No. 23 Texas A&M beat No. 10 Arkansas thanks to one of the wildest missed field goals you’ll ever see.
Arkansas kicker Cam Little’s go-ahead 42-yard field goal attempt bounced off the top of an upright with less than 90 seconds to go. The kick would have given Arkansas a 24-23 lead. Instead, A&M beat the Razorbacks 23-21 after running out the clock.
A&M closed as 1.5-point favorites over the Razorbacks just before kickoff.
Little’s field goal attempt would have given Arkansas its first lead since A&M scored less than four minutes into the second half to take a 20-14 lead. Arkansas led 14-0 in the first half but A&M scored 13 consecutive points to end the half.
The game flipped on A&M’s second touchdown of the night. With Arkansas leading 14-7 and driving toward a third first-half TD, Arkansas QB K.J. Jefferson fumbled the ball as he reached for the end zone while still yards from the goal line. The ball was picked up by Tyreek Chappell who got it to Demani Richardson as he was tackled. Richardson then returned the ball for a touchdown.
That fumble appeared to slow down Arkansas’ offense for a while. The Hogs ran just 11 plays on its next three drives and punted at the end of all of them. The offense was finally in sync again on a 13-play drive that cut A&M’s lead to two with 10 minutes to go in the fourth quarter but got the ball back just one more time after that.
A&M gave Arkansas an opening to get the win after Randy Bond missed a 53-yard field goal. And the Razorbacks looked like they were going to take advantage. Arkansas got to the A&M 16 but a dropped snap on second down led to a nine-yard loss and forced the Razorbacks to settle for Little’s field goal attempt.
A&M struggles to throw the ball again
The Aggies’ offense was Devon Achane and more Devon Achane. The star rusher had 19 carries for 159 yards and had more rushing yards than QB max Johnson had passing yards. Johnson was 11-of-21 passing for 151 yards and a TD in his second start after taking over for Haynes King at QB.
While that stat line was good enough to beat the Razorbacks on Saturday night, it’s hard to see how A&M will continue to beat SEC opponents without more through the air. And passing could be even tougher for the Aggies going forward. WR Ainias Smith was helped off the field in the second half when his right ankle bent awkwardly when he was rolled up on during a Johnson run.
Smith had just one catch on Saturday night but is a focal point for defenses. If he’s not in the lineup for a while, defenses can key more on Achane.