Razorbacks rewind

Hogs find run game successful

Arkansas quarterback Feleipe Franks runs with the football during a game against Texas A&M on Oct. 31, 2020 in College Station, Texas.

The University of Arkansas more than doubled its per-game average with a season-high 222 rushing yards on Saturday night against No. 8 Texas A&M.

The Aggies won 42-31 at Kyle Field, but a bright spot for the Razorbacks was establishing a running game that had been lacking through the first four games.

Arkansas came into the game averaging 102.3 rushing yards -- 12th in the SEC and 88th nationally -- but the Razorbacks ran well from the start.

Rakeem Boyd gained 10 yards on Arkansas' first snap of what became a 12-play, 87-yard touchdown drive highlighted by 63 rushing yards.

The drive included a 28-yard run by quarterback Feleipe Franks. It was the longest rushing play by a Razorback this season, and Franks had another 28-yard run on the first play of the fourth quarter on a touchdown drive.

Boyd, who prior to Saturday night had 33 carries for 88 yards after missing most of the Mississippi State game and sitting out at Auburn because of an ankle injury, had 18 carries for 100 yards. He capped his game with a 14-yard touchdown run.

"It seemed like he ran really hard and did a nice job carrying, holding onto [the] ball and getting extra yards," Arkansas Coach Sam Pittman said. "It was good to see him have a game like that."

It was Boyd's ninth game with 100 or more rushing yards in three seasons with the Razorbacks after he redshirted at Texas A&M in 2016 as a true freshman and played at Independence (Kan.) Community College in 2017.

Boyd has 2,055 rushing yards at Arkansas, the first Razorback with 2,000 or more since Alex Collins had 3,703 from 2013-15.

Franks, a senior graduate transfer from Florida, rushed 16 times for a career-high 91 yards -- and being sacked four times took 20 yards off his rushing total. His previous career-high for rushing of 82 yards in 2017 at Florida also was against Texas A&M in the Gators' 19-17 loss to the Aggies.

Boyd and Franks were the first pair of Razorbacks with 90 or more rushing yards in the same game in four years, since Devwah Whaley had 135 and Rawleigh Williams had 126 when Arkansas beat Alcorn State 52-10 on Oct. 1, 2016.

Trelon Smith added five carries for 30 for the Razorbacks against Texas A&M.

"I think there's several reasons, but it was some of the plays we ran," Pittman said of the improved run game. "We had a new play in there that took advantage of their edge guys.

"Starting the game fast I think helped us. We couldn't have had a better first drive. That was very impressive.

"But I think our backs ran harder. I think we're just getting better. I've said we're going to get better, and our line was better."

Texas A&M came into the game holding opponents to an average of 75.5 rushing yards to rank second in the SEC and fifth nationally.

In the Aggies' previous game they held Mississippi State to minus-2 yards rushing thanks to having six sacks for 47 lost yards. The most rushing yards they had allowed before playing Arkansas was 109 against No. 2 Alabama.

Tube time

The Razorbacks' game against Tennessee will start at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at Reynolds Razorback Stadium and be televised on the SEC Network.

Targeting on Catalon

Arkansas lost starting safety Jalen Catalon when he was called for targeting with 59 seconds left in the first quarter against Texas A&M, resulting in an automatic ejection. He was penalized for leading with the crown of his helmet when he tackled Aggies receiver Chase Lane.

"I think it was a good call," Razorbacks Coach Sam Pittman said. "His head was down.

"It wasn't what I would consider a spear. It wasn't like he was doing it maliciously or trying to lead with his head. It just happened.

"It didn't look dangerous, but when they called it I understood why."

A new NCAA rule allows a player ejected for targeting to stay on the sideline with his teammates -- which Catalon did -- rather than being sent to the locker room.

"I just went up to him and talked to him," Pittman said. "I said, 'Let's stay on the sideline and help the football team out.'

"He was devastated. Obviously, he loves to play. Worked hard to play. But that's the rule and I understand the call."

Catalon has 46 tackles to rank third on the team.

"One of the best players we have and he's a leader back there [in the secondary]," Pittman said. "I'm sure our defense missed him. But let's make no mistake now, we've had a lot of people out this year and played good defense and had a lot of people out and played some good offense.

"We missed him, no doubt about it, but we can certainly play better than we did."

