QUARTERBACKS It wasn’t the raw numbers Auburn’s Brandon Cox put up that were
impressive, but the poise
he showed in
working the Tigers’
twominute offense. Cox
guided Auburn 50
yards in 1: 15 for a game-winning field goal. He managed the game well and made few mistakes in completing 13 of 23 passes for 101 yards. Arkansas quarterback Casey Dick had better numbers but came out with a loss, failing to do enough early in the game to make up for Cox’s late-game heroics. Dick was 12 of 26 for 111 yards with 1 touchdown and 1 interception. ADVANTAGE Auburn RUNNING BACKS It doesn’t seem right, but an Arkansas opponent had the better rushing attack.
Auburn netted 189
yards on the ground,
beating the
Razorbacks at their own
game. Auburn wore
down the Arkansas defense with its ground game, getting 91 yards on 23 carries from Ben Tate and 89 yards on 21 carries from Brad Lester. Tate had 9 yards on the Tigers ’ game-winning drive, helping set up Wes Byrum’s chip-shot field goal to win the game. Arkansas’ talented tandem of Felix Jones and Darren McFadden was subpar, combining for 85 yards and no touchdowns on 23 carries. ADVANTAGE Auburn
RECEIVERS Neither team was spectacular, but Auburn got a 30-yard reception from Brandon Dunn to keep its game-winning drive going. Dunn had no other catches but highlighted a group that combined for 101 yards on 13 catches. Arkansas had better numbers, getting 126 yards receiving on 13 catches, but the bulk of that came from fullback Peyton Hillis, who caught 5 passes for 59 yards. Lucas Miller had 2 catches for 25 yards and 1 touchdown, but like the rest of the Arkansas receivers provided too little too late.
ADVANTAGE Auburn OFFENSIVE LINE Auburn wanted to keep the ball for long stretches and succeeded, thanks to its
offensive line’s ability
to keep the running
game going. The
Tigers held the ball for
35: 53 and outran
Arkansas, gaining 189 yards on the ground compared to 67 for the Razorbacks. Quarterback Brandon Cox was sacked once, while the Razorbacks ’ Casey Dick was sacked twice for 18 yards in losses. ADVANTAGE Auburn DEFENSIVE LINE Any team that holds Arkansas 271. 4 yards below its season rushing average
is doing something
right. Auburn kept
the Razorbacks from
controlling the line of
scrimmage, getting
a good performance from its defensive line. Defensive end Sen’Derrick Marks had three tackles, including a sack of Casey Dick. Arkansas did get a good performance from tackle Ernest Mitchell, who finished with eight tackles and a quarterback hurry. ADVANTAGE Auburn LINEBACKERS Arkansas had the bulk of its defensive highlights at linebacker. Weston Dacus
forced a fumble and
had 10 tackles,
including 8 unassisted.
Freddie Fairchild
had 13 tackles and
a third-quarter sack. Auburn’s linebacking corps had a big hand in holding Arkansas to a paltry 2. 7 yards per carry. Tigers linebacker Chris Evans broke up three passes to go with five tackles. Sophomore Tray Blackmon posted a career-high nine tackles for Auburn. ADVANTAGE Auburn DEFENSIVE BACKS It was fitting the game ended on an interception by Auburn’s Jerraud Powers,
who finished with
four tackles and a
sack. Both
secondaries had a hand in the
limited passing
success of the offenses, which combined for 227 yards through the air. Arkansas safety Matt Hewitt had a game-high 14 tackles and a fumble recovery, but any good he or the rest of Arkansas’ secondary did was overshadowed by a personal foul penalty against cornerback Matteral Richardson that kept alive Auburn’s first offensive drive, which ended in a field goal. ADVANTAGE Auburn SPECIAL TEAMS Auburn wins here because it won on freshman kicker Wes Byrum’s 20-yard field
goal with 21 seconds
remaining. Byrum
missed two field goals
earlier in the game that
could have eliminated
most of the suspense by giving Auburn a comfortable lead. Arkansas punter Jeremy Davis had a nice day, averaging 40. 8 yards on 9 punts and landing four inside the 20. ADVANTAGE Auburn
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