We talk a lot about Ryan Mallett here on the Slophouse, but really it’s more warranted than not. After all, the redshirt sophomore has set or tied 12 school records at Arkansas in his first year with the Razorbacks.

Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett throws a touchdown pass in the fourth quarter against Mississippi State Saturday at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/STATON BREIDENTHAL)

And I’ve got some more eye-opening numbers for you this morning. But before we get into that, let’s give you some more history.

Earlier this season I did an article breaking down Mallett’s big arm, the good and the bad of his gun-slinging mentality, and what exactly has turned the quarterback into one of the most exciting players to watch in the nation.

At that time, not everything was so peachy. Coach Bobby Petrino said  Mallett was looking downfield too often and rumors even circulated that the quarterback was having shoulder problems.

The big questions surrounding Mallett were: 1) why wasn’t he hitting the intermediate routes and 2) exactly why was tight end D.J. Williams — the team’s leading receiver a year ago — going two games without a reception?

But Mallett responded brilliantly in these last four games, spreading the ball around the field with as much proficiency as any quarterback in school history. And, by the way, Williams has re-emerged and nabbed 17 passes for 238 yards and a touchdown in the last four games.

Mallett has hit four different receivers for touchdowns in the 42-21 win over Mississippi State last week, and also found five different receivers for TDs against Troy on Nov. 14.

He’s completed  72.8 percent of his passes for 1,295 yards during the Hogs’ four-game winning streak, which has included 13 touchdowns with only 3 interceptions.

Mallett also has 39 pass completions of 25 yards or more this season.

Absolutely eye-opening, especially with the struggles the QB had on the road earlier this season by completing only 37.5 percent of his passes.

But perhaps that’s about to change. This four-game winning streak should give the quarterback more confidence than ever heading into Death Valley for a night game against LSU on Saturday.

“We weren’t the team then that we are now, so it’s a whole different story,” Mallett said Monday.

A look at the numbers coincides with Mallett’s thoughts.

I’m a big fan of the cfbstats.com, and I’ve done plenty of my research on Mallett thanks to that site. Marty over at the site tipped us off this morning to yet another eye-opening number from the record-setting Arkansan quarterback — Mallett now leads the nation in throws of 50 yards or more with 10 such tosses.

And Mallett has thrown a 50-yard pass in each of the Hogs’ last six games.

So what’s the big deal? Well, if Mallett and Arkansas can finish the season on a six-game win streak (with wins against LSU and in the Cotton Bowl) and keep putting up gaudy numbers, the quarterback who once called nearby Lincoln, Ark., home — a town with not much football history — he will be one of the top 5 players in the nation and will be competing for the Heisman Trophy.

And, perhaps more importantly to the junior-to-be, the Hogs will be a pre-season top 15 team.

A lot resides on Mallett’s arm.

And it’s warranted.

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Below are Mallett’s numbers he set or tied for 12 school records this season, according to the Arkansas media relations staff:

ARKANSAS RECORDS

TOUCHDOWN PASSES (GAME)

1. 5 ———–Ryan Mallett, vs. Mississippi State, 2009

———————————Ryan Mallett, vs. Troy, 2009

———————————Ryan Mallett, vs. UGA, 2009

3. 4 ———————Ryan Mallett, vs. Texas A&M, 2009

4 ——————–Casey Dick, vs. Mississippi State, 2007

4 —————————-Matt Jones, vs. La.-Monroe, 2004

4 ———————-Robby Hampton, vs. La.-Monroe, 2000

4 —————————————Brad Taylor, vs. Rice, 1983

4 ————————————-Joe Ferguson, vs TCU, 1972

TOUCHDOWN PASSES (SEASON)

1. 28 ———————————————–Ryan Mallett, 2009

2. 26 ———————————————–Clint Stoerner, 1998

3. 19 ———————————————–Clint Stoerner, 1999

4. 18 —————————————————Casey Dick, 2007

18 —————————————————Matt Jones, 2003

18 ————————————————Quinn Grovey, 1990

TOUCHDOWN RESPONSIBILITY (SEASON)

