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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) -- For three quarters, Brandon Holmes
stood on the sideline as freezing rain fell and Arkansas' offense
stalled.
When he finally got into the game, Holmes and the Razorbacks
began to heat up.
|  | | Arkansas quarterback Zak Clark did not throw for a touchdown Saturday. |
Holmes scored his second touchdown of the game in overtime and
the Razorbacks held No. 13 Mississippi State on fourth-and-goal at
the 1 to preserve a 17-10 victory Saturday.
Holmes entered the game with 12:30 left in the fourth quarter
when Fred Talley injured his right knee.
"I was focused from the start," Holmes said. "I was ready and
the offensive line made my job easy."
To that point Talley was responsible for what little offense
Arkansas (5-5, 2-5 Southeastern Conference) mustered in the first
three quarters. The 5-foot-9, 190-pound sophomore ran for 91 yards
on 25 tough carries, before being helped off the field.
The Razorbacks' season has been derailed by injuries from the
start, and trailing 10-3 without Talley they appeared to be in
serious trouble.
The 215-pound Holmes, however, provided the spark, running for
70 yards on 11 carries in the fourth quarter, including the
game-tying touchdown with 1:02 left.
"I've been telling the coaches that I wanted them to trust me
with the ball to gain yards," he said.
In overtime, the Arkansas coaches showed their confidence in the
freshman tailback.
Holmes carried the ball on all five overtime plays for Arkansas
and finished with a season-high 95 yards on 16 carries.
"I knew Brandon Holmes could do the job," running backs coach
Danny Nutt said. "When he gets moving he's tough to bring down."
"They wore down the interior of our defense," said Bulldogs
cornerback Fred Smoot.
Before Holmes hit the field, defenses had dominated the cold and
wet day.
So it was only fitting that Arkansas' defense determined the
outcome on the final play.
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Sat, November 18
Playing at home, in the driver's seat to get to the SEC Championship game, this loss is absolutely inexcusable.
The Bulldogs went belly up in overtime against a team it should have beaten in regulation. Execute a field goal and the SEC West is in the bag. This was a horrible effort in a very big situation for Mississippi State.
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Mississippi State (7-3, 4-3) converted a fourth-and-21 during
its overtime possession on a 21-yard pass from Wayne Madkin to
Terrell Grindle.
Two plays later, the Bulldogs had a first-and-goal at the 5.
Three straight running plays got them to the 1.
On fourth down, Ken Hamlin came up from his free safety position
and cut the legs out from under Dontae Walker as he tried to sweep
around right end. J.J. Jones and Quenton Caver wrapped up Walker as
he tried to stumble into the end zone.
"I was just thinking 'He can't get in there,"' Hamlin said.
"They did a great job of getting to the ball," said Caver, who
was a disruptive force all day with 12 tackles and two sacks.
The loss snapped Mississippi State's 16-game home-winning streak
and Arkansas' four game-losing streak. The Razorbacks' had also
lost nine straight SEC road games.
The Bulldogs managed just 206 yards, while the Razorbacks had
only 217.
The loss combined with Auburn's victory over Alabama eliminates
Mississippi State from a chance to win the SEC West Division's spot
in the conference championship game in Atlanta.
"It hurts bad because of the bowl implications and I won't see
Atlanta without being associated with the Peach Bowl," Smoot said.
The Razorbacks blocked a 25-yard field-goal attempt by Scott
Westerfield on the final play of regulation to send the game to
overtime.
Holmes tied the game for Arkansas with a 2-yard touchdown run
with 1:02 left in the game.
But Dicenzo Miller took a short pass over the middle 44 yards on
Mississippi State's last drive of regulation that gave the Bulldogs
a first down at Arkansas' 25 with under a minute to go.
The Razorbacks then made matters worse for themselves by
committing two personal foul penalties that moved the ball to the
5.
After a low snap, Westerfield's kick was drilled into the
Razorbacks' line.
Shawn Byrdsong, who had two interceptions, scored Mississippi
State's only touchdown on a 40-yard interception return in the
first quarter that gave the Bulldogs a 10-0 lead.
"This is a sweet, sweet victory for us," Arkansas coach
Houston Nutt said. "When you play a team like Mississippi State,
nobody expects you to win."
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ALSO SEE
College Football Scoreboard
Arkansas Clubhouse
Mississippi State Clubhouse
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