With 12:04 left in Saturday's game, No. 10 Arkansas trailed Missouri State 27-17.
Just under three minutes later, the Razorbacks were leading the Bears 31-27 and Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium was roaring after Bryce Stephens ran a punt back 82 yards to give the Hogs their first lead of the evening.
It was a night full of miscues and missed tackles for an Arkansas team that was trying to avoid being the latest top-10 team to be upset.
As Stephens, a redshirt freshman receiver, prepared to go out to field a Missouri State punt, he knew he had to make a big play.
"Man, I was on the sideline and I just knew we needed a momentum play, so I had to make one," Stephens said. "We talked about it on the sideline before that and Sam (Mbake) told me to look at his side when I’m back there, so I did what I did."
Sure enough, as Stephens fielded the ball, freshman receiver Sam Mbake (No. 11) made a block to Stephens' right, where he eventually cut back to and ran 82 yards down the sideline for a score.
"Yeah, Sam Mbake was on their gunner, and we felt like if we could handle the gunner we'd have not an opportunity to score a touchdown but an opportunity to get a decent return," Pittman said. "Mbake did a really good job on the outside, and you know Bryce won the 100 meters in Oklahoma. He's fast. He got up the sideline. Guys did a great job, but he got up the sideline and outran them."
Stephens showed signs of being a talented punt returner last year, but he could never break one off for a score. His teammate Nathan Parodi broke an 80-yard punt return for a touchdown against UAPB last season, and Stephens — wearing the same No. 14 as Parodi did last season — got his own against the Bears.
"Man, it was phenomenal," Arkansas safety Simeon Blair said. "I have to cover Bryce a lot in practice, so I know he’s super fast. We talked about it all week, that we have to make sure we block their gunners and Sam Mbake, a freshman, he did a wonderful job at blocking their gunners. And then Bryce was able to get out of the gate."
With the crowd at Reynolds Razorback Stadium reaching the loudest it had been all season, Stephens said it was a blackout moment.
"It was a blackout moment," Stephens said. "My voice is gone a little bit."
Poetically, former Razorback great Joe Adams — known best for being an incredible punt returner — was in the house to be inducted into the Razorback Hall of Honor. Prior to Parodi's punt return for a touchdown, Adams was the last Hog to do it when he took a punt back 51 yards in the 2012 Cotton Bowl.
Pittman jokingly said having Adams in the house was a good luck charm.
"That’s what it was," Pittman said. "We need to take him down to Dallas (next week against Texas A&M)."
