Razorbacks Help Unknown Ole Miss Receiver Equal Record SEC

With the SEC’s top receiver unable to play Saturday, it looked like a determined Arkansas team might have the edge it needed to upset No. 19 Ole Miss. Nothing could be further from the truth.

After the 63-31 fiasco at Razorback Stadium — or the celebration with a little party, depending on your point of view — it looked like Tre Harris might not actually be the SEC’s best receiver. Or even the best in your own team. Another runner, Reb, claimed those crowns, at least for the day.

Jordan Watkins was the guy the Hogs couldn’t cover, couldn’t track, couldn’t stop. The senior wideout combined with sensational Ole Miss cornerback Jackson Dart to overwhelm the Arkansas secondary for a career-high five touchdowns.

With 4:48 left in the third quarter, Watkins had an amazing 254 yards on eight catches (just nine targets) with a staggering 31.8 yards per catch. His TDs came on plays of 62, 66, 3, 11 and 62 yards.

Ole Miss led 56-17 at the time. That was already 17 more points than the normally efficient Razorback defense has allowed in a game all season, and that came in double overtime at Oklahoma State.

Make no mistake. Ole Miss was incredibly impressive. But the Hogs were incredibly inept on defense. In attack, too, when it came to holding back the stellar defensive line of the Rebels, which sacked UA defenders eight times.

Meanwhile, UA’s defense was exposed in a way that even LSU didn’t in beating the Hogs 34-10 in Fayetteville two weeks ago. Arkansas stymied Ole Miss’ inept running game but couldn’t chase down Dart.

Slipping with a four and covering with a seven didn’t work. Blitzing forced Dart to get rid of the ball, but that didn’t work either. Nothing came of it as the Hogs (5-4 overall, 3-3 in the SEC) were upset on a day they were hoping for a sixth win that would clinch a bowl bid.

Coach Sam Pittman led his beloved Hogs to three bowl games in his first four attempts. He will likely still get there this year as Louisiana Tech (3-5) comes to Razorback Stadium on Nov. 23.

But the Hogs also host No. 7 Texas and travel to No. 25 Missouri, always a foe. A record above .500 in the regular season seems unlikely for Arkansas, although after Mississippi State scored 58 points, it shows that weekly projections are meaningless.

The Hogs now have a week to lick their wounds, get running back Taylen Green healthy and prepare for the talented Texas Longhorns, who lost only to Georgia and enjoyed a bye this weekend.

The hated Horns take over Fayetteville in two weeks with hopes of the playoffs and a national championship. Although Arkansas has defeated the Burnt Orange Boys in the last two meetings, 40-21 in Fayetteville in 2021 and 31-7 in the 2014 Texas Bowl in Houston.

Arkansas’ defense will have to show itself in two weeks, much better than they did against Ole Miss and its trigger. By the end of the third quarter, Dart, the SEC’s leading passer, had 507 career yards — with six TD passes.

Dart was the guy the Hogs had to contain to have a chance. They failed miserably, making Watkins look like the second coming of Jerry Rice; if you don’t know the name, he is the greatest receiver in NFL history.

Watkins will never contend for that kind of glory, but by gosh, he had a game for the ages to silence a large Razorback Stadium crowd hoping for an upset. Watkins’ five TD catches tied an SEC record and set a school record.

Dart, a senior who transferred three seasons ago from Southern California, finished 25 of 31 for 515 yards, six TDs and no interceptions. His yards and TD toss were Ole Miss records, and he became the second SEC player, joining former Missouri State QB Drew Locke, to throw for at least 500 yards and six scores.

Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin hopes his prolific passing game has saved some darts for next week when the Rebs host No. 2 Georgia. This will be the biggest game of the year for Ole Miss, unless the underdog Rebels somehow go crazy again against Georgia’s stingy defense.

The turnaround will have playoff implications as Ole Miss (7-2 overall, 3-2 SEC) cannot lose again and make the playoffs. When Saturday’s contest began, Georgia was still the favorite to win the SEC and advance to the first round of the playoffs.

Arkansas was a 7.5-point underdog to Ole Miss, but history screamed that the Hoggs had a good chance to win. They were 13-2 in all games between the schools in Fayetteville and had not lost since 2008, winning their last five.

Hog fans had hope after trailing just 7-3 late in the first quarter, UA’s points came on a spectacular 55-yard field goal by Matthew Shipley. An injury to the Razorbacks’ leader, QB Tylen Green, drained the air from the stadium and Ole Miss stepped into the void to take charge.

Dart threw a 4-yard TD pass to tough but athletic tight end De’Quan Wright for a 14-3 lead. Green bravely returned to the team, but two quick three-and-outs by the UA offense left the Hogs with just 55 yards of offense at that point and 60 yards lost on penalties.

Watkins then went to work, catching a 62-yard TD and a 66-yarder with 2:03 on the game clock. The score was 28-3, but Green led the way with nine plays and 75 yards – 61 on two passes to tight end Luke Haas and a 43-yarder to Anthony Armstrong.

Amazingly, the defense forced a punt and Arkansas threatened again, but two sacks capped the drive and Shipley missed a 45-yarder to the left. Hum, another Dart pass for a Watkins TD made it 35-10 at halftime and sent more than a few Razorback players back to their tailgates to drown their sorrows.

Kiffin, who loves the attention, will get it after scoring 63 on the Hogs. While he and Darth await Georgia’s reception, Hogs and Pittman will rest, regroup, and try to emotionally recover from the Rebels’ defeat.

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