All of the SB Nation team sites are supposed to write a post on their team's "perfect combinations," which means finding a pair of players that are sort of a dynamic duo. Well, one of the least tragic aspects of Arkansas' rash of injuries is that all those broken bones have really screwed this up for me.
It would have been really easy to write about Jonathan Williams and Alex Collins, and especially after the first two games, Brandon Allen and Keon Hatcher. Unfortunately, fate wouldn't allow it, or it would just seem too sad.
But then we come to Allen and Hunter Henry, and really it's a great fit. Allen has started at quarterback for Arkansas since 2013 and Henry has been his most reliable target throughout 2+ seasons they've spent together.
We don't yet know whether this will also be Henry's last season at Arkansas, but as they prepare to open SEC play for the third time together this weekend, the two have established themselves as a reliable combination whenever the Hogs have decided to use Henry as a passing target.
As a freshman, Henry was second on the team with 28 receptions and 409 yards, and tied for the team lead with 4 receiving touchdowns. Last year, he also finished second on the team with 37 catches and 513 yards (but only two scores). In three games this season, he leads the team with 14 catches and is second to Hatcher with 191 yards, but will surely blow by Hatcher due to the receiver's foot injury. I'd love to know how many of Henry's catches came on third down, because it feels like whenever Arkansas needs a big passing play to move the chains, he's always open.
There's been so much talk about Arkansas' receivers over the last few years it's easy to sometimes forget Henry (and as one Twitter follower pointed out to me during the Texas Tech game, maybe the coaches do as well), but he's been a consistent matchup problem for opposing defenses throughout his career and has been Allen's safety-valve on numerous occasions.
It will be interesting to see how Dan Enos uses Henry in the meat of Arkansas' schedule. With the receivers depleted, will Henry be split out more frequently? Will he continue to be relied on more as a blocker? It will be interesting to see if the receivers who have to come along due to injuries will be as reliable for Allen as Henry always has been. Arkansas may need him to catch more of Allen's passes than originally planned, and over the last 28 games, the duo has shown that shouldn't be too much of a problem for them.
