GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: NCAAF: ARKANSAS (1-0) at ALABAMA (2-0)

NCAAF: ARKANSAS at ALABAMA

<div class="pre">NCAAF ARKANSAS (16) 38
ALABAMA 34 0:34 LEFT, 4TH QTR</div>

 

NCAAF: ARKANSAS at ALABAMA

<div class="pre">NCAAF ARKANSAS (16) 38
ALABAMA 34 0:33 LEFT, 4TH QTR</div>

 

NCAAF: ARKANSAS at ALABAMA

<div class="pre">NCAAF ARKANSAS (16) 38
ALABAMA 34 0:21 LEFT, 4TH QTR</div>

 

NCAAF: ARKANSAS at ALABAMA

<div class="pre">NCAAF ARKANSAS (16) 38
ALABAMA 34 0:14 LEFT, 4TH QTR</div>

 

NCAAF: ARKANSAS at ALABAMA

<div class="pre">NCAAF ARKANSAS (16) 38
ALABAMA 34 0:09 LEFT, 4TH QTR</div>

 

NCAAF: ARKANSAS at ALABAMA

<div class="pre">NCAAF TD ALABAMA
MATT CADDELL 3 YD PASS FROM JOHN PARKER WILSON
(ANDREW FRIEDMAN KICK)

ARKANSAS (16) 38
ALABAMA 41 0:08 LEFT, 4TH QTR</div>

 

NCAAF: ARKANSAS at ALABAMA

<div class="pre">NCAAF FINAL 1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH TOTAL
--- --- --- --- -----
ARKANSAS (16) 0 10 7 21 38
ALABAMA 21 0 10 10 41 FINAL

SCORING SUMMARY

1ST QUARTER: ALABAMA - TD, DJ HALL 9 YD PASS FROM JOHN
PARKER WILSON (ANDREW FRIEDMAN
KICK), 6:25. ALABAMA 7-0
ALABAMA - TD, GLEN COFFEE 14 YD RUN (ANDREW
FRIEDMAN KICK), 10:39. ALABAMA
14-0
ALABAMA - TD, DJ HALL 35 YD PASS FROM JOHN
PARKER WILSON (ANDREW FRIEDMAN
KICK), 13:33. ALABAMA 21-0
2ND QUARTER: ARKANSAS - TD, CROSBY TUCK 40 YD PASS FROM
CASEY DICK (ALEX TEJADA KICK),
8:57. ALABAMA 21-7
ARKANSAS - FG, ALEX TEJADA 22 YD, 14:37.
ALABAMA 21-10
3RD QUARTER: ALABAMA - FG, LEIGH TIFFIN 24 YD, 4:03.
ALABAMA 24-10
ALABAMA - TD, NICK WALKER 2 YD PASS FROM
JOHN PARKER WILSON (LEIGH
TIFFIN KICK), 9:45. ALABAMA
31-10
ARKANSAS - TD, ANDREW DAVIE 2 YD PASS FROM
CASEY DICK (ALEX TEJADA KICK),
11:55. ALABAMA 31-17
4TH QUARTER: ARKANSAS - TD, DARREN MCFADDEN 1 YD RUN (ALEX
TEJADA KICK), 0:04. ALABAMA
31-24
ARKANSAS - TD, DARREN MCFADDEN 5 YD RUN (ALEX
TEJADA KICK), 2:55. ARKANSAS
31-31
ARKANSAS - TD, PEYTON HILLIS 7 YD PASS FROM
CASEY DICK (ALEX TEJADA KICK),
6:52. ARKANSAS 38-31
ALABAMA - FG, LEIGH TIFFIN 42 YD, 10:40.
ARKANSAS 38-34
ALABAMA - TD, MATT CADDELL 3 YD PASS FROM
JOHN PARKER WILSON (ANDREW
FRIEDMAN KICK), 14:52. ALABAMA
41-38</div>

 

TUSCALOOSA, Alabama (Ticker) -- Darren McFadden reminded thenation why he is a Heisman Trophy candidate. Meanwhile, NickSaban reminded everyone why he has been one of the mostsuccessful college football coaches in recent history.

