FACTS & STATS: Site: War Memorial Stadium (53,727) -- Little Rock, Arkansas. Television: CBS. Home Record: LSU 5-3, Arkansas 2-3. Away Record: LSU 2-1, Arkansas 1-4. Neutral Record: LSU 0-0, Arkansas 1-0. Conference Record: LSU 3-4, Arkansas 1-6. Series Record: LSU leads, 33-18-2.

GAME NOTES: The LSU Tigers have fallen out of the national rankings, and they will close out the regular season this weekend against the Arkansas Razorbacks in SEC action. LSU opened the season with four consecutive victories, but since then the squad has lost four of seven to become an afterthought in the conference. Last weekend, the Tigers were embarrassed at home by Ole Miss in a 31-13 loss. LSU has been wildly inconsistent, as it took top-ranked Alabama to overtime a few weeks ago and then nearly lost to Troy the next week. As for Arkansas, it has lost two straight decisions to fall to 4-7 overall and a woeful 1-6 in league play. Last weekend, the Razorbacks lost to Mississippi State on the road by a 31-28 final, as a field goal that could have forced overtime missed its mark. Bobby Petrino has clearly struggled in his first season as the head coach at Arkansas, but a victory over the Tigers would certainly give the program some momentum heading into the off-season. LSU owns a 33-18-2 series advantage over Arkansas, but the Razorbacks did win last season's meeting in triple overtime.

LSU struggled mightily on offense last weekend, as it rushed for just 37 yards on 29 attempts. The Tigers finished with a mere 215 total yards and turned the ball over twice. Jordan Jefferson and Jarrett Lee both saw significant time under center, and neither played particularly well. Jefferson completed 10- of-20 passes for 129 yards and one touchdown with one interception, while Lee connected on just 4-of-12 throws for 49 yards and an interception. Lee, the team's starter, wasn't removed because of his ineffective play, but rather forced to the sidelines with a knee injury that will likely keep him out of action this weekend. Jefferson, a freshman, is expected to start against Arkansas, and the hope is that the LSU ground attack, led by Charles Scott, will take some pressure off Jefferson. Scott, who was a non-factor against Ole Miss, has rushed for 1,081 yards and 14 touchdowns this season while averaging 5.7 ypc. Jefferson has attempted a grand total of 27 passes this season, so he expect the Razorbacks to put plenty of pressure on the young signal caller. Brandon LaFell is a terrific receiver who has made 59 catches for 854 yards and seven touchdowns despite the struggles at the quarterback position this season.

Ole Miss had its way against the LSU defense last weekend, racking up 409 total yards, including 307 yards through the air. The Tigers did a nice job against the run, permitting a mere 2.3 yards per carry on 45 attempts, but they yielded four touchdowns in all. Ole Miss was able to keep possession of the football for nearly 35 minutes despite a 4-of-13 effort on third down conversion attempts. Through 11 outings, LSU is yielding 25.5 ppg, unacceptable for a program that has been one of the best in the nation defensively in recent years. The Tigers are surrendering just 104.5 rushing ypg on 3.3 ypc, but they are permitting 12.2 yards per pass completion. LSU has just six interceptions, an extremely low total. Harry Coleman paces the Tigers with 60 total tackles, and Rahim Alem checks in with seven sacks.

Arkansas may be without tailback Michael Smith this weekend, as he is dealing with a hamstring injury. Considering the fact that Smith has rushed for 1,072 yards and eight touchdowns while averaging 5.2 ypc, he will be sorely missed unless he makes a remarkable recovery by the weekend. Every other player on the roster has under 100 total rushing yards this season, emphasizing Smith's importance to the offense. Senior Casey Dick began this campaign as the starting quarterback for Arkansas, but he has thrown only 11 touchdowns against 14 interceptions. With no postseason to play for, the Razorbacks have turned the keys to the offense over to Casey's younger brother, freshman Nathan Dick. He has thrown three touchdowns with one interception in limited duty and is expected to be under center this weekend. Nathan Dick's first career start came last weekend against Mississippi State, and he threw an 87- yard touchdown pass to Lucas Miller in the first quarter to excite his teammates. Dick completed 25-of-43 passes for 333 yards and three touchdowns against one interception against the Bulldogs and appears to be more than capable of leading the offense. Miller was tremendous in that contest, as he hauled in 10 balls for 201 yards.

The Razorbacks have not played particularly well on defense this season, as they are yielding 31.3 ppg and 381.6 total ypg. Opponents have had success running the ball against Arkansas, which is yielding 171.6 rushing ypg on 4.5 ypc. Stopping the pass hasn't been a strength of the squad either, as it is permitting 13.1 yards per completion. The Hogs have surrendered 39 touchdowns to opposing offenses, including 20 through the air. Jerry Franklin leads Arkansas with 82 total tackles, and he has a pair of interceptions to go along with two fumble recoveries. Adrian Davis tops with five sacks. Against Mississippi State last weekend, the Razorbacks allowed 445 total yards, including over 200 yards both rushing and passing. They permitted 6.5 yards per rushing attempt, a major contributing factor in the loss.

Expect LSU to win this game, as Arkansas is not the same team without Smith at full speed in the backfield.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: LSU 23, Arkansas 17

Friday, November 28th, 2:30 p.m. (et).