Fumbles and Frustration — Arkansas’ Ugly Third Quarter

Arkansas may have lost to No. 12 Tennessee by only three, 34-31, Saturday evening in Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, TN., but huge errors on the Razorbacks kept them from picking up a huge upset victory. The Hogs snap their four-game winning streak against the Volunteers while dropping to 7-14 in the all-time series.

Arkansas football vs Tennessee: The Good, Bad, and the Ugly

The Good

Arkansas opened up the game by receiving the opening kickoff. QB Taylen Green was sacked for a loss of three at the Razorback 22-yard line on the first play of the game, but RB Mike Washington Jr. rammed through for a seven-yard run. Green hit WR O’Mega Blake for a gain of five. On 4th & 1 at the 34, the Hogs decided to go for it. Green lined up under center and was pushed for a three-yard gain to give Arkansas a first down. The Razorbacks picked up another first down two plays later, and Washington broke loose for a 38-yard run to the Tennessee 14-yard line. Washington ran the ball again for a three-yard gain, and Green finished the drive with an 11-yard touchdown run to give Arkansas an early 7-0 lead with 10:10 left in the opening quarter.

The Razorbacks forced the Volunteers to punt with the game tied, 7-7, with 5:54 left in the first quarter. RB Braylen Russell opened up the drive with a 22-yard run to the Arkansas 42-yard line. He picked up another four on the ground but was stopped for no gain on the next play. The Hogs converted on third down with Green throwing an eight-yard pass to WR Raylen Sharpe. Green connected with Blake for a 10-yard gain to put the Hogs on the Tennessee 36. After a two-yard run by Washington, Green threw a 10-yard dot to WR CJ Brown to put the Razorbacks on the 16. Arkansas was unable to do much else with the ball and faced a 4th & 4 at the 10. Scott Starzyk came out and booted a 28-yard field goal to give the Hogs the lead back, 10-7, with 20 seconds left in the first quarter.

With 10:35 remaining in the second quarter, Tennessee tied the game with a field goal of their own, prompting Arkansas to immediately resume their offensive efforts. Russell started the drive with a four-yard run, and Green threw a 20-yard strike to Blake to put the Hogs on their own 49-yard line. Three plays later, Arkansas was facing a 3rd & 9 at the Volunteer 37. Green rolled out of the pocket to his left and scampered for a 22-yard gain to keep the drive alive. A couple plays later, the Razorbacks converted on third down again on 3rd & 6, with Green completing a 10-yard pass to Sharpe at the one-yard line. Washington ran the ball in for a touchdown to give the Hogs the lead back, 17-10, with 4:36 left in the first half.

Things were looking gloomy with Tennessee holding a 34-17 lead with 13:10 left in the fourth quarter. Starting on its own 19, Arkansas was not looking good after Green took a five-yard sack. After completing a six-yard pass to TE Jaden Platt, Green connected with Blake for 18 yards to convert on 3rd & 9. Green ran for a four-yard gain, and Washington picked up a first down on a 13-yard carry. Green connected with Washington on a six-yard pass and picked up a first down on a five-yard run to the Volunteer 34. After completing a six-yard pass to Sharpe, Green picked up 10 yards on the run and drew a penalty to put Arkansas on the nine-yard line. He found TE Rohan Jones in the end zone for a touchdown to cut the lead to 10, 34-24, with 8:17 left in the game.

The Razorback defense forced Tennessee to punt the ball away after a five-play, 3:26 drive. The Hogs took over on their own 20 with 4:39 left in the game. Arkansas picked up 30 yards on the first play on a pass play from Green to Sharpe and picked up another 12 when Green hit CJ Brown. After Green completed a six-yard pass to Sharpe, he connected with CJ Brown again for a big 20-yard gain to the Volunteer 12-yard line. One play later, Green dotted up Shanks in the end zone for a touchdown to cut the lead to a field goal, 34-31, with 2:55 left in the game.

The Bad

Arkansas was looking to respond after Tennessee tied the game up quickly in the first quarter, 7-7, with 7:39 remaining. The Hogs picked up 15 yards to their own 40-yard line on a penalty by the Tennessee defense. Washington then ran for a gain of 26 yards to put the Razorbacks at the Volunteer 34. On the next play, Green ran out of the pocket and was sacked by DL Jordan Ross. Green fumbled the ball, and Ross recovered it at the Arkansas 49. Tennessee went three-and-out, making the fumble have no impact.

Tennessee took the lead with 11:50 to go in the third quarter. Arkansas looked to get the lead back and started strong with an 11-yard run from Washington to the Razorback's 36-yard line to start the drive. After an incompletion, Green scampered for a two-yard run to set up 3rd & 8. The Hogs converted with Green throwing a 24-yard pass to WR Kam Shanks. Washington followed up with a nine-yard run to put the Hogs on the 29. Russell was handed the ball and rumbled for a 15-yard gain but fumbled the football. LB Arion Carter recovered the ball to stop Arkansas’ hot drive. The Volunteers went three-and-out on the ensuing drive, but the Razorbacks still missed an opportunity to put up some points.

