FAYETTEVILLE -- University of Arkansas tight end Cheyenne "C.J." O'Grady wasn't able to do interviews after Saturday's game against Auburn because he took a shot to the throat.
O'Grady's play spoke loudly for him.
The No. 11 Tigers pounded the Razorbacks 51-10 on Saturday, but O'Grady provided some bright spots as Arkansas suffered through its 15th consecutive SEC loss.
O'Grady, a senior from Fayetteville, led the Razorbacks with seven catches for 72 yards and scored their only touchdown.
"Obviously, C.J. is a great player," Arkansas quarterback Ben Hicks said. "He's one of our weapons that I really count on, and he's playing well.
"He's a big deal for us, trying to give him a chance. He played really well today. So we'll continue to find ways to implement him more into our game plan each week."
O'Grady actually had to catch the ball twice on his 45-yard touchdown pass from Hicks that pulled Arkansas within 31-10 with 14 seconds left in the third quarter.
After O'Grady caught the ball over the middle and was running for the end zone, Auburn defensive end Big Kat Bryant knocked it loose.
O'Grady then caught the ball midair and spun around to still make it into the end zone.
"He's a real player," Tigers Coach Gus Malzahn said. "One of the best offensive players in our league. He made a great play [on the touchdown]. Matter of fact, he made three or four great plays."
O'Grady missed the season opener against Portland State because he was still recovering from knee surgery, but he leads the Razorbacks with 29 catches for 359 yards. His two receiving touchdowns are tied with Trey Knox and Mike Woods for the team lead.
"I think we all know what kind of playmaker C.J. is," Arkansas Coach Chad Morris said. "I think you look around, we tried to get the ball to our playmakers as much as possible today.
"We had a few drops that were disappointing. Guys were giving effort. But C.J. has definitely been a guy that's been consistent, and we've just got to continue to find ways to get him the ball."
In the past three games against Texas A&M, Kentucky and Auburn, O'Grady has 19 catches for 207 yards.
That's a good season for some tight ends.
"C.J. is the best tight end in the nation to me," Razorbacks safety Kamren Curl said. "Being able to go up against him in practice every day, it's a real challenge. It just makes us better.
"I feel like C.J., comes out and always plays his best every game."
Arkansas linebacker Bumper Pool said the Razorbacks are glad to have O'Grady playing for them.
"C.J. has just got great balance," Pool said of the touchdown play against Auburn. "He can continue to make a play even though there is something going on, if somebody's trying to tackle him."
O'Grady also had his first rushing attempt of his 39-game career at Arkansas when the Razorbacks converted a fourth and 1 from their 39 in the first half.
With Hicks in the shotgun, O'Grady went in motion, stopped quickly, got under center, took the snap and rushed for 3 yards and a first down.
"We actually repped it a little bit last year," Morris said. "We felt if we got into an empty [backfield], they'd get into a front that was a little bit softer for us, that we may be able to pick up a short yard right there with it.
"C.J. played quarterback in high school and had taken snaps, so we've been working that. It was good to see it work."
Sports on 10/20/2019