Rally keeps Aggies perfect
Second improbable win in row against Arkansas improves record to 4-0.
The intended tar
ARLINGTON — get on fourth-and-short Saturday night was Drew Morgan. He was an obvious choice for Arkansas quarterback Brandon Allen.
This was the receiver who had brutalized the Texas A&M secondary, catching eight passes for 155 yards. Throughout much of the game, the Aggies couldn’t guess correctly on whether the Razorbacks would call run or play action.
But on fourth-and-short, A&M cornerback De’Vante Harris was aware of what was coming. The senior deflected Allen’s pass to seal the Aggies’ improbable 28-21 victory in front of 67,339 fans at AT&T Stadium.
For the second straight September, A&M benefited from an Arkansas fourth-quarter collapse. A year ago, the Razorbacks lost in overtime after squandering a 14-point lead. On Saturday night, the Arkansas margin was eight points with 4 minutes, 11 seconds to play.
The Razorbacks stumbled so badly in the final moments of the fourth quarter that A&M very nearly won the game on the last play of regulation. But Taylor Bertolet’s 38-yard field goal try slipped wide right.
“So this is a kind of thing you don’t want to go through as a coach,” A&M coach Kevin Sumlin said. “But you know, just when you come out on the winning side of it, you’re glad it happened.”
The 14th-ranked Aggies improved to 4-0 for the season and 1-0 in the SEC. Arkansas fell to 1-3. The Razorbacks, who started the season ranked No. 18, suffered their third loss in a row.
While the Aggies were jubilant, Arkansas coach Bret Bielema described the defeat as “unbelievably gut wrenching” and “heartbreaking.”
A&M quarterback Kyle Allen threw for a career-high 358 yards with two touchdowns. His biggest completions were late in the game. He completed a 63-yard pass to Josh Reynolds to set up the game-tying touchdown. He leaned again on Reynolds for a 2-point conversion. Then on the second play of overtime, Allen completed a 20-yard pass to freshman Christian Kirk.
Reynolds caught only three passes, but they totaled 106 yards. Kirk was the star early. His eight receptions went for 173 yards and two touchdowns. It was the third time in four games he exceeded 100 yards.
“I think you can see it (Saturday) in the the fourth quarter that we didn’t give up and we didn’t tire out and we ended up just pulling away.”
Ground-oriented Arkansas was led by tailback Alex Collins, who rushed for 151 yards and a score on 26 carries. Rawleigh Williams, Collins’ backup, ran for 46 yards. His 3-yard plunge with 14:12 to go in the fourth quarter extended the Razorbacks’ lead to 21-13.
Then the penalties started. There were five of them over the final four minutes.
On a fourth-and-3 from the A&M 35, right tackle Dan Skipper was called for a false start. So the Razorbacks punted.
The play after Allen hit Reynolds on the deep pass, Arkansas’ D J Dean was tagged for pass interference to give the Aggies a first-and-goal from the 2. Tra Carson scored two plays later.
On the final A&M drive of the fourth quarter, Arkansas defensive tackle Jeremiah Ledbetter roughed up Allen after an incompletion. The penalty pushed A&M to the Hogs’ 27. Bertolet missed the field goal, but by then, the Aggies were playing dominant football.
Allen completed a 20-yard pass to Kirk for the touchdown in overtime. Then the Aggies’ defense held.