John Parker Wilson passed for career highs of 329 yards and fourtouchdowns - including the game-winning score with eightseconds left - to lead Alabama to a 41-38 upset of No. 16Arkansas in a Southeastern Conference thriller.


Thanks to a wild finish, Saban recorded a landmark win in hisfirst home SEC game at Alabama (3-0, 2-0 SEC West), whichexacted a measure of revenge against rival Arkansas (1-1, 0-1West).


The Razorbacks posted a one-point overtime victory last yearover the Crimson Tide, who looked ready to avenge the bitterloss early in this one.


Saban, who guided Louisiana State to a share of the nationaltitle four years ago, was lured away from the NFL's MiamiDolphins this past offseason to coach Alabama.


Saban appeared to have his newest SEC team headed in the rightdirection, as Alabama led by as many as 21 points in the thirdquarter before Arkansas rallied behind McFadden to take a 38-31advantage in the fourth quarter.


However, the Crimson Tide converted a late field goal to cuttheir deficit to 38-34 and set the stage for Wilson, whoorchestrated a classic last-minute drive.


Starting at his own 26-yard line with no timeouts and 2:37 lefton the clock, Wilson engineered an 11-play drive capped by histhree-yard TD pass to Matt Caddell with eight seconds remaining.

Facing a vicious blitz from the Razorbacks, Wilson lofted aperfect pass into the back-left corner of the end zone to the6-foot Caddell, who outjumped 6-1 cornerback Jamar Love to makeit 41-38.


Wilson finished 24-of-44 with just one interception. Thejunior's favorite target was Caddell, who hauled in ninereceptions for 92 yards. D.J. Hall chipped in six receptionsfor 172 yards and two TDs for Alabama.


Wilson's heroics overshadowed an amazing performance byMcFadden, who battled second-half cramping to rush for 200 yardsand two TDs on a career-high 34 carries.


Alabama built a 31-10 lead with 5:15 remaining in the thirdquarter when Wilson hit tight end Nick Walker for a two-yard TD.

But Arkansas battled back from there, as McFadden and FelixJones spearheaded a rushing attack which helped the Razorbacksphysically dominate the last 20 minutes of the contest.

The dynamic duo of McFadden and Jones combined for 59 rushingyards on a late third-quarter drive capped by Casey Dick'stwo-yard TD pass to tight end Andrew Davie with 3:05 left in theperiod.


After recovering a fumble at the Alabama 41-yard line, Arkansasclawed within 31-24 on McFadden's first TD of the game - aone-yard score just four seconds into the fourth quarter.

The Razorbacks forged a 31-31 tie three minutes later whenMcFadden scampered in from five yards out, capping a six-playdrive which was set up by cornerback Dallas Washington'sinterception at the Crimson Tide 26.


McFadden continued to battle the cramping on Arkansas' nextdrive, rumbling for a 20-yard first-down run with 9:58 left.

Jones reeled off a 36-yard run on the following play, and Dickcompleted a seven-yard TD pass to fullback Peyton Hillis threeplays later to give the Razorbacks their first lead of the gameat 38-31 with 8:08 left.


But the Crimson Tide did not go away, as Leigh Tiffin drilled a42-yard field goal to cut the deficit to 38-34 with 4:20 left.

Arkansas did not eat up enough clock time on its next possession- with McFadden on the sideline - and was forced to punt with2:37 remaining, setting the stage for Alabama's game-winningdrive.

 

NCAAF: ARKANSAS at ALABAMA

<div class="pre">NCAAF FINAL 1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH TOTAL
--- --- --- --- -----
ARKANSAS (16) 0 10 7 21 38
ALABAMA 21 0 10 10 41 FINAL