1. 30 ——-Ryan Mallett (2 rushing, 28 passing), 2009

2. 27 ———–Clint Stoerner (1 rushing, 26 passing), 1998

3. 26 —————Matt Jones (8 rushing, 18 passing), 2003

4. 23 ————Quinn Grovey (5 rushing, 18 passing), 1990

5. 21 —————Matt Jones (6 rushing, 15 passing), 2004

21 —————Matt Jones (5 rushing, 16 passing), 2002

21 ———–Clint Stoerner (2 rushing, 19 passing), 1999

8. 20 ——Darren McFadden (16 rushing, 4 passing), 2007

CONS. PASS ATT. WITHOUT AN INT.

1. 141 ———————————————Ryan Mallett, 2009

2. 134 —————————————-Clint Stoerner, 1997-98

3. 123 ———————————–Barry Lunney, Jr., 1992-93

PASSING YARDS (GAME)

1. 408 —————————–Ryan Mallett, vs. UGA, 2009

2. 405 —————————–Ryan Mallett, vs. Troy, 2009

3. 387 ———————————Clint Stoerner, vs LSU, 1997

4. 345 ——————–Joe Ferguson, vs. Texas A&M, 1971

5. 338 ——————-Bill Montgomery, *vs. Ole Miss, 1969

6. 335 ———————-Ronny South, vs. Texas Tech, 1967

7. 334 ——————————–Clint Stoerner, vs. LSU, 1998

8. 333 ———————–Nathan Dick, vs. Miss. State, 2008

9. 329 ————Ryan Mallett, vs. South Carolina, 2009

10. 325 ————————-Clint Stoerner, vs. Auburn, 1997

*Sugar Bowl

PASSING YARDS (SEASON)

1. 3,195 ——————————————Ryan Mallett, 2009

2. 2,629 ——————————————Clint Stoerner, 1998

3. 2,586 ———————————————-Casey Dick, 2008

7. 28 ———————————————–Ryan Mallett, 2009

8. 24 ——————————————-Joe Ferguson, 1970-72

9. 23 ———————————————Brad Taylor, 1981-84

10. 20 ———————————————Tom Jones, 1979-82

COMPLETION PCT. (GAME MIN. 13-19 ATT.)

1. .875 —————R. Mallett (14-16, vs. E. Mich., 2009)

2. .857 ———————–B. Moore (12-14, vs. Tulsa, 1962)

3. .846 ———————–B. Taylor (11-13, vs. Tulsa, 1984)

4. .823 ———————C. Dick (14-17, vs. Miss. St., 2007)

5. .813 ———————M. Jones (13-16, vs. NM St., 2004)

COMPLETION PCT. (GAME MIN.20+ ATT.)

1. .852 ———-R. Mallett (23-27, vs. S. Carolina, 2009)

2. .818 ————–R. South (18-22, vs. Texas A&M, 1967)

3. .815 —————-B. Lunney, Jr. (22-27, vs. Tenn., 1995)

4. .800 ———————–K. Scanlon (16-20, vs. Rice, 1979)

5. .766 ——————–R. Mallett (23-30, vs. Troy, 2009)

300-YARD PASSING GAMES (SEASON)

1. 5 ————————————————-Ryan Mallett, 2009

2. 3 —————————————————–Casey Dick, 2008

3. 2 ————————————————-Clint Stoerner, 1997

300-YARD PASSING GAMES (CAREER)

1. 5 ————————————————-Ryan Mallett, 2009

2. 4 ——————————————–Clint Stoerner, 1996-99

3. 3 ————————————————Casey Dick, 2005-08

4. 2 ———————————————Joe Ferguson, 1970-72

400-YARD PASSING GAMES (SEASON)

1. 2 ————————————————-Ryan Mallett, 2009

400-YARD PASSING GAMES (CAREER)

1. 2 ————————————————-Ryan Mallett, 2009

— Brandon Marcello