Close games now falling the Razorbacks’ way

Remember the days when the Arkansas Razorbacks couldn’t win close football games?

Arkansas entered October having lost nine consecutive one-possession contests under third-year coach Bret Bielema. The Razorbacks ended that streak with a 24-20 triumph at Tennessee and have since added a four-overtime victory over Auburn and last weekend’s 53-52 overtime win at Ole Miss.

Though Auburn took longer to conquer, the win in Oxford was more miraculous, not that Bielema is apologizing for either outcome.

“Everything kind of works your way at some point,” Bielema said in a news conference Saturday night after his Hogs improved to 5-4 overall. “I’m glad to see these things bounce our way a little bit. I could not be more proud of our players, coaches and fans.”

Arkansas is 3-2 in Southeastern Conference play after going 4-20 the past three years.

The bounce of the season so far in the SEC took place with Ole Miss up 52-45 in overtime and Arkansas facing a fourth-and-25 at the 40-yard line of the Rebels. A pass from Brandon Allen to junior tight end Hunter Henry was going to be several yards short of the first down, so Henry hurled the ball behind him.

Junior tailback Alex Collins scooped it up at the Ole Miss 41 and raced 32 yards to the 9, continuing a drive and a game that was all but over.

“We knew we needed to keep it alive,” Bielema said, “and if there’s a guy I wanted to throw a backward pass 20 yards in the air in no direction other than the way he wanted to throw it, I would pick Hunter Henry.”

Said Henry: “I took a glance back and knew I had to chuck it as far as I could.”

Collins, who has lost tailback teammates Jonathan Williams and Rawleigh Williams to season-ending injuries, has rushed for 1,068 yards and 5.8 yards per carry through nine games. No yards were more important than his overtime scamper last Saturday, which helped get the Razorbacks within 52-51 before Bielema’s big decision.

Arkansas elected to go for the two-point conversion from the 3-yard line, which looked like a failure until the Rebels were flagged for grabbing Allen’s facemask. That moved the ball half the distance to the goal, and Allen was able to run it in.

“This was a really, really fun game,” Allen told reporters afterward, “and there was a lot of fight in our guys. We clicked on a lot of things offensively and kept telling ourselves that we would score as many points as it took.”

Allen is guiding an offense that averages 472.6 yards per game, but things haven’t always gone smoothly in his career. The senior from Fayetteville was viewed as a liability when the Razorbacks were emerging last season behind the rushing tandem of Williams and Collins, and that continued in September when his red-zone passing inefficiency helped result in an upset loss to Toledo.

The 6-foot-2, 210-pounder now is the SEC’s leading passer, having completed 174 of 268 throws (64.9 percent) for 2,476 yards with 21 touchdowns and just five interceptions.

“He’s always had his back against the wall,” Henry said. “People have always complained about him and talked bad about him, but he’s one of the most mentally tough dudes I’ve ever been around. I admire him for that.”

Considering Arkansas began this season ranked 18th in the Associated Press poll, its 5-4 record is mildly disappointing. Considering the Razorbacks started 1-3, being 5-4 doesn’t seem so bad.

The Hogs visit LSU on Saturday night before closing out the season at home against Mississippi State and Missouri, so there are plenty of opportunities remaining and the potential of more close calls as well.

“I knew we had a good team,” Bielema said. “We’re 5-4, and we just beat the front-runner to be the SEC West champ. We do a lot of good things and get better every day. If you went to our practices, you would think we’re undefeated and super champions of the world.

“It’s sad that we only have three more guaranteed opportunities, because I could coach this group for a long time.”

Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.