FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Two weeks after a home upset of then No. 4 Tennessee behind an impressive defensive effort, Arkansas will look to slow down an LSU offense which ranks among the leagues best in productivity.

The Tigers average over 34 points which is good for sixth 6 in the SEC and generates 460 yards per game which is No. 5 in conference. LSU just got some momentum by somehow managing a 29-26 overtime win against the Rebels that kept them from being another two-loss team.

LSU is given a 54% chance to defeat Arkansas inside Razorback Stadium one day after all but ending Ole Miss’ College Football Playoff hopes.

Here’s an ESPN Analytics breakdown between Arkansas and LSU from its Football Power Index table. Both programs have respectable offensive and defensive units but have struggled in the special teams department.

Arkansas has won three of its previous five games with both losses coming by one possession with leads in the fourth quarter. Coach Sam Pittman shared a belief in his team that if turnovers were prevented, his Razorbacks could beat any team in the country.

“The defense ended up keeping us into it and ended up winning it for us,” Pittman told ESPN after the game. “Travis Williams and the [defensive staff] had them ready to play. They played hard the entire night and we didn’t turn the ball over. If we are the same with turnovers, we can beat anybody in the country and we proved that tonight.”

Last weeks zero in the turnover column helped preserve a home win that took quite a bit of heat off Pittman’s seat. Winning not only a rivalry game but bringing the Golden Boot trophy home against LSU would do well from a recruiting standpoint and program trajectory.

Before the season, the Razorbacks ranked No. 44 overall but due to the strength of the conference and continued to climb even in a losses at Oklahoma State and Texas A&M in Arlington. If Arkansas can take care of business against LSU Saturday then conversations of the Hogs’ program being back on track will pick up major steam.

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FAYETTEVILLE — For the first time in 10 years — and the first time ever on campus — the Arkansas Razorbacks will host top-10 football opponents in consecutive games.

LSU will bring the No. 8 ranking in The Associated Press Top 25 poll when the Tigers play at Reynolds Razorback Stadium on Saturday. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. and the game will be televised by ESPN. 

Arkansas (4-2, 2-1 SEC) upset then-No. 4 Tennessee 19-14 on Oct. 5. The Razorbacks enter the LSU game coming off of an open week. 

LSU (5-1, 2-0) moved up five places in the AP poll Sunday following its 29-26 victory over then-No. 9 Ole Miss in overtime. 

Playing back-to-back games against teams in the top 10 is rare for the Razorbacks, and even rarer when it happens at home. This will be only the third instance of consecutive top-10 games in the state of Arkansas, counting games at Reynolds Razorback Stadium or War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock. 

In October 2014, Arkansas lost 14-13 to No. 7 Alabama in Fayetteville and 45-32 to No. 10 Georgia in Little Rock in back-to-back weeks. That was part of a three-game stretch against top-10 opponents, beginning with a 35-28 loss to No. 6 Texas A&M in Arlington, Texas. 

In October 1979, Arkansas defeated No. 2 Texas 17-14 in Little Rock and lost to No. 6 Houston 13-10 in Fayetteville the following week. 

The Razorbacks last played consecutive top-10 opponents in 2021 when they defeated No. 7 Texas A&M 20-10 in Arlington and lost 37-0 the following week at No. 2 Georgia. In 16 previous instances of playing back-to-back games against top-10 teams, the Razorbacks have never won both games, as they will have a chance to do against the Tigers this week. 

LSU is among eight ranked teams in the latest AP poll, which is led by No. 1 Texas for the second week in a row. Also ranked is Georgia (5), Alabama (7), LSU, Tennessee (11), Texas A&M (14), Ole Miss (18) and Missouri (19). 

There will be two high-profile matchups in the league this week — Georgia at Texas and Alabama at Tennessee. 

Vanderbilt, which has won back-to-back games over Alabama and Kentucky, has the most vote points for any team that is not ranked in the poll. The Commodores were edged by undefeated Navy for the final spot in the poll. 

Arkansas is receiving votes in the poll for the second week in a row. The Razorbacks had the 34th-most points this week, or ninth among unranked teams. 

The Big Ten has six ranked teams, including Nos. 2, 3, 4 — Oregon, Penn State and Ohio State. 

