TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Damien Harris opened with a 75-yard touchdown run, and the No. 1 Alabama football team rode a fast start to a 41-9 victory against Arkansas on Saturday night.
The Crimson Tide (7-0, 4-0 Southeastern Conference) raced to a 17-0 start by midway through the first quarter before the Razorbacks (2-4, 0-3) managed to slow down the onslaught for a while.
Harris ran for 125 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries. His run on the first offensive play matched his career long set last week at Texas A&M and put the Crimson Tide in front 15 seconds into the game.
That game with the Aggies was Alabama’s closest of the season, prompting coach Nick Saban to challenge his team to listen to him instead of the “rat poison” of media hype.
“I think we learned a lot of lessons in the Texas A&M game,” Saban said. “I didn’t know how the team would play (Saturday), to be honest with you. I think we had a little better week of practice.”
The result was a second straight lopsided SEC loss for Arkansas and embattled coach Bret Bielema.
Playing without quarterback Austin Allen because of a right shoulder injury, Arkansas couldn’t muster much sustained offense. The Tide outrushed Arkansas 308-27, including five sacks of redshirt freshman Cole Kelley.
Kelley made his first start and spent much of the night under heavy pressure. He completed 23 of 42 passes for 200 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
The 6-foot-7, 268-pounder led the Razorbacks down the field at the end of the first half, but it ended with an incompletion from the 3.
Alabama’s Jalen Hurts was 12-of-19 passing for 155 yards with a touchdown and his first interception of the season.
Alabama committed two turnovers after losing just one in the first six games and muffed three punt returns. Hurts’ third-quarter interception ended a streak of 206 consecutive passes without one, Alabama’s second-longest.
“Three balls on the ground (on punt returns) and we only lost one,” Saban said. “We were fortunate.”
Arkansas has allowed 139 points in its first three SEC games. The Razorbacks held the Crimson Tide without a point for stretches of 21 and 15 minutes.
DABO VISITS
Clemson football coach Dabo Swinney was on hand with other members of Alabama’s 1992 national championship team, which was honored before the game. His coach, Gene Stallings, also was there. Alabama and Clemson have split the past two national title games. Second-ranked Clemson lost to Syracuse on Friday night.
SABAN’S MILESTONE
Saban improved to 100-24 in regular-season SEC games. He joins Bear Bryant, Steve Spurrier, Johnny Vaught, and Vince Dooley as the only coaches to reach that milestone.
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