Hogs hope shoe on other foot, that David will reveal himself against Goliath Notre Dame

The last time Arkansas took the field, a young man was called upon by his team to help take down the SEC Goliath.

He wasn't the one his leaders would have chosen. In fact, they literally chose someone else to lead the battle, and when there was no choice but to call on him, he was ordered to let someone else try to slay the giant.

However, as he stood on the line of battle, he felt an inspiration overcome him. Against orders, the young man marched right at the giant, heaved him onto his back, and continued marching forward, three times more than was necessary for good measure.

At last he dropped the giant to the turf with an old school "attitude adjustment." His enemy vanquished, he walked off the battle field, depositing two smooth stones along the sideline to drive home his point, then basked in the glory of driving out the invaders and restoring their homeland's peace in victory.

This week the narrative flips. It's the Razorbacks which will be looking for their own David to help take down a college football Goliath that has invaded the hills of Northwest Arkansas as Notre Dame strolls in for the first time ever in a morning showdown with the Hogs.

There will be moments for someone to step up and deliver Arkansas to victory.

Perhaps a receiver?

Notre Dame is going to bring far less pressure than the Irish did last season. Head coach Marcus Freeman has expected all week to have several young guys in the secondary, which would already limit the amount of times he rushes to allow for extra help in pass coverage.

However, Freeman says because of how often the Irish have have been ineffective when rushing by taking too long to get to the quarterback, he is scared to leave his secondary on an island with no help. On a side note, that adds to the idea Green can expect to have more than three seconds per drop back to work with, which will allow plays to develop.

This gives the receiving corps theoretically more time to run and get open. However, with the increased number of defenders in the area, the windows are going to be tighter and the yards after catch decreased by the crowd.

If someone can find a way to have a breakout game amid the extra coverage, that could be just what Arkansas needs to secure the upset. Perhaps the most important thing will be to remain sure-handed on targets.

The Hogs can't afford to have balls batted into the air among a crowd. That will turn a game immediately.

Love, Price vs. Washington, Russell

It's possible this comes down to a pair of running backs on either side of the ball. If Arkansas can hold the Notre Dame duo of Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price to under 200 yards and three touchdowns, it will be a major win for the Hogs.

Freeman credits Price's mother and the way she raised him as the biggest deterrent to him leaving for the portal to be the star elsewhere rather than splitting the spotlight with the more celebrated Love. As a result, Arkansas is facing a running back combo similar to McFadden and Jones in how close they are in production with their own ways to take over a game.

Meanwhile, Arkansas needs a repeat performance of Braylen Russell and how hard he ran with the ball last week, although with more attempts. He is needed to wear down the Irish defense to lay the foundation for Washington to hit big plays late as Notre Dame has shown its defense fatigues in the final minutes.

Hopefully, his focus this week has been on proving to offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino that he is a go-to back who can take over a game and dominate even blue bloods like the Fighting Irish rather than getting hung up on the drama created by his father and the Facebook video this week. Meanwhile, if Washington starts breaking off big runs, especially late, the Hogs might just slay the giant after all.

Maybe it's not a David story after all

It could be this whole thing comes down to the shoulders of star quarterback Taylen Green, who can hardly be characterized as a David figure at this point in the world of college football.

There is a lot of concern at Notre Dame about mixing defensive looks against Green. Freeman is unsure his highly inexperienced secondary can switch into zone coverage and disguise it.

As a result, the Irish are terrified they will easily tip Green they are going zone and he will make them pay by identifying it so easily. If that becomes the case because key veteran players in the secondary are still unable to return for Notre Dame, it makes it far more likely the Arkansas quarterback puts up monster numbers.

Fighting Irish fans are hopeful safety Devonta Smith and cornerback Leonard Moore will be able to take the field in reasonable health after missing with injuries. It's possible kicker Noah Burnette could make his return also, further damaging the odds something bad could happen on the Irish side to allow the Hogs to pull the upset late.

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