Arkansas continued it’s good play with a 52-14 blowout win over Northern Illinois. Here are the five biggest takeaways from the Hogs’ big victory last night.

Arkansas took care of business – It’s been harped on a lot, but a sign of a good team is taking care of business against teams you’re better than. And Arkansas did just that last night. The Hogs got off to a quick 14-0 start over the Huskies and never looked back. They were strong both mentally and physically against Northern Illinois and they weren’t caught looking ahead to a huge matchup against Texas A&M next week. Give credit to Bret Bielema and his coaching staff for having his team ready to play against a top-tier MAC team.

Brandon Allen is a good quarterback – He may not light up the statsheets like Dak Prescott or Maty Mauk, but Brandon Allen deserves to be considered one of the better quarterbacks in the conference. The junior signal caller has made very few mistakes in his team’s first four games and has executed perfectly on the play-action calls and several other throws he’s been asked to make. There’s no question that the running game will always be the focus of this offense, but to have a capable quarterback like Allen running the show makes the offense even more dangerous and complex.

Korliss Marshall makes offense even better – This may be a “well, duh” statement, but Marshall finally made his presence felt for the first time this season last night. The sophomore running back showed off his speed and explosiveness with a 97-yard opening kickoff return for a touchdown and then added a running touchdown late in the game. As the third running option for Arkansas, Marshall’s speed is unmatched by any other player for the Hogs. He adds an entirely new wrinkle to Arkansas’ offense and if he can hold on to the ball and earn several touches per game, he’ll be making more big plays sooner than later.

Defensive line continues to make plays – Two weeks ago, it was defensive lineman Taiwan Johnson making noise in the backfield with multiple sacks against Nicholls State. Last night, it was defensive tackle Darius Philon disrupting the opposing backfield as he forced a fumble early in the first quarter, scooped up the football and ran it in for six points. This position group continues to be one of the most productive defensive lines in the SEC. Trey Flowers, Johnson and Philon are an intimidating bunch and will give opposing teams fits down the road.

Hogs’ offensive line is arguably the best in the SEC – Everyone knows how big the Arkansas offensive line is (average weight is heavier than any NFL team), but this group has been the main reason for the immense success of the running game. Led by Dan Skipper, who stands at 6-foot-10, 316 pounds and Denver Kirkland, who is 6-foot-5, 330-pounds, these Razorback “hogmollies” have imposed their will on most of the opponents they’ve played. They’ll have their hands full next week having to block Texas A&M’s front seven, a group that recorded eight sacks yesterday. Up to this point, however, you can definitively say Arkansas’ offense would be nothing without the dominating performances by this offensive line.