Mark Buffalo • Arkansas News Bureau
By Robbie Neiswanger
Arkansas News Bureau • rneiswanger@arkansasnews.com
OXFORD, Miss. — Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino spent the past two weeks urging his team to get off to better starts the rest of the season.
Opponents scored first in Arkansas’ previous three games. The Razorbacks faced a couple of double-digit deficits, in those games, including the 18-point hole against Texas A&M. So, with Ole Miss struggling, Petrino didn’t want to fall behind again and give the Rebels any hope in front of their home crowd.
Arkansas failed miserably in that regard Saturday.
But the Razorbacks did prove, once again, they know how to recover.
Arkansas overcame another slow start to beat Ole Miss 29-24 in front of an announced crowd of 57,951 in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. The Razorbacks (6-1, 2-1 in SEC) trailed 17-0 in the first half, but settled down, scored 29 straight and held off Ole Miss’ late charge to notch another win.
“It’s not going to be easy on the road,” Arkansas quarterback Tyler Wilson said about the struggles. “It’s always tough, especially SEC road games. So the fact we figured out a way to win, I think, is positive. You move forward and you take your wins in this conference any way you get them.”
Running back Dennis Johnson led Arkansas’ charge, piling up a career-high 160 rushing yards with a touchdown on 15 carries. Receiver Joe Adams turned in big plays, too, catching four passes for 124 yards.
Wilson wasn’t sharp throwing the ball (13 of 28 for 232 yards), but contributed two touchdown runs. And Arkansas’ defense made key adjustments once again, holding the Rebels to seven points in the second half.
“That’s about the 10th deep breath I’ve taken,” Petrino said when he sat down for his postgame interview. “I think our team really showed a lot of heart, a lot of character, a lot of toughness. …
“You certainly don’t want to start that way, but you’ve got to give (Ole Miss) credit.”
Mark Buffalo • Arkansas News Bureau
Ole Miss (2-5, 0-4 in SEC), fresh off a 52-7 loss to Alabama and in the midst of a 10-game SEC losing streak under coach Houston Nutt, was sharp in the first half Saturday. The Rebels entered the game averaging 20 points and 252.8 yards, but nearly reached those totals in jumping out to a stunning lead.
Ole Miss quarterback Randall Mackey led the rejuvenated group, completing 10-for-12 passes for 122 yards with a 31-yard touchdown pass to receiver Donte Moncrief and a touchdown run.
Defensively, the Rebels were aggressive at the line of scrimmage and blanketed Arkansas’ receivers downfield. The result: the Hogs managed two first downs on their first three possessions — one of which came courtesy of a penalty — and spent a lot of time on the sideline.
The Rebels outgained Arkansas 250-128 in the half and dominated time of possession (22:12 to 7:48), controlling every aspect of the game.
“I just felt like we hadn’t had the ball a whole lot,” Wilson said. “I was anxious. I felt myself being on the sideline holding the ball, going, ‘I want to get back out there.’”
Arkansas’ only highlight was a 52-yard touchdown run by Johnson on a 3rd-and-13 draw play. The back raced through Ole Miss’ secondary to give the Hogs some much-needed hope at the break.
“I’m thinking, ‘Just get the first down,’” said Johnson, who turned in the third 100-yard rushing performance of his career. “Then, when I see the way the hole’s opening up, I said, ‘Go get a touchdown.’”
Said Petrino: “We were calm. The touchdown before half helped us a lot to get close.”
The Razorbacks then took control after halftime, scoring points on its first three possessions to take a 24-17 lead. The fourth ended with a Johnson fumble at the Ole Miss 1, but Jerry Franklin dropped running back Jeff Scott in the end zone for a safety to make it 26-17.
“We had them off balance in the first half,” Nutt said. “They came out second half and took that away. We got off rhythm a little bit and dropped some ball. We had some illegal procedures.
“All we needed was one score.”
Mark Buffalo • Arkansas News Bureau
Nutt was right. But his team couldn’t get it.
Despite Arkansas’ 29 straight points, the Rebels had a chance to win. Mackey, who finished 18 of 30 for a career-high 219 yards, threw his second touchdown pass to Moncrief with 1:23 remaining to make it 29-24. Ole Miss then executed an onside kick, recovering the ball at its own 43.
But Ole Miss’ upset hopes ended two plays later, when Mackey threw a pass into double coverage that was intercepted by Arkansas safety Eric Bennett. Wilson and the Hogs ran out the final seconds.
“We didn’t start very good,” Petrino said. “Not at all. … But we found a way to win.”
Arkansas finished with 438 yards, including 206 on the ground in an improved effort.
Ole Miss — after its big first half — finished with 370 (12o in the second half).
The Razorbacks also evened their record against Nutt at 2-2, winning their second straight game the series against the former Arkansas coach. More important, the Hogs continue their best start since 2006 and remain in the race with Alabama and LSU for the SEC West title.
“We have confidence in each other,” Adams said about Arkansas’ resilience. “We told the guys last night that we wouldn’t lose this game. When we got down 17-0, we had to push through.”
