Admit it, last August as you scrolled down the 2021 schedule the Nov. 6 game with Mississippi State was one you could confidently put in your imaginary win column.

Who could blame you? Arkansas beat the Bulldogs in Starkville last season, 1 of 3 Razorbacks victories during the COVID-shortened season. So, taking care of Mike Leach’s Air Raid offense should be no problem this time, especially in the friendly confines of Razorback Stadium. Right?

Well, as lovable ESPN GameDay favorite Lee Corso might say: “Not so fast, my friend!”

It’s just so difficult to gauge this up and down team. One week they lose to Memphis, then another, like last Saturday, quarterback Will Rogers performs more like Aaron Rodgers and they beat No. 12 Kentucky.

So, which Mississippi State team will the Hogs get on Saturday when the teams meet for a 4 p.m. kickoff? That’s the question. Vegas gives 5-3 (1-3 in SEC play) Arkansas the edge, making the Hogs a 5-point favorite to end the Bulldogs’ 2-game win streak.

Mississippi State is 5-3 overall and 3-2 in SEC play. The Bulldogs have not won 3 straight regular-season games in the same year since opening the 2018 campaign with victories over Stephen F. Austin, Kansas State and Louisiana-Lafayette.

Arkansas is looking to make its own 2-game win streak, adding to a 45-3 win over UAPB prior to the bye week.

Perhaps we should call this the Bowl Eligible Bowl. The winner becomes bowl eligible while the loser must wait at least another week before having its next opportunity to extend the season. Both teams, it seems, are likely to get there eventually with 3 games remaining on its respective schedules after Saturday.

But the team that wins Saturday will get there first.

Arkansas coach Sam Pittman is hopeful that the week of rest will help his team get healthier and have fresher legs.

“I think you need some type of break; some type of mental break, some type of getting healthy break,” Pittman said. “So, it’s been really important to us.”

The season has already been a grind and the Razorbacks have suffered their share of injuries. That can have a very negative impact on a team. Ole Miss was bitten by it in its loss to Auburn last Saturday.

That may be an excuse, but the reality is that programs like Ole Miss and Arkansas, and Mississippi State for that matter, aren’t as of yet anyway, equipped as the Alabamas of the college football world to handle depth problems.

That often results in these otherwise inexplicable upsets, and there have been many this season.

“We have to continue to (build) depth,” Pittman said.

Speaking of depth, Pittman is looking for ways to get RB Dominique Johnson more touches. The sophomore has carried 39 times for 309 yards and 4 touchdowns. Averaging nearly 8 yards per carry, Johnson has provided the depth at his position that Pittman hopes with additional recruiting classes will fill out all positions and all phases of the game.

“We’ve got good team chemistry,” he said. “We’re talking about making this run. If we can get healthy, our 1s can compete real well.”

That was evident over the first 4 games of this season, all victories. But injuries started to take their toll. Three consecutive losses had the Hogs reeling before the UAPB game.

Now we’ll see how the extra week to recoup has strengthened and reenergized the Razorbacks for that final push that Pittman talked about. Arkansas comes down the homestretch with games at home Saturday, then back-to-back road games at LSU and Alabama, before hosting Missouri in the regular-season finale.