The Ugly

Tennessee’s offense marched out on the field after Arkansas took an early 7-0 lead with 10:10 left in the first quarter. Beginning their drive at their own 25-yard line, the Volunteers struck quickly with QB Joey Aguilar hitting WR Braylon Staley for a 10-yard gain. TE Miles Kitselman caught a six-yard pass on the next play, and RB DeSean Bishop followed up with a 13-yard run to the Razorback 41-yard line. After Bishop ran for another five yards, Aguilar connected with Staley for 19 yards. After Tennessee was flagged for five yards on an illegal formation, Bishop rammed through for a five-yard gain. Bishop got the ball again at the 17 and ran it in for a touchdown to tie the game, 7-7, with 7:39 left in the first quarter.

After Arkansas regained the lead on Starzyk’s field goal, Tennessee went right back to work on offense. RB Star Thomas opened up the drive with a three-yard and a nine-yard run to the Volunteer 37-yard line. Aguilar threw a 16-yard pass to Staley to put Tennessee in enemy territory at the 47. After a two-yard run by Thomas, Aguilar ran the ball for an 11-yard gain to pick up another first down. A couple plays later, Tennessee was facing 3rd & 10 at the 34, but Aguilar hit Staley for 15 yards to get another first down. The Hog defense was able to stop the Volunteers at the 18-yard line to bring up 4th & 9. Max Gilbert was brought out and booted a 37-yard field goal to tie the game, 10-10, with 10:36 remaining in the second quarter.

Tennessee was right back on the prowl after Arkansas took a 17-10 lead with 4:36 left in the first half. Aguilar flipped the field on the first play with a 42-yard bomb to Staley to put the Volunteers on the Razorback 33-yard line. RB Peyton Lewis ran for a four-yard gain, and Aguilar threw a nine-yard pass to Kitselman to pick up another first down. WR Mike Matthews ran the ball for a 12-yard gain on an end-around, and Kitselman caught an eight-yard pass from Aguilar for a touchdown on a swing route to tie the game again, 17-17, with 2:52 to go in the first half.

Tennessee received the ball to open up the second half. Bishop opened up the drive with a six-yard run, but a false start penalty backed the Volunteers to their own 26-yard line. It did not matter much, as Bishop would plow his way through for a 25-yard run. Aguilar hit Matthews for a 12-yard gain, and Bishop added on with a six-yard run to the Arkansas 31. Aguilar ran the ball for a big 14-yard gain on the next play. One play later, the Volunteers were flagged for 15 yards for an ineligible man downfield. Arkansas forced a 4th & 25 at the 32, but Gilbert came up big for Tennessee with a 50-yard field goal to put the Volunteers on top, 20-17, with 11:50 left in the third quarter.

Arkansas went three-and-out on the ensuing drive and punted the ball to the Tennessee 33-yard line. Aguilar hit up Matthews for a seven-yard gain, and Bishop picked up seven of his own on the run. Aguilar connected with Matthews again for a huge 27-yard gain, and Bishop charged through with a 26-yard run to the Arkansas seven-yard line. Lewis picked up a five-yard gain on the run and finished the drive on the next play with a touchdown to extend the lead to 10, 27-17, with 2:11 left to go in the third quarter.

The Razorbacks desperately needed to respond on the next drive. After Washington was dropped for a loss of one, Green completed a 12-yard pass to Blake for a first down at the Arkansas 36-yard line. After a two-yard loss from Washington, the Hogs were penalized for holding to push back to their own 24. On the first play of the fourth quarter, Arkansas was backed up even more to the 15. On 3rd & 31, Green turned the ball over on a fumble that was recovered by LB Jadon Perlotte at the Razorback 19.

It took just four plays for the Volunteers to get back in the end endzone. Lewis ran the ball for a four-yard gain, and Lewis completed a 10-yard pass to Kitselman to the five. Lewis ran the ball for a two-yard gain and scored on the next play to give Tennessee a commanding 34-17 lead with 13:34 left in the fourth quarter.

With 2:55 left in the game, Arkansas was looking to have a huge stop by its defense, trailing by three, 34-31, with two timeouts left. On the first play of the drive, Aguilar ran the ball for a 28-yard gain to the Razorback 47-yard line, forcing the Hogs to use their second timeout of the half. Lewis ran the ball for a six-yard gain that led to the two-minute timeout. Aguilar ran for a three-yard gain to set up 3rd & 1 and make Arkansas use its final timeout with 1:49 left. Lewis iced the game with a seven-yard run to the left side to hand the Razorbacks their fourth straight loss.

Conclusion

Arkansas came out better than most probably expected. The Razorbacks were able to put up 14 unanswered points late when they were trailing by 17, 34-17, but could not finish the job. The Hogs still are getting torched on defense, and turnovers are still a huge issue.

Arkansas will be back home in Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium next Saturday against the No. 5 Texas A&M Aggies. Kickoff is scheduled for 2:30 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on ESPN.

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