OLE MISS 37, ARKANSAS 33

Markham meltdown: Rebels' late rally sinks Hogs

Arkansas wide receiver La'Michael Pettway (16) kneels on the sideline after the Razorbacks' 37-33 loss to Ole Miss on Saturday, Oct. 13, 2018, at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock.

The University of Arkansas built a 17-point lead against Ole Miss on a hard-hitting, rainy night, but they could not keep the Rebels' dangerous passing game and star quarterback Jordan Ta'amu down for the duration.

Ta'amu drove the Rebels 97 yards for a touchdown with 42 seconds left to cap a second-half comeback and snatch a 37-33 victory Saturday before a loud crowd of 51,438 at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock.

Scottie Phillips capped the winning drive with a 5-yard score as the Rebels (5-2, 1-2 SEC) snapped a four-game losing streak in the series.

The Razorbacks (1-6, 0-4 SEC) lost their sixth in a row while also losing key players Ty Storey, Rakeem Boyd, Devwah Whaley and McTelvin Agim to injuries.

Ta'amu had a big game, rushing for a game-high 141 yards and a touchdown and passing for 387 yards and 2 scores.

"We haven't had problems this year with the quarterback run, but I think they did a pretty good job scheming us up," Arkansas linebacker De'Jon Harris said.

Ole Miss piled up 611 total yards, the 10th most allowed by an Arkansas defense. Ta'amu led touchdown drives of 84 yards and 97 yards in the fourth quarter as the Rebels overcame a 33-24 deficit.

Boyd injured his back early in the second quarter and didn't return after gouging the Rebels for 109 yards. Whaley went out with an ankle injury after compiling 67 yards as part of the Razorbacks' 299 rushing yards.

Storey, who rushed for 70 yards and passed for 122 yards, took a series of hard shots, including a helmet-to-helmet blow that led to the ejection of Vernon Dasher in the second quarter. He came out after being slammed hard to the turf at the end of a 10-yard run early in the fourth quarter.

Agim injured a knee.

"Obviously we'd have loved to have those guys out there," Arkansas Coach Chad Morris said. "I thought Rakeem was on pace to have another career night. Devwah as well was a great complement."

Arkansas lost for the second time this season when leading by 17 points.

"We're going to continue to go back to work, continue doing the right things and continue to make progress," Morris said.

Arkansas scored on all five of its first-half possessions and did not punt until the fourth quarter.

"An emotional win," Ole Miss Coach Matt Luke said. "Proud of the guys. They kept fighting. It was a struggle for us to get off the field in the first half, but I was so proud of those guys. They got some stops when we needed to in the second half and it was just enough for us to get the win."

Ole Miss had lost a series of wild games to the Razorbacks but ended the by limiting the Arkansas offense to two second-half field goals.

The Razorbacks had the ball at their 28 with 37 seconds remaining. However, backup quarterback Cole Kelley threw deep down the middle and Zedrick Woods intercepted at the Ole Miss 42 for the Razorbacks' only turnover.

Ta'amu directed three touchdown drives in four second-half possessions for Ole Miss, which only punted once. Two Ole Miss drives ended on missed field goals by Luke Logan.

The Razorbacks compiled 476 total yards, but could not find the end zone against a porous Ole Miss defense after Kelley's 39-yard touchdown pass to La'Michael Pettway with 10:50 left in the second quarter gave Arkansas a 24-10 lead.

Boyd had his second consecutive 100-yard game with 109 yards on 7 carries in a little more than a quarter, and scored his first touchdown on a 69-yard breakaway.

Arkansas led 30-17 on Connor Limpert's 38-yard field goal at the 9:28 mark of the third quarter, continuing a string of matching Razorback field goals to Ole Miss touchdowns that would continue the rest of the game.

The Rebels struck quickly as tight end Octavious Cooley caught a crossing route from Ta'amu, broke a tackle attempt by Santos Ramirez and went down the Ole Miss sideline for a 66-yard touchdown that drew the Rebels within 30-24.

The Razorbacks drove to the Ole Miss 18 on their next possession but had to settle for Limpert's fourth field goal, a 36-yarder for a 33-24 lead.

Arkansas dodged a bullet when Logan missed a 28-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter, but the Rebels were not through with their passing attack.

Isaiah Wouillard's 2-yard touchdown capped an 84-yard drive with 4:15 remaining to draw Ole Miss within 33-31.

The Razorbacks converted one first down on Pettway's 21-yard catch but had to punt. Reid Bauer's punt rolled dead at the Ole Miss 3, giving the home fans reason to believe Arkansas could close out the game.

However, A.J. Brown caught a 20-yard pass to get the Rebels out from the shadow of its goal post, then tight end Dawson Knox rambled 48-yards on a completion to get the Rebels to the Arkansas 29.

Arkansas scored three touchdowns and two field goals on its first five first-half possessions and did not punt while Ole Miss punted once in the opening half.

The Rebels opened the game with a 56-yard drive for a field goal triggered by D.K. Metcalf's 49-yard catch down the left sideline. Logan's 36-yard field goal marked the first time an SEC opponent did not open with a touchdown on its first possession against the Hogs.

Arkansas matched the Rebels at 3-3 on Limpert's 43-yard field goal, which was set up by Boyd's 38-yard run.

Arkansas cornerback Ryan Pulley ended the next two Ole Miss drives with a pass breakup and an interception, allowing the Razorbacks to race to a 17-3 lead.

Cheyenne O'Grady's 39-yard touchdown catch ended a 78-yard touchdown drive and put Arkansas up 10-3 after Boyd and Whaley combined for 38 rushing yards on the series.

Pulley made an interception in the end zone on a Ta'amu deep pass for A.J. Brown to end a drive.

Three plays later, Boyd broke through over the left side for his 69-yard score down the middle with 31 seconds left in the first quarter.

Things got chippy in the second quarter after Dasher was ejected for his helmet-to-helmet shot on Storey. Four unsportsmanlike conduct penalties were assessed as the teams traded words and shoves.

Storey had to come out on the next play after taking a big shot from Victor Evans on a throwback pass as the Rebels celebrated the big hit.

Kelley got the last laugh, connecting with Pettway for a 39-yard touchdown strike on the next snap.

Ole Miss drove 77 yards with a two-minute drill late in the half, pulling within 27-17 on De'Markus Lodge's 6-yard touchdown catch with 33 seconds left.

Sports on 10/14/2018