After a hard-fought win in Norman where the Volunteers eked out a 25-15 win over the ranked Sooners, they returned to Knoxville for a week off to prepare for another trip west. Tennessee’s offense often looked more lost than dominant in that win, scoring far below their season average, and punting more and being held to three-and-out in their week 4 win than they had in their previous three games combined. But a week of rest and extra preparation for Head Coach Josh Heupel could help rejuvenate a team which, despite the points and yards, has had some problems.
Even without playing in week 5, Dylan Sampson (RB, Jr) stood as one of the best producing rushers in the SEC, averaging over 100 yards and a pair of scores a game. But the defense had been main star against the Sooners, only giving up their first touchdown all season in the 4th quarter with UT up three scores. If the offense found its rhythm with the week off, and the defense maintained its edge, Tennessee could dominate Coach Bobby Petrino’s squad in Fayetteville.
As Tennessee’s game was kicking off, Alabama’s game against Vanderbilt ended with a 40-35 loss for the Tide. After Georgia fell to ‘Bama during UT’s week off, Tennessee found itself in the driver’s seat for their season. But Arkansas had other plans on the day. The Hogs offensive line got plenty of push, quarterback Taylen Green was perfect passing, converting their first two 3rd downs, and converting on 4th down to set up inside the Tennessee 5. But facing 4th and goal on the 1, Arkansas took the easy 3 points. The opening drive took 16 plays and over 9 minutes off the clock, and the Hogs became the first team to post a lead over Nico Iamaleava (QB, rFr), Tennessee’s starting passer.
But Nico, taking over at his own 25, immediately hit a 15-yard pass, only to have it called back by an infraction against the offensive line for having an ineligible man downfield. Another penalty via false start, and a sack led to a 4th and 15 punt. A second drive looked promising, but another sack of Iamaleava led to a tough choice of a long field goal or a punt. Opting for the latter, UT still hadn’t taken a chance for points. The next drive also stalled, going three-and-out.
With under two minutes to go in the half, the UT offense barely escaped disaster, with Nico recovering a botched snap, then hitting a pair of passes to his trusted tight end Miles Kitselman (TE, Sr) to move the ball to the edge of field goal range. But with the Arkansas defense charging down on Nico, an offensive lineman’s hands punched out too high, hitting Arkansas’ highest ranked defender, 6’ 7” defensive end Landon Jackson, in the facemask. The penalty moved Tennessee well out of range for an easy three points. Even a nice gain of 11 yards on 3rd down wasn’t enough for Heupel to trust his kicker, and Tennessee went into half scoreless.
By the time the bell rang out on the first half, the Razorbacks had over 200 yards of offense. After starting with a 3-0 advantage, Tennessee’s defense was able to force Taylen Green’s first incomplete pass, which helped land Arkansas in a tough spot, facing 4th and 1 from Tennessee’s 34. With a choice between a long kick attempt or a short conversion, Petrino opted to go for it. With the snap of the ball, Taylen Green scanned the field to pass. He rolled out to the right before throwing to his receiver, Gumms, underneath the defense, just short of the sticks. Gumms scooped low for the catch, but came up from the ground and avoided a tackle to cross the line to gain. But after a second look, it was apparent Gumm’s knee hit the ground when he made the catch, and he was marked short of the first down, giving Tennessee a turnover on downs.
After a false start pushed Arkansas to start their drive inside their own 5, Arion Carter (LB, So) blew into the backfield to drag down the ball carrier, running back Ja’Quinden Jackson, inside the endzone. But Jackson was able to leave his feet, lift his knees, and extend the ball just beyond the goal line to prevent a safety. An incomplete pass brought a third and long from inside their own 1-yardline. But Carter left Ja’Quinden uncovered on a swing pass which gained over 25 yards to convert, and kickstart a drive which extended well into Tennessee territory. But The defense finally clamped down, forcing another 4th down conversion decision. A failed 4th down attempt coming on a Taylen Green run ended a promising 74-yard drive, and another exciting drive by Arkansas fell short just inside the red zone. Arkansas’ next drive took them into UT territory again, but Arkansas’s kicker pulled the kick wide left, preserving a 3-0 score at half.
Needing a spark, and some good blocking, Tennessee’s offense took the field first. Nico finally targeted Bru McCoy (WR, rSr), the Vols’ leading receiver, on back-to-back passes, helping get a first down. But, facing a third and 4, Heupel burned a timeout to prevent another penalty against his offense. Tennessee then opted for a zone run to Dylan Sampson. Sampson took the ball and cut into the hole in the center of the line. Facing down a safety, Sampson pushed forward, bringing the safety down nearly level with a blocking lineman to Dylan’s right. Sampson cut behind the lineman, and the safety got tangled up in the mass of people, springing the Vols’ leading rusher for a 53-yard scamper. Sampson finished off the drive with a touchdown run on the next play.
The next UT drive, Arkansas’ defensive aggressiveness finally got the best of them. They were flagged twice for personal fouls, allowing Sampson to rush a couple times to punch in his second score of the night, and 14-3 lead.
But Tennessee’s defense, plagued by missed tackles and blown coverages frequently through the night, allowed Arkansas to drive steadily down the field, with Traylen Green completing three passes of at least 15 yards, including a beautifully thrown pass to Andrew Armstrong down the right sideline over coverage, to give Ja’Quinden Jackson the chance to run it in from the 2-yard line, cutting the Vols lead to 14-10.
A pair of big runs to start the next UT drive were offset by a sack to prompt Tennessee to kick the ball back to Arkansas, who, once again, took advantage of loose coverage in the middle of the field and UT penalties to kick a field goal. Tennessee was flagged for an offsides, roughing the passer, and worst of all, running into the kicker as the 4th quarter started on 4th down to keep the ball in the home team’s hands.
The offense stalled again, punting the ball away. But the defense held strong to force a punt back. This was most of the story of the 4th quarter. Tennessee’s Jackson Ross (P, rSr) booted from the shadow of his own field goal across midfield, and the Razorbacks took over at their own 41. But another pass to soft coverage across the middle netted 13 yards before the Hogs running back broke a 24 yarder. Down a single point, the Razorbacks were now in easy field goal range. But Arkansas continued to run. A pair of 11-yard gains put the ball in the endzone, but a stout defensive stand at least prevented a 2-point conversion. With just over a minute to go, Tennessee trailed again, 19-14.
Nico took over the ball at his own 25, needing a touchdown to win. He missed his first pass, before scrambling for 8 on second down, burning precious seconds off the clock and the team assembled for the next play. The Hogs rushed three, with Landon Jackson side stepping Lance Heard (LT, So) to pressure Iamaleava’s blind side. Nico stepped up before spinning 270 degrees to run left, evading Jackson to throw a 42 yarder to big Dont’e Thornton Jr (WR, Sr). But a broken-up pass, a short scramble burning another timeout, and a broken-up pass led to 4th down and 6 with only six seconds left on the clock from the Arkansas 20-yard line. Inexplicably, Heupel burned his third and final timeout even with the game clock stopped. Tennessee’s only logical choices were to go for the endzone or get out of bounds after getting a first down, but before time expired.
With the game on his shoulders, and Arkansas fans already assembling on the edge of the bleachers ready to storm the field, Nico took the snap. Another three-man rush came at him. He rolled right, looking downfield as time ran out. He kept his eyes downfield as he crossed the line of scrimmage, still looking as