LITTLE ROCK — Hjalte Froholdt provided the best thought after Arkansas lost a 37-33 heartbreaker to Ole Miss in War Memorial Stadium on Saturday night.
“You don't want to describe your quarterback as tough,” Froholdt said. “I guess he probably should have gone out of bounds. He's a true competitor and does his best to get the first down every time.”
True, but why say that first part? It's because that's the same as what everyone was thinking as they trudged into the rainy night outside of War Memorial Stadium. They were thinking about the true grit that finally did in the Hogs.
That Storey toughness, grit or courage is exactly what allowed the Rebels to rally from a 33-24 deficit in the fourth quarter.
Perhaps Froholdt meant the Hogs have to block a little better so Storey won't have to take so many hits in the open field.
Or flip that around and say the Hogs were victimized by tough luck when Storey couldn't finish the last 13 minutes after taking the third vicious hit of the game.
Ole Miss quarterback Jordan Ta'amu took some hits, too, but was the best player on the field for the final 7:09. That's when he led the Rebels to touchdown drives of 84 and 97, the last for the game winner with 42 seconds to play. That's 181 yards in just 17 plays, an average of 10.6 per snap.
The Rebels lost in the final seconds last year in Oxford, but they scored touchdowns in the last minute of each half this time.
Storey is the unquestioned leader for the Razorbacks in the first year under Chad Morris as head coach. It's what the Hogs have fought back with as they improved the last three weeks.
Just as Froholdt was correct, so was Morris afterward.
“Ty was the toughest football player in the stadium,” Morris said.
If you cut to the chase, it was Storey's wonderful intangibles that enabled Arkansas to roll to a 27-10 lead with 2:36 left in the first half. But it was the same thing that left the Hogs unable to finish the Rebels.
The Hogs did not punt through three quarters. With Storey fighting for every yard in a display of toughness that would make any UA letterman proud, they had Ole Miss left only to try to knock him out in the second half.
They thought they had done that in the first half, catching him flush as he caught a pass on a trick play. On the play that came immediately after losing a player for targeting Storey, the Ole Miss sideline celebrated when Storey was knocked silly once again.
Storey gave way to Cole Kelley for a 39-yard touchdown pass to La'Michael Pettway for a 24-10 lead.
With top running backs Rakeem Boyd and Devwah Whaley already out with injuries after 176 yards on just 19 carries, Storey put the Hogs on his back for two third-quarter field goal drives. He erased second-and-10 with a scramble that resulted in a huge collision at the first down stakes with 13 minutes left.
With those running backs out, the Hogs had to start settling for Connor Limpert field goals, mostly as Storey scrambled or kept on the read option.
“I like the way we ran the football,” Morris said. “We had Rakeem and Devwah going. I hate that they couldn't finish the game.”
Boyd left after racing through the Rebels on runs of 38 and 69, leaving with a back injury after being picked up and thrown to the hard stadium turf at the 11:59 mark of the second quarter. Whaley sustained an ankle sprain on a 13-yard run with 7:15 left in the third quarter.
The Hogs rolled to 303 yards in the first half, but began to sputter in the third quarter when they made just 112. They could muster just 61 in the fourth quarter when Ole Miss totaled 189.
While Arkansas lost offensive players, the thin Ole Miss defense righted itself despite losing nickel Vernon Dasher on the targeting call. The Rebels also had two defensive linemen leave because of injuries.
But the Rebels had no answer for Storey. He rushed nine times for 70 yards. He completed 12 of 16 passes for 122 yards. The Hogs did not punt or suffer an interception with him still upright.
Linebacker De'Jon Harris did his best to slow the Rebels for three quarters. He made 10 solo tackles and led both sides with 13 stops for the game.
But as the Hogs added resources to defend the pass and a great set of receivers, Ta'amu begin to burn the defense with dashes.
“In the first half, they were checking to quarterback runs after we changed our defensive look,” Harris said. “In the second half and especially at the end, those were not checks. They were just called quarterback runs.”
Harris caught Ta'amu flush on a scramble on third-and-9 to force a missed field goal with 13:47 left. It was the last hurrah for the UA defense. Ta'amu completed 26 of 35 passes for 387 yards and two touchdowns.
“He absolutely sees the field when the pocket collapses,” Morris said of the Ole Miss quarterback.
That was obvious, as was what Morris said about the Little Rock crowd. Scanners were not working, so attendance was called 51,438, the number “of tickets distributed,” said a UA spokesman.
They came despite rains that kept rolling through Little Rock three hours before the game, until afterward. There was only one section that showed any real emptiness, where UA students were assigned in the northeast corner.
“I want to thank our fans,” Morris said. “It was an incredible environment. Thank you.
“You showed up. You did not disappoint, considering the weather. Wow.”
That's what many were saying about Storey, until he failed to slide or go out of bounds one time too many.
Whether Storey will be in concussion protocol this week as they prepare for Tulsa wasn't addressed.
“I'll get a report tonight and know more tomorrow,” said Morris, never giving away too much about injuries.
Asked if there was a feeling that Ole Miss tried to “target” Storey, Morris hesitated.
“I can't go that route without watching the film,” he said. “Ty was playing extremely well and showed his grit and toughness.”
Froholdt was asked a similar question.
“When your quarterback runs, they are going to try to hit him,” he said. “It's not like a running back who knows how (to run behind his pads).”
There was mention of his Morris' post-game talk to players, including a summary from Harris, one of the defensive captains.
“We talked of staying positive,” Harris said. “The older players have to show the way to the younger ones. We have to maintain a positive attitude.”
Morris was more specific, adding that his message was consistent both at halftime and afterward. Specifically, Morris was responding to the thought of the Hogs blowing another lead.
“The biggest thing is to go back to work,” Morris said. “That's what I shared with the players. The formula doesn't change.
“Really, that's what I told them at halftime. It's not about the score, it's about winning plays in the second half. You just have to keep winning plays. It's one play at a time.”
And, that's what Storey tries to do. Morris admits Storey has to protect himself to stay in the game for the team.
“But what he does is what makes him what he is, such a competitor,” Morris said. “He always wants to get that first down.
“The first thing he asked me when I got over to him: 'Did I get the first down?' You love that grit.”
Don't take that away from Ty Storey, but also don't take Ty Storey away from the Razorbacks.