Tennessee football avenged last season’s loss in Fayetteville by knocking off Arkansas 34-31 on Saturday afternoon at Neyland Stadium. The Vols took control of the game with a big third quarter before holding on for dear life after Arkansas made a fourth quarter push.
Here are five critical moments from the Vols’ win over Arkansas.
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An Early Fourth Down Conversion
Entering the game, it felt like Arkansas would be very aggressive on fourth down in this game. It took just four plays into the game to confirm that suspicion as Arkansas went for it on fourth-and-one at its own 34-yard line. The Razorbacks kept it simple, converting on a quarterback sneak.
It took Arkansas just five more plays to find the end zone and a 7-0 lead thanks in large part to a 38-yard Mike Washington run.
Instead of Tennessee making an early game statement and getting strong field position to potentially take an early 7-0 lead of its own, Arkansas opened the scoring and made it evident that the Vols’ defense was in for a tough challenge.
A Significant Max Gilbert Field Goal
Tennessee did not lead once in the first half against Arkansas, but received the opening kickoff of the second half and marched right down the field. The Vols looked like they would score a touchdown and take a seven-point lead when they faced first-and-10 at the 17-yard line.
But then Tennessee went backwards after a personal foul penalty on Lance Heard and a rush that lost two yards. It ended with fourth-and-25 and a 50-yard field goal attempt.
It would have been a brutal break for Tennessee to not get any points on the drive and fail to take its first lead. However, Max Gilbert saved the day and knocked in a 50-yard field goal to give Tennessee the lead.
Back-To-Back Sacks
It was a rough day for Tennessee’s defense but the Vols’ pass rush continued to be a strength as they recorded five sacks and two more forced fumbles. One of the most important sequences came early in the fourth quarter with Tennessee leading 27-17.
Holding had already pushed Arkansas into second-and-22 when Daevin Hobbs and Tyre West combined to sack Taylen Green. Facing third-and-31, a conservative play call would have made sense. But Arkansas stayed aggressive. Josh Josephs knocked the ball away from Taylen Green as he scrambled and Jadon Perlotte recovered.
The turnover set Tennessee up inside the red zone. Three Peyton Lewis runs around a completion to Miles Kitselman found the end zone and pushed the Vols lead to three possessions in the fourth quarter.
Missed Opportunity To Put The Game On Ice
The game felt all but over when Tennessee scored to go up 17. But in reality, Tennessee needed one more stop or score to truly put the game away. The Vols immediately had the chance to do just that.
A first down sack put Arkansas into second-and-15. Even a solid second down play left Arkansas in third-and-nine. A third down stop would have put Arkansas in an extremely tough spot backed up on its own side of the field.
But Green found a hole in Tennessee’s zone coverage and found O’Mega Blake for a for an 18-yard gain. The Razorbacks would score on that drive, not facing another third down, to keep themselves alive.
Joey Aguilar’s Long Scamper
Arkansas got a stop and then scored another touchdown to cut Tennessee’s lead to three points with 2:55 to play. With the Vols’ defensive struggles and the momentum of the game, Tennessee very much needed to run the clock out on offense.
The drive started perfectly with Joey Aguilar running for 28 yards to the Arkansas 47-yard line. Tennessee moved the chains with three more runs and then kneed the game out, securing the win. Aguilar’s big run to open the drive was critical.
