Bulldogs blow out FCS foe, Rebels disappoint in Fayetteville in run-up to Egg Bowl
Nov. 20—Arkansas 42, Ole Miss 27
Records
The Rebels are 8-3 overall, 4-3 in SEC play.
Rankings
The Rebels are No. 20 in both major polls. It's a drop of six spots by The Associated Press, five spots by the coaches.
Thumbs Up
Quinshon Judkins ran for 214 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries.
Zach Evans also went over 200 yards and showed how important his health is to this offense.
The Rebels had 703 yards of offense, 463 on the ground.
The Rebels, down 42-6 at the start of the fourth quarter, continued to play hard.
Thumbs Down
The offense came too late to matter.
Quarterback Jaxson Dart, who had played two-straight games without an interception, killed first-half possessions with a fumble and a pick.
Judkins also fumbled.
Add penalties and poor tackling on defense, and it's easy to see the ingredients for the fatal mix.
As it was against Alabama, execution on offense near the opponent's goalline was a problem. Ole Miss had drives end at the Arkansas 27, 21, 14 and 5. On two of those they got short field goals. A third ended on downs at the 5 in the third quarter.
Perhaps there was some Alabama hangover here. However you want to define, the Rebels looked unprepared.
MVP
Evans went for 207 and a touchdown on 17 carries and averaged 12.2 yards per rush.
Saturday Surprise
Three backs went over 200 rushing yards in the game. Judkins had 214, Evans 207, but they were both surpassed by Arkansas' Raheim Sanders who had 232 yards and three touchdowns on 24 carries.
The Week Ahead
It's the Egg Bowl. Ole Miss plays at home against Mississippi State Thursday night at 6 on ESPN.
Mississippi State 56, East Tennessee State 7
Records
The Bulldogs are 7-4 overall, 3-4 in SEC play.
Rankings
Mississippi State is receiving three votes in The AP Top 25, and one vote in the coaches poll.
Thumbs Up
The Bulldogs did what you need to do against an FCS opponent, and that's execute on both sides of the ball.
Will Rogers was 30 for 37 for 301 yards and five touchdowns; backup Chance Lovertich was 6 for 6 for 36 yards and a touchdown.
Neither threw an interception.
Dropped passes by wide receivers was not a problem.
The Bulldogs played a lot of people and rested those who needed a break.
Thumbs Down
Sawyer Robertson, the third quarterback, was 2 for 6 passing and threw an interception, the Bulldogs' only turnover.
MVP
Cornerback Emmanuel Forbes returned an interception 76 yards for a touchdown and had a nice spin move to get away from a defender before outrunning the Bucs. With his sixth career touchdown with an interception Forbes set SEC and FBS records.
Saturday Surprise
In his final home game former Tupelo High standout Jett Johnson had a workmanlike performance with a game-high nine tackles. He was constantly in position — a trademark of his career — and a big reason Bucs managed just 154 total yards.
The Week Ahead
It's the Egg Bowl. Mississippi State plays at Ole Miss in a 6 p.m. start Thursday night on ESPN.
PARRISH ALFORD is the college sports editor and columnist for the Daily Journal. Contact him at parrish.alford@journalinc.com.