ALABAMA-TD, D Hall 9 YD PASS FROM J Wilson (A Friedman
KICK) 6:25 1st Qtr
ALABAMA-TD, G Coffee 14 YD RUN (A Friedman KICK) 10:39
1st Qtr
ALABAMA-TD, D Hall 35 YD PASS FROM J Wilson (A Friedman
KICK) 13:33 1st Qtr
ARKANSAS-TD, C Tuck 40 YD PASS FROM C Dick (A Tejada KICK)
8:57 2nd Qtr
ARKANSAS-FG, A Tejada 22 YD 14:37 2nd Qtr
ALABAMA-FG, L Tiffin 24 YD 4:03 3rd Qtr
ALABAMA-TD, N Walker 2 YD PASS FROM J Wilson (L Tiffin
KICK) 9:45 3rd Qtr
ARKANSAS-TD, A Davie 2 YD PASS FROM C Dick (A Tejada KICK)
11:55 3rd Qtr
ARKANSAS-TD, D McFadden 1 YD RUN (A Tejada KICK) 0:04 4th
Qtr
ARKANSAS-TD, D McFadden 5 YD RUN (A Tejada KICK) 2:55 4th
Qtr
ARKANSAS-TD, P Hillis 7 YD PASS FROM C Dick (A Tejada
KICK) 6:52 4th Qtr
ALABAMA-FG, L Tiffin 42 YD 10:40 4th Qtr
ALABAMA-TD, M Caddell 3 YD PASS FROM J Wilson (A Friedman
KICK) 14:52 4th Qtr


ARKANSAS ALABAMA
First downs 22 24
Rushed-yards 53-301 34-123
Passing yards 149 327
Sacked-yards lost 0-0 2-20
Return yards 20 85
Passes 12-25-1 24-45-2
Punts 7-44.7 5-36.2
Fumbles-lost 2-2 2-1
Penalties-yards 7-81 7-63
Time of possession 30:27 29:33


Individual Statistics

RUSHING: ARKANSAS-Darren McFadden 33-195, Felix Jones 16-96, Michael
Smith 3-8, Peyton Hillis 1-2. ALABAMA-Terry Grant 20-96, Glen Coffee
7-34, Jimmy Johns 2-1, John Parker Wilson 5-MINUS 8.

PASSING: ARKANSAS-Casey Dick 11-23-145- 1, Robert Johnson 1-1-4- 0,
Darren McFadden 0-1-0- 0. ALABAMA-John Parker Wilson 24-45-327- 2.

RECEIVING: ARKANSAS-London Crawford 3-47, Crosby Tuck 1-40, Peyton
Hillis 3-34, Darren McFadden 3-16, Robert Johnson 1-10, Andrew Davie
1-2. ALABAMA-DJ Hall 6-172, Matt Caddell 9-91, Mike McCoy 5-28, Keith
Brown 2-18, Will Oakley 1-16, Nick Walker 1-2.


Att: 92,138</div>

 

TUSCALOOSA, Alabama (Ticker) -- Darren McFadden reminded thenation why he is a Heisman Trophy candidate. Meanwhile, NickSaban reminded everyone why he has been one of the mostsuccessful college football coaches in recent history.

John Parker Wilson passed for career highs of 327 yards and fourtouchdowns - including the game-winning score with eightseconds left - to lead Alabama to a 41-38 upset of No. 16Arkansas in a Southeastern Conference thriller.


Thanks to a wild finish, Saban recorded a landmark win in hisfirst home SEC game at Alabama (3-0, 2-0 SEC West), whichexacted a measure of revenge against rival Arkansas (1-1, 0-1West).


"I am very proud of the way the players competed today," Sabansaid. "We always talk about playing for 60 minutes in a gameand when we score a touchdown with eight seconds left to win agame, it's an easy way to reinforce a point."


"The guys kept their composure and kept their cool," Wilsonadded. "There were ups and downs, but we were able to keep ourcomposure and finish it off."


The Razorbacks posted a one-point overtime victory last yearover the Crimson Tide, who looked ready to avenge the bitterloss early in this one.


Saban, who guided Louisiana State to a share of the nationaltitle four years ago, was lured away from the NFL's MiamiDolphins this past offseason to coach Alabama.


"We showed a lot of character in the game to get the ball backat the end of it," he said. "We had a great two-minute drive,and people made plays. It was a tremendous victory for theUniversity of Alabama, for our players, for our fans."

Saban appeared to have his newest SEC team headed in the rightdirection, as Alabama led by as many as 21 points in the thirdquarter before Arkansas rallied behind McFadden to take a 38-31advantage in the fourth quarter.


