | |
| DT | Keivie Rose | Ian Geffrard | |
| DE | Anton Juncaj | Charlie Collins | |
| LB | Stephen Dix Jr. | Bradley Shaw | |
| LB | Xavian Sorey Jr. | Anthony Switzer |
- OUT: DE Landon Jackson (NFL Draft), DT Eric Gregory (NFL Draft), LB Brad Spence (transfer portal), DE Nico Davillier (transfer portal), LB Kaden Henley (transfer portal), LB Alex Sanford (transfer portal), LB Carson Dean (transfer portal)
Texas Tech
| POS | First | Second | Third |
|---|---|---|---|
| NT | Quincy Ledet Jr. | James Hansen | Braylon Rigsby |
| DT | De’Braylon Carroll | Jayden Cofield -OR- | Trevon McAlpine |
| OLB | Isaac Smith | Ansel Nedore | |
| WILL | Jacob Rodriguez | Miquel Dingle Jr. | |
| MIKE | Ben Roberts | John Curry | |
| OLB | Charles Esters III | Amier Washington |
- OUT: OLB Harvey Dyson III (transfer portal), LB Justin Horne (injury)
We put the “seven” in quotes because Arkansas and Texas Tech, like many schools these days, primarily use a nickel defense that puts an extra player in the secondary. That leaves them with a “front six” instead.
Two of the Red Raiders’ defensive absences are in this area, but one of them – defensive tackle E’Maurion Bank – has been out since going down with a season-ending knee injury halfway through the season.
De’Braylon Carroll and Trevon McAlpine each saw their playing time increase as a result and they split the starting duties the rest of the year. That won’t change in the bowl game, despite McAlpine entering the portal and already committing to Tulane. He is just another example of Texas Tech football coach Joey McGuire’s unique, player-friendly approach to outgoing players.
Perhaps the biggest blow to the Red Raiders’ defense is the loss of outside linebacker Harvey Dyson III, who entered the portal and won’t play in the Liberty Bowl. However, he started only five games.
Given his skillset as a pass rusher and the fact he wasn’t a full-time starter, Dyson is probably comparable to the loss of linebacker Brad Spence for Arkansas. Of course, Spence had more than twice as many sacks (4.5 vs. 2) despite playing almost the exact same number of snaps.
The Razorbacks also lost three other linebackers to the portal, but they were all reserves. The biggest question at the position is the health of Anthony Switzer, who missed the last three games of the regular season with an injury, but based on what his teammates said last week, it sounds like he’ll be good to go.
The bigger losses were up front, as they will be without three starters in the Liberty Bowl. Included in that group is defensive end Landon Jackson, Arkansas’ best defensive player, and defensive tackle Eric Gregory, a veteran who was quietly the second-highest graded player on the defense, according to Pro Football Focus. Both of them opted out of the bowl to focus on the NFL Draft. The third was defensive end Nico Davillier, who went in the portal and landed at UCLA, but likely wouldn’t have played anyway after having knee surgery.
With limited numbers and going up against Texas Tech’s pass-happy offense, the Razorbacks may choose to stick with a three-man front. In that scenario, Anton Juncaj and Quincy Rhodes Jr. are the likely defensive ends and Cam Ball is the likely starter at defensive tackle.
That would allow true freshmen Charlie Collins and Kavion Henderson to serve as backups at defensive end, with Keivie Rose and Ian Geffrard rotating at defensive tackle. Given the nature of the position, Collins and Henderson will almost certainly see at least a decent amount of reps, so they must step up in their first significant collegiate action.
Secondary
Arkansas
| POS | First | Second | Third |
|---|---|---|---|
| NB | Doneiko Slaughter | Jabrae Shaw | |
| CB | Kee’yon Stewart | Marquise Robinson | |
| S | Miguel Mitchell | Ahkhari Johnson | |
| S | Jayden Johnson -OR- | Larry Worth III | |
| CB | Hudson Clark | Jaheim Singletary | Selman Bridges |
- OUT: S TJ Metcalf (transfer portal), NB Tevis Metcalf (transfer portal), CB Jaylon Braxton (transfer portal), S Dallas Young (transfer portal), S Dylan Hasz (transfer portal)
Texas Tech
| POS | First | Second | Third |
|---|---|---|---|
| STAR | J.J. McCarty -OR- | Brenden Jordan | |
| CB | Bralyn Lux | Macho Stevenson | |
| FS | Chapman Lewis | Devynn Cromwell | Joseph Plunk |
| SS | C.J. Baskerville | Malik Esquerra | |
| CB | Maurion Horn | Jordan Sanford |
- OUT: CB Jalon Peoples (transfer portal), CB Miles Thompson (transfer portal), S Javeon Wilcox (transfer portal)
The only change between Texas Tech’s depth chart for its regular-season finale and the Liberty Bowl is the absence of Jalon Peoples, who’s in the transfer portal. That’s not particularly notable, though, because he was listed as a third-team cornerback and hadn’t played since the first four games of the season, with the majority of his 135 snaps coming in the opener against Abilene Christian.
Outside of that, the Red Raiders’ secondary – which ranked 133rd out of 134 FBS teams in pass defense – looks exactly like it was at the end of the regular season.
Arkansas, meanwhile, has only two differences in its secondary, but they are much more significant. Both Metcalf brothers – TJ and Tevis – hit the portal and have since landed at Michigan.
TJ Metcalf was a starting safety for the Razorbacks, but they luckily have Miguel Mitchell waiting in the wings to step in for him. The trickle-down effect, though, is that they have very little depth at the position.
Arkansas may opt to use its dime defense, which utilizes three safeties. In that scenario, Mitchell, Jayden Johnson and Larry Worth III would likely be on the field together. That’d leave true freshman Ahkhari Johnson – whose only defensive reps were 10 snaps against UAPB in the opener – as the top backup.
The loss of Tevis Metcalf is also significant because he was the backup nickel. If something happens to starter Doneiko Slaughter, Arkansas might be forced to play walk-on Jabrae Shaw, a redshirt freshman who’s played only 1 career snap (also against UAPB).
Luckily for the Razorbacks, they do have their top five cornerbacks available for the Liberty Bowl after true freshman Selman Bridges withdrew from the transfer portal. That group includes Hudson Clark as a starter, but he would likely slide inside to nickel if Slaughter went down because the backups at corner – Marquise Robinson and Jaheim Singletary – are significantly more experienced than Shaw.
Bridges is another freshman who could be thrust into action, but it’s less of a certainty than the two defensive ends because there are four guys ahead of him for the two spots.
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Miss our breakdown of the offenses in the Arkansas vs Texas Tech showdown? Check it out here:
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After the Liberty Bowl, all attention will turn to next season. Here’s what the 2025 Arkansas football roster looks like so far:
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More coverage of Arkansas football, the transfer portal and the Liberty Bowl from BoAS…
