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Arkansas pulled off a game-winning drive without its starting quarterback and running back.
The Razorbacks stunned No. 4 Tennessee 19-14 thanks to an 11-yard touchdown from QB Malachi Singleton with 1:17 left. As Arkansas ran out the clock to score as late as possible, Tennessee appeared to let Singleton get into the end zone.
Singleton’s run came after Braylen Russell drove the Razorbacks to the ground. Russell replaced RB Ja’Quinden Jackson, who left the game in the second half. Singleton, Arkansas’ backup quarterback, was playing after starting quarterback Taylen Green had to leave the game in the second half after appearing to suffer a knee injury when he took a low hit while completing a pass.
Tennessee had plenty of time for a game-winning touchdown after Singleton scored and reached the Arkansas 25-yard line on a deep pass. But Tennessee didn’t advance much further from there. Nico Iamaleava was ejected from the pocket on fourth down and ran out of bounds as time expired after crossing the line of scrimmage.
Arkansas keeps Tennessee in check
Tennessee entered the game averaging over 565 yards of offense per game. The Volunteers were nowhere near that Saturday night.
Arkansas’ defense played its best game of the season as the Vols had just 332 yards of total offense. UT did not score a goal in the first half and its only two goals came on touchdown runs by Dylan Sampson.
Iamaleava had his worst game of the season and his Heisman bid took a big hit. The redshirt freshman was 17-of-29 passing for 158 yards. He barely averaged more yards per pass (5.4) than Tennessee averaged per carry as a team (4.8).
Razorbacks did not turn the ball over
Arkansas had been plagued by turnovers through the first five games of the season. Turnovers played a key role in the Razorbacks’ two losses to Oklahoma State and Texas A&M. On Saturday night, Arkansas didn’t turn the ball over at all.
Coach Sam Pittman said after the game that he knew his team could hold off the Volunteers if they didn’t turn the ball over. Green completed 19 of 27 passes for 266 yards before leaving the game. Jackson had 20 carries for 57 yards and a touchdown, while Russell was fantastic in relief. The 253-pound freshman had eight carries for 62 yards after entering the game with 16 carries for 62 yards in Arkansas’ first four games of the season.
The SEC is a challenge
Texas was out in Week 6 and is now the only undefeated team in the conference after the Volunteers’ loss to the Razorbacks, No. 1 Alabama’s loss to Vanderbilt and No. 9 Missouri’s loss at Texas A&M.
Only three teams are also undefeated in conference play. A&M is atop the conference at 3-0, while Texas and LSU are each 1-0. Everyone else has at least one loss, while four teams have two losses or more. The expanded SEC is the toughest conference in the country from top to bottom and it’s hard to imagine any of the three unbeaten teams coming out of the entire season unscathed.