However, the Crimson Tide converted a late field goal to cuttheir deficit to 38-34 and set the stage for Wilson, whoorchestrated a classic last-minute drive.


Starting at his own 26-yard line with no timeouts and 2:37 lefton the clock, Wilson engineered an 11-play drive capped by histhree-yard TD pass to Matt Caddell with eight seconds remaining.

"We went out there and I told the guys, 'Let's go win it. Whynot?'" Wilson said. "The funny thing is that I was talking toCaddell on the sideline before the game. I told him 'Let's goget a touchdown.' We all knew we could."


Facing a vicious blitz from the Razorbacks, Wilson lofted aperfect pass into the back-left corner of the end zone to the6-foot Caddell, who outjumped 6-1 cornerback Jamar Love to makeit 41-38.


"(I was) really just focusing on making that catch," Caddellsaid. "That's all. I knew where I had to get it. (Wilson) hadfaith in me and threw the ball where I could make a play on it.It was just a great play."


"It was a read play," Wilson added. "He wasn't the first guy.He was on down the progression. We were able to throw it up,and he was able to make a great play."


Wilson finished 24-of-44 with just one interception. Thejunior's favorite target was Caddell, who hauled in ninereceptions for 92 yards. D.J. Hall chipped in six receptionsfor 172 yards and two TDs for Alabama.


Wilson's heroics overshadowed an amazing performance byMcFadden, who battled second-half cramping and a late concussionto rush for 200 yards and two TDs on a career-high 34 carries.

"All our backs showed a lot of heart," Arkansas coach HoustonNutt said. "They were just playing their guts out. DarrenMcFadden played extremely well. He earned every yard he gottonight."


Alabama built a 31-10 lead with 5:15 remaining in the thirdquarter when Wilson hit tight end Nick Walker for a two-yard TD.

But Arkansas battled back from there, as McFadden and FelixJones spearheaded a rushing attack which helped the Razorbacksphysically dominate the last 20 minutes of the contest.

"Hopefully, the lessons that we will learn are aboutconsistency," Saban said. "We started out the game extremelywell offensively and defensively. We lost the momentum of thegame in the second quarter. ... We were a little bit up, thendown, but came back in the end."


The dynamic duo of McFadden and Jones combined for 59 rushingyards on a late third-quarter drive capped by Casey Dick'stwo-yard TD pass to tight end Andrew Davie with 3:05 left in theperiod.


After recovering a fumble at the Alabama 41-yard line, Arkansasclawed within 31-24 on McFadden's first TD of the game - aone-yard score just four seconds into the fourth quarter.

"I felt better running the ball in second half than I did in thefirst half," McFadden said. "I think their defensive front wasgetting tired."


The Razorbacks forged a 31-31 tie three minutes later whenMcFadden scampered in from five yards out, capping a six-playdrive which was set up by cornerback Dallas Washington'sinterception at the Crimson Tide 26.


McFadden continued to battle the cramping on Arkansas' nextdrive, rumbling for a 20-yard first-down run with 9:58 left.

Jones reeled off a 36-yard run on the following play, and Dickcompleted a seven-yard TD pass to fullback Peyton Hillis threeplays later to give the Razorbacks their first lead of the gameat 38-31 with 8:08 left.


But the Crimson Tide did not go away, as Leigh Tiffin drilled a42-yard field goal to cut the deficit to 38-34 with 4:20 left.

Arkansas did not eat up enough clock time on its next possession- with McFadden on the sideline - and was forced to punt with2:37 remaining, setting the stage for Alabama's game-winningdrive.


Jones finished with 96 yards on 16 carries while Dick completed11-of-23 passes for 145 yards, three TDs and one interceptionfor Arkansas, which fell to 9-7 all-time in SEC openers.

"I was real proud of our team," Nutt said. "I thought that westarted playing football like we know how to play it. We showeda lot of heart and a lot of character. I really thought thiswas our game."

 

NCAAF: ARKANSAS at ALABAMA

<div class="pre">** CONFIRMED **
NCAAF
ARKANSAS (16) 38
ALABAMA 41 FINAL</div>