Razorbacks Hold on to Get Homecoming Victory
After trailing Tulsa early in the fourth quarter, the Razorbacks came back for a 19-15 victory in the homecoming game Saturday.
The Golden Hurricane had a chance to score with a minute left in the game, down by only four, but a fumble by Tulsa quarterback Cody Green recovered by Byron Jones sealed the victory for the Razorbacks.
“I’m proud of our guys; they fought,” head coach John L. Smith said.
This was the first win of the season for the Hogs against a team with a winning record. Tulsa is now 8-2 on the season and Arkansas is 4-5.
Wide receiver Cobi Hamilton had a stand-out day for the Hogs, ending the day with 177 yards on eleven receptions, breaking the Arkansas record for receptions in a season. Hamilton has 69 receptions on the season with three games left to play. The record was previously held by Jarius Wright who had 66 receptions in 2011.
“Great receivers will go up and get the ball one on one, and that’s what he did,” Smith said.
Tyler Wilson completed 21 of 31 passes for 272 yards passing. Dennis Johnson led Arkansas’ rushing attack with 111 yards, averaging five yards per carry.
The Razorbacks had 407 yards of total offense on the day to Tulsa’s 328.
Arkansas scored first on an eight-yard run from Dennis Johnson with 12:26 to go in the first quarter.
Zach Hocker gave the Hogs a ten point lead on a 31-yard field goal with 4:06 left in the first quarter.
Tulsa’s kicking game struggled Saturday. Daniel Schwarz missed a 42-yard field goal with 8:02 left in the first, then later missed an extra point and had another extra point blocked.
The Golden Hurricane made it a 6-10 game on a one-yard run from Alex Singleton in the second quarter. Tulsa scored another touchdown late in the second quarter on a 29-yard run from Trey Watts.
Another Hocker field goal from 46 yards out made the halftime score 13-12 in favor of the Razorbacks.
The Hogs did not score in the third quarter. The Golden Hurricane took a 15-13 lead as Schwarz finally made a field goal with 9:15 to go in the third quarter.
The Razorbacks scored for the last time with 10:08 left in the game on a one yard run from Dennis Johnson and made the score 19-15. The Hogs attempted a two-point conversion but failed.
The Razorback defense made some huge plays to keep the Golden Hurricane from scoring in the remaining minutes of the game.
The Razorbacks travel to Colombia, S.C., next week to take on the Gamecocks. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m.
“They’ve got 24 hours to celebrate this one then we have to go get ready for the Gamecocks,” Smith said. “This win was absolutely huge for the rest of our season.”