AP Top 25 Football Poll, Oct. 13

1. Texas (6-0)

2. Oregon (6-0)

3. Penn State (6-0)

4. Ohio State (5-1)

5. Georgia (5-1)

6. Miami (6-0)

7. Alabama (5-1)

8. LSU (5-1)

9. Iowa State (6-0)

10. Clemson (5-1)

11. Tennessee (5-1)

12. Notre Dame (5-1)

13. BYU (6-0)

14. Texas A&M (5-1)

15. Boise State (5-1)

16. Indiana (6-0)

17. Kansas State (5-1)

18. Ole Miss (5-2)

19. Missouri (5-1)

20. Pittsburgh (6-0)

21. SMU (5-1)

22. Illinois (5-1)

23. Army (6-0)

24. Michigan (4-2)

25. Navy (5-0)

An Arkansas father was arrested after allegedly shooting and killing a man who was found in a vehicle with the father’s missing 14-year-old daughter.

Aaron Spencer, 36, reported his daughter missing on Tuesday, and Lonoke County Sheriff’s Office deputies were dispatched to his home.

But as deputies were on their way to the residence, they learned that Spencer had found his daughter in a vehicle with Michael Fosler, 67. A confrontation ensued between the two men before Spencer allegedly shot and killed Fosler.

Deputies arrested Spencer on a preliminary charge of first-degree murder, a Class Y felony. He was booked into the Lonoke County Detention Center before being released the next day after posting bail.

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Sheriff John Staley said in a video on Facebook that Spencer has not been formally charged yet and that the District Attorney’s Office will decide which charges to file.

“This is a tragic situation and my thoughts and prayers are with all involved,” Staley said.

Spencer’s wife, Heather, said on Facebook that Fosler had a “no contact order” with her daughter for stalking and raping the 14-year-old over the summer and that she and her husband feared he might kill her. She said that she and her husband were unaware Fosler was again in contact with her child.

“We absolutely called 911 during the entire event,” she wrote. “We had no idea this man was in contact with our child again. He was waiting 6-9 felonies for what he did, not 2. He was looking at the rest of his pathetic life in jail, and our daughter was the only witness.”

“Some things we will never know, but we know that the police department afforded this predator privacy they did not give our family,” she continued. “Including posting our home address. I’m deeply offended by the way this was handled by the county [sheriff’s] office.”

The woman added: “At the end of the day, our daughter is a victim and we have a long road of recovery for everyone. We are so thankful for all the calls, messages and prayers.”

Sheriff John Staley said Aaron Spencer has not been formally charged yet and that the District Attorney’s Office will decide which charges to file. (iStock)

Fosler had been arrested by another law enforcement agency in July and booked for internet stalking of a child and sexual assault, Staley told USA TODAY.

“I absolutely do not support predators,” he said. I’m a daddy. “I have three daughters. I know she’s hurt right now, but there’s absolutely nobody I would put ahead of our children, their children, my children.”

The sheriff said deputies are looking into what happened leading up to the shooting.

“When we get on scene and there’s a homicide, it means one person took the life of another,” Staley said. “It’s either justified or not justified. That’s what the fact finding, that’s what the investigation is going to find out.”

The child’s mother had set up a GoFundMe to pay for her husband’s legal fees, but GoFundMe removed the fundraiser and returned the money to donors. GoFundMe’s terms of service prohibit fundraisers from raising money for the legal defense of anyone formally charged with an alleged violent crime.

Because of this, the woman is now accepting money on Venmo and Cash App.

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Aaron Spencer’s wife, Heather, said that Michael Fosler had a “no contact order” with her daughter. (Getty Images)

“My husband is a hero and we are so thankful to have him home with us for now,” The woman wrote in a Thursday Facebook post. “We want to do everything possible to ensure he can continue to be here to protect us.”

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She also thanked other victims who reached out to her with allegations that Fosler attacked them.

“We have gotten a clear picture of a predator who continuously worked with children and preyed on young girls,” she wrote. “This man was Chief of police in Indiana and resource officer, giving us a better idea of why the Lonoke county courts have been protecting him and going after my husband.”

The incident remains under investigation.