Gutsy call

Facing fourth and 2 at its 49 in the second quarter, Arkansas kept its offense on the field rather than punt and Feleipe Franks passed to Treylon Burks for a 36-yard gain, setting up a touchdown that pulled the Razorbacks with 21-14.

Franks said it was a good call by offensive coordinator Kendal Briles and that Burks did a good job making a play against man-to-man coverage.

"Fourth down comes with trust and repetition," Franks said. "Treylon did a good job of getting open right there. O-line did a great job of protecting, giving me time to deliver."

Coach Sam Pittman said he felt it was a good decision to be aggressive with the Razorbacks down 14 points.

"You don't have a whole lot of time to figure out if that's what you want to do or not, but I just thought with Feleipe and Treylon that we'd have a good chance of catching the ball," Pittman said on his postgame radio show. "The next play, we scored.

"I don't want to make a living making that call, but we felt like we needed some momentum, and it worked."

Bumper back

Linebacker Bumper Pool returned to the starting lineup for Arkansas and had 14 tackles after missing the previous game against Ole Miss with broken ribs.

"Iit killed me not playing," Pool said. "Missing any games is just tough, but I felt great tonight."

Offensive line shift

The Razorbacks had a slightly different look to their starting offensive line on Saturday night.

Ty Clary moved from right guard to center in place of Ricky Stromberg with Beaux Limmer returning to right guard. Myron Cunningham at left tackle, Brady Latham at left guard and Noah Gatlin at right tackle have started every game in those spots.

During the SEC Network telecast, analyst Matt Stinchcomb said Stromberg -- who started the first four games -- had been in quarantine during the Razorbacks' open date.

In the second quarter, Stromberg played center with Clary going to right guard and Luke Jones playing left guard.

"We didn't have Ricky last week, and so he didn't practice a whole lot," Coach Sam Pittman said. "So we started with Clary, and then we felt like Jones had a good enough week to get some reps. So that was him coming in there and playing there.

"And then Ricky got in to play, even though he hadn't repped much. So we're just trying to find a few more guys that we can certainly count on for the rest of the year at different spots, and honestly you're still evaluating everybody."

100 again for Burks

Treylon Burks led the Razorbacks with 7 catches for 117 yards and 2 touchdowns at Texas A&M. It was his second consecutive 100-yard receiving game after he had 11 catches for 137 yards and 1 touchdown against Ole Miss.

Despite missing much of the Mississippi State game and being sidelined at Auburn because of a knee injury, Burks has 26 catches for 366 yards and 4 touchdowns this season.

"He's finally healthy, I think he's as healthy as he's been all year," Arkansas Coach Sam Pittman said. "So we're certainly glad for that. He had a nice ballgame."

Vs. Aggies

Arkansas leads its series against Texas A&M 41-33-3 despite the Aggies winning every matchup since joining the SEC for the 2012 season.

The Aggies extended their winning streak over the Razorbacks to nine games, with six victories in Arlington, Texas, two in College Station and one in Fayetteville during that stretch.

Arkansas last beat Texas A&M 42-38 in 2011 in Arlington in a nonconference game when the Aggies were in their final season in the Big 12.

The Razorbacks are 4-2 against the Aggies in non-conference games and 38-24-3 in Southwest Conference matchups in addition to being 0-9 in SEC games.

Arkansas lost to Texas A&M 6-0 in Arlington in 1901, won 5-0 in Fayetteville in 1910 and lost 27-0 in Dallas in 1912 before the SWC was formed in 2015. The teams didn't play their first game as SWC members until 1927 when Texas A&M won 40-6 in College Station.

After Arkansas left the SWC the Razorbacks beat the Aggies in Arlington three in a row from 2009-11 before the Aggies joined them in the SEC.

Arkansas is now 17-15 against Texas A&M in College Station, where the Razorbacks last won 23-22 in 1989.

Players of the Game

OFFENSE: QB Feleipe Franks

Franks, a senior graduate transfer, completed 23 of 31 passes for 239 yards and 3 touchdowns without an interception. He also rushed for a career-high 91 yards.

DEFENSE: LB Bumper Pool

Pool, a junior, returned to the starting lineup after missing the Ole Miss game because he had two broken ribs. He had a team-high 14 tackles, including a career-high three for lost yards.