OXFORD – The next time Ole Miss and Arkansas play a “normal” game will be the first in quite a while.
Since 2015, six meetings between the teams have been decided by one score. Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin and Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman were both hired prior to the 2020 season; their teams have met each of the last four years, splitting the meetings evenly. The home team has won each of the four matchups.
A lot of strange football has happened between the Rebels and Razorbacks since 2020, and it seems like each game had a memorable storyline. Here is a look at each of the last four matchups and what happened.
2020: Arkansas 33, Ole Miss 21
This game took place in Fayetteville, Arkansas, and saw the Razorbacks jump out to a 20-0 halftime lead. Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral threw six interceptions in the game, and the Rebels committed seven turnovers. Still, Ole Miss battled back in the second half with a pair of Corral touchdown passes and a rushing touchdown from Jerrion Ealy to make it a 26-21 game with 5:30 left in the fourth quarter. The Rebels had a chance to take the lead late, but Corral threw his second pick-six of the game with just over three minutes to play that wrapped up Arkansas’ win.
2021: No. 17 Ole Miss 52, No. 13 Arkansas 51
This classic at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium featured nearly 1,300 yards of offense between the teams. Arkansas quarterback KJ Jefferson had six total touchdowns in the game, and Ole Miss’ Snoop Conner had three rushing scores. Ole Miss led 21-14 at halftime, but the Razorbacks tied the game at 24 and then at 31 in the third quarter.
Then, things got more chaotic.
Six touchdowns were scored in the fourth quarter, and with the game tied at 45, Corral threw a go-ahead 68-yard touchdown to Braylon Sanders with just over a minute remaining that appeared to seal the deal. It would not be that easy, however, as Jefferson threw a touchdown with no time left on the clock that seemingly tied the game. The Razorbacks opted to go for two and the win, though, and the gamble didn’t pay off, as Jefferson rolled to his right in the face of pressure and threw the ball out of the reach of his receiver.
2022: Arkansas 42, No. 14 Ole Miss 27
This was the second of four-straight losses to end the season for Ole Miss following an 8-1 start. Despite outgaining Arkansas 703-503 overall, turnovers, penalties and an inability to stop running back Raheim “Rocket” Sanders saw the Razorbacks jump out to a 42-6 lead early in the third quarter. Sanders ran for 232 yards and three touchdowns in the game. The Rebels were penalized 12 times.
Still, Ole Miss made a bit of a rally late, scoring 21 points in the fourth quarter to keep the score respectable. Quinshon Judkins and Zach Evans each ran for more than 200 yards for Ole Miss, and the Rebels racked up 463 rushing yards overall.
2023: No. 16 Ole Miss 27, Arkansas 20
A week after a thrilling win over LSU, Ole Miss turned around and played another tight game at home the following week against Arkansas, though it didn’t feature nearly as many fireworks. The teams combined for 635 yards; Ole Miss held Arkansas to just 36 rushing yards on 29 carries. Yet it was the Razorbacks who took a 20-17 lead early in the fourth quarter by way of a 17-yard touchdown pass from Jefferson.
Ulysses Bentley IV put the Rebels ahead midway through the fourth – he ran for a game-high 94 yards – and a Caden Davis field goal with 2:43 put Ole Miss up by seven. The Razorbacks got the ball back late, but Jefferson was intercepted with 1:42 to play. Ole Miss sacked Jefferson five times.
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