Arkansas falls to No. 7 LSU, 13-10
Arkansas' defense forced two turnovers, recorded seven sacks and added eight tackles for loss, but it wasn't enough to overcome poor offensive play in a 13-10 loss to the No. 7 LSU Tigers on Saturday in Fayetteville.
On a day where backup quarterback Malik Hornsby started in place of the injured KJ Jefferson (shoulder), it was third stringer Cade Fortin who nearly saved the day.
Fortin entered with 5:25 remaining in the third quarter, and though his first drive resulted in a three-and-out, his second drive featured a 29-yard pass and a 40-yard touchdown pass — both to Matt Landers — to make it a 13-10 game.
After that, though, the Arkansas offense had nothing going and LSU freshman Harold Perkins' fourth sack of the day was the dagger at the 1:19 mark in the fourth quarter. Perkins hit Fortin and knocked the ball out and the Tigers recovered, allowing them to kneel the clock out.
LSU out-gained Arkansas 284-249 in the contest and they held the Hogs to just 3.7 yards per play.
Here's a recap of the Razorbacks' fifth loss of the season:
First Half:
Three plays after LSU converted on third-and-18, Daniels threw the ball right into the hands of Latavious Brini, who set the Hogs up at their own 43-yard line.
Hornsby trotted out as the starter for the Hogs, who gained just five yards and went three-and-out right away.
After the Arkansas defense forced an LSU three-and-out, the Hogs drove 46 yards on 10 plays and Cam Little capped the drive off with a 28-yard field goal. Hornsby gained 23 rushing yards on the drive that put Arkansas up 3-0 with 4:48 left.
On the second play of the ensuing LSU drive, Daniels had the ball popped out by Jordan Domineck and Brini recovered at the LSU 11-yard line. Arkansas came away empty handed after four straight runs resulted in a turnover on downs a the Tigers' 3-yard line.
LSU ran six straight times, resulting in a fourth-and-1 on their next drive. Following a false start and a holding on a fake punt attempt, the Tigers eventually booted it 41 yards to the Arkansas 49-yard line. After an illegal block in the back on the Hogs, they took over on their own 40.
Four plays in, Hornsby fumbled while trying to scramble and the Tigers took over at the Arkansas 37-yard line.
The first play of LSU's drive was a 20-yard carry by Daniels, who escaped the pressure and went down near his own sideline. Arkansas' defense stood strong, though, and limited the Tigers to a 38-yard field goal from Damian Ramos that tied it at 3-3 with 9:28 left in the first half.
Arkansas' next drive went just eight yards on five plays and resulted in a 29-yard punt from Reid Bauer.
The Tigers were able to drive 61 yards on 11 plays, and a false start on fourth-and-5 in the red zone resulted in a 29-yard kick from Ramos that made it 6-3 LSU with 1:51 remaining.
Arkansas took over and was in no hurry. The Hogs gained 23 yards and one first down, but the drive resulted in a punt. LSU kneeled the ball and sent the teams into the locker room.
Second Half
Arkansas chewed just under four minutes off the clock and gained only 15 yards on its opening drive of the half, which resulted in a 48-yard punt by Bauer.
Following a three-and-out by LSU, the Hogs found themselves in a fourth-and-2 situation. Hornsby dropped back and looked to be trying to throw across the field, but he slipped and fell, allowing the Tigers to take over at the Arkansas 40-yard line.
LSU drove 40 yards in five plays and Josh Williams scored the first touchdown of the game on a 1-yard rush to make it 13-3 with 5:25 left.
On the following Arkansas drive, Cade Fortin took over at quarterback and led the Hogs to an immediate three-and-out.
Following an LSU punt, the Hogs were stuck in a third-and-17 and Fortin delivered a 29-yard strike to Matt Landers for the first. Four plays later, Fortin took a shot from a defender, but placed a perfect ball in the hands of a streaking Landers for a 40-yard score that made it 13-10 LSU with 13:17 left in the game.
Chris Paul Jr. sacked Daniels for a loss of nine yards, and Daniels picked up just one yard on third-and-long to force a 36-yard punt by the Tigers. The Hogs went three-and-out after just 43 seconds.
The Tigers found themselves in another fourth down situation on the Arkansas 43-yard line and Simeon Blair flew in to stop them short of the line to gain and give the Razorbacks the ball back.
On the fourth play of Arkansas' drive, Fortin was hit while throwing and it was ruled a fumble returned 29 yards to the Razorback 20-yard line. The ruling on the field was overturned, resulting in fourth-and-10 for the Hogs and a 31-yard punt by Max Fletcher to pin the Tigers back at their own 12-yard line.
LSU's Jaray Jenkins caught a pass on third-and-4 and looked short of the line to gain, but the call on the field stood after review. Three plays later, the Tigers were forced into a fourth-and-1, resulting in a 45-yard punt to the Arkansas 24-yard line.
On the ensuing Arkansas drive, Fortin was hit while trying to pass and it resulted in a fumble recovered by LSU at the 1:19 mark. The Tigers kneeled out the rest of the clock and gave the Hogs their fifth loss of the season.
Final Stats:
