DJ Williams celebrates with Razorbacks after scoring a touchdown.

LITTLE ROCK - Improbable people doing improbable things again provided Arkansas an improbable victory over an opponent it was supposed to beat well into double digits.

All the improbables, plus a missed 45-yard ULM field goal attempt at the last, added up to the Razorobacks overcoming University of Louisiana-Monroe, 14-point underdog, 28-27 Saturday night at War Memorial Stadium.

Just the preceding Saturday, the Razorbacks needed supposedly non-runnng quarterback Casey Dick’s 4-yard rushing touchdown with 1:49 left to overcome off the board underdog Western Illinois in Fayetteville.

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This time it took Dick’s 8-yard touchdown pass to star tight end D.J. Williams with 1:22 left set up Dick’s 25-yard fourth and one pass to unused rookie receiver Chris Gragg with the game-winning PAT by Shay Haddock, a walkon never expected to kick while former prep All-American Alex Tejada is a Razorback.

But with Tejada missing two first-half field goals and kicking a kickoff out of bounds, Haddock kicked Arkansas’ two fourth-quarter PATs including the game-winner after coach Bobby Petrino gambled and won on

the fourth down call with Dick faking a handoff to running back Michael Smith, then stepping back and launching the 25-yarder to tall true freshman Gragg at the ULM 7.

“It was a full day’s work,” Petrino said. “We made it hard on ourselves but I am proud we stuck together and won it as a team.”

Petrino noted ULM had stopped Smith on a fourth and short earlier in going to his big play call from Dick to Gragg.

“I felt they would load the box,” Petrino said, “and we didn’t convert earlier. So this is a play we run in practice and we called it and what a great throw and what a great catch. And Haddock kicked it right down

the middle.”

ULM drove desperately in the final 1:22 from its 31 to the Arkansas 27 but Jeremy Gener’s 45-yard fourth down field goal try was well wide allowing Arkansas to run out the final 36 seconds. Arkansas advances to 2-0 and visits Texas Saturday. ULM falls to 0-2 but sure appeared upset bound.

Dick, 22 of 34 for a career-high 323 yards — surpassing last week’s career high 318— threw two second-half 8-yard touchdowns to D.J. Williams who caught 5 passes for 124 yards.

Michael Smith, the junior running back playing his first game after fulfilling a suspension last week, netted two touchdowns on a career high 157 yards on 22 carries finally emerging from the shadows of departed to the NFL All-American running backs Darren McFadden and Felix Jones.

ULM receiver Anthony McCall bedeviled the Razorbacks with 6 catches, 2 for touchdowns and 125 yards on quarterback Kinsmon Lancaster’s passes and also partially blocked an Arkansas punt.

Tejada’s bad dream mushroomed into the Razorbacks’ first-half nightmare.

Arkansas’ heralded sophomore kicker from Springdale missed 45-yard and 25-yard first-quarter field goal attempts and missed the PAT after tailback Michael Smith’s 13-yard touchdown run gave the Razorbacks a

6-0 lead with 11:48 left in the second quarter.

Compounding the missed PAT, Tejada first got called for delay of game, pausing after he started to kick off. On the re-try after the 5-yard penalty, Tejada kicked the kickoff out of bounds allowing ULM to open

its possession at its 45.

Two plays later on a 30-yard screen pass from Kinsmon Lancaster to J.J. McCoy, the Warhawks were on the warpath at the Arkansas 30.

The Hogs appeared to have ULM stopped on third and goal from the 7 but cornerback Ramon Broadway was charged with pass interference for an automatic first down.

Arkansas defensive tackle Lavunce Askew was called for roughing the passer before Lancaster and McCall connected on a 1-yard touchdown pass

at 8:12.

Jeremy Jenner’s PAT gave ULM a 7-6 lead.

Thanks to another Arkansas special teams gaffe, Jenner got the chance to make it 10-6 at half with a 20-yard field goal at 3:48.

McCall zipped through to partially block Jeremy Davis’ punt for just 7 yards to the Arkansas 21 before the defense stiffened to force a field goal instead of a touchdown.

Arkansas’ special teams woes didn’t cease there.

The ensuing ULM kickoff appeared headed out of bounds but Arkansas freshman Dennis Johnson caught it, then accidentally stepped out of bounds at the Arkansas 5.

The Hogs did get to their 21 before Davis punted 31 yard to put the Warhawks at their 47 with 56 seconds left in the half.

ULM might well have scored again, but Lancaster overthrew one open receiver and Ronnie Williams dropped a fourth-down shovel pass with room to run from the Arkansas 37 with 12 seconds left.

ULM easily shrugged off the disappointment to lead up to 24-6 and then 27-14 before the game belonged to the hands of Chris Gragg and D.J. Williams and Shay Haddock’s toe.