FAYETTEVILLE — It's safe to say that the Arkansas Razorbacks had a 12th man with them during the 19-14 upset victory over No. 4 Tennessee at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium on Saturday.
In front of 75,573 fans — the sixth-largest crowd in program history — the Hogs kept Tennessee star quarterback Nico Iamaleava under pressure consistently, but it was the blaring roar of the home crowd that played a key role in the win.
VIDEO: Postgame press conferences - Arkansas 19, Tennessee 14
"The fans won the game for us," Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman said postgame. "They got four offsides. I think it was the sixth-largest crowd in the history of the University of Arkansas. Our fans got us four false starts and it helped us tremendously.
"Our atmosphere today was like any of the elite university programs. Nobody had nothing on us today, and that was the fans and the facilities and everything like that. This was a big, big, big-time atmosphere for college football, and our fans made it happen for us. I appreciate them."
The Volunteers officially had three false starts, one illegal snap and one delay of game penalty on offense, and the crowd played a factor in contributing to most of those. Tennessee had 10 total penalties in the game and they gave up a season-high four sacks, leading to their record no longer being unblemished.
"They played a huge factor, man," super senior defensive tackle Eric Gregory said. "They had I think four false starts That was huge, they gave us a lot of momentum. They helped the defense. They helped the team. It was great man. Appreciate the fans for coming out and supporting us. Just keep believing in us and I appreciate it."
One of the loudest crowd pops of the game came with 1:17 left in the fourth quarter, when backup quarterback Malachi Singleton kept the ball on a read option and found his way into the end zone for an 11-yard go-ahead score. Singleton replaced starter Taylen Green in the third quarter after Green suffered a leg injury.
"Boosts me up a lot," Singleton said postgame. "Just being able to come in and help my team win anyway I can is always a confidence booster and just going out there and making a play will definitely help me as the weeks go on."
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Late in the fourth quarter, Tennessee was driving down the field with the fans yelling at max volume. Despite a big 42-yard pass from Iamaleava to receiver Dont'e Thornton Jr., the crowd remained on its feet in anticipation for the possibility of what most deemed impossible before the game began.
As the clock ticked down and Iamaleava questionably ran out of bounds with no time left on the clock, the fans began to storm Frank Broyles Field for the first time since the 2021 win over Texas.
"When it was over, I was thinking about how proud the state of Arkansas is for their football team," Pittman said. "That’s the only damn reason, well, it’s not the reason I took the job, but that’s one of the top reasons I came here. I wanted to make the state proud of the team."
Last weekend, it was another story of a one-score loss for Pittman in year five with the Hogs. This weekend, Pittman and his crew were on the right side of the final score, and he said it wasn't a surprise to the guys in his locker room.
"And if y'all care, it was a one-score game," Pittman said. "Might want to write about that too. But, go Hogs."
Arkansas will now enter a bye week following the big win. Next up, the Hogs will host the LSU Tigers on Oct. 19 for a game that has a 5:00-7:00 p.m CT kickoff window as of now.
