This year has not smiled on Arkansas, but the tide could change if a couple of key corrections are made from here on out.

Week 4 for the Razorbacks will feature an opponent they haven’t had much success against in recent years: Texas A&M. The Aggies have won five consecutive in the series, all four against Bret Bielema. Showing improvement and winning could set the tone for the rest of the season. After Saturday, Arkansas has nine consecutive weeks of football, with a difficult conference schedule.

While the Razorbacks have to improve a legion of things, here are the top 5 they need to fix first and foremost.

1. Wide receivers need to wake up

Austin Allen was widely criticized after the TCU disaster, but the majority of the blame should fall on the wide receivers. They deserved to be hammered after that performance. With the exception of the Jonathan Nance’s touchdown, the group had no effect on the game.

Credit: Joey Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

We knew coming in this unit would be challenged to replace so many key parts. It’s been worse than expected. Under Bielema, only 2013 yielded a group less talented, which was his first year. Javontee Herndon was the leading receiver that season with only 31 catches for 437 yards.

Wide receivers coach Michael Smith has more of an arsenal with the exception of his inaugural season in 2013. Drew Morgan, Keon Hatcher, Dominique Reed and others helped make his job a lot easier than right now.

Senior Jared Cornelius was supposed to alleviate some of the pressure, but he hasn’t looked like himself. The hamstring and back injuries he sustained have kept him from playing to his potential. Luckily for Arkansas, he will be able to play against the Aggies, a team he carved up for 126 receiving yards and a touchdown last season.

Texas A&M defensive coordinator John Chavis loves to bring pressure, leaving his defensive backs in one-on-one situations. Smith and his players must take advantage, or Allen will be on his back all day long, with no one to throw to. This is a perfect opportunity for Cornelius to have his first breakout game of 2017.

It’s hard for Allen to improve when his targets aren’t in the right place. There was a reason he seemed extremely frustrated in the fourth quarter against TCU. Multiple times, miscommunications caused errant throws and incompletions.

2. Third down defense has to be better

Any time you’re tied with Texas Tech in a defensive stat, it’s probably not a good thing. Arkansas is tied with the Red Raiders and Arkansas State for the 97th nationally in third-down defense.

Team Rankings did not factor in the FCS team, and currently has Arkansas as the worst FBS team in the country, in terms of third down conversions. TCU was 10-for-13 on third down.

Credit: Joey Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

This has been another staple problem under Bielema. The Razorbacks have ranked 106th, 95th, 79th, and 96th in third down stops against FBS teams under the former Wisconsin head coach. Obviously, that’s not good enough.

The defense gave Arkansas a chance to beat TCU, but has to improve in this category. This problem leads right into key factor that Arkansas needs to correct in order to save its season: time of possession.

3. Sacking/rrotecting the QB is a must

Safety Santos Ramirez has vastly improved, but there isn’t a lot of talent or depth in the secondary with the injury to Ryan Pulley. This makes getting to the quarterback that much more important. Against TCU, Arkansas managed only one sack, which is not close to being adequate.

Credit: Joey Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

The Razorbacks will face a form of the spread versus Texas A&M, Alabama, Auburn, Ole Miss, Mississippi State and Missouri. These teams will be able to go up-tempo and thrive if Paul Rhoads’ unit doesn’t disrupt the system up front. So far, it doesn’t look the Razorbacks have made a big jump from last season.

Arkansas is tied for 83rd in sacks per game, only averaging 2. Rhoads must coach up his side of the ball better.

On the other end, Allen needs help. For all this talk about how the offensive line was improved with an extensive amount of game experience from 2016, it hasn’t showed up so far in 2017. He was sacked three times against TCU, but the pressure he faced all game didn’t show up in the stats.

Offensive line coach Kurt Anderson hasn’t made much of a difference since he arrived in 2016. He must find away to improve his unit or Bielema might need to make a change come season’s end.

4. Time of possession, where you at?

Where has the ground and pound game been? Yes, this is another blatant example of Arkansas’ lack of an offensive line improvement. The Razorbacks only rushed for 129 against TCU. For Bielema’s system to work, the running backs need to garner for more rushing yards, and it starts with them needing gaps to run through.

Credit: Joey Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

The Razorbacks dominated time of possession against a weaker Florida A&M, but when pitted with TCU, Arkansas floundered in that category. The Horned Frogs, a quick strike team, held the ball for 33:52 compared to Arkansas’ 26:08. That is a recipe for disaster in 2017 if that trend continues.

Like mentioned above, stopping teams on third down also factors into the equation. While the offense deserves more of the blame in this category, the defense is not without blemishes.

5. C’mon kicking game

If Arkansas doesn’t fix the four categories above, this one won’t matter because the games won’t be close. It’s been painful to watch the offense drive the length of the field, set up an easy try, only for a kicker to blow it under Bielema. Cole Hedlund 0-for-2 in 2017 and 14-24 in his career.

Bielema hasn’t had a good kicker since he arrived. Connor Limpert and Blake Mazza should get most of the chances the rest of 2017; Hedlund has had enough opportunities.

Credit: Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports

How many times in Bielema’s tenure have the Razorbacks missed a crucial field goal that might have cost them the game? The Texas A&M series is a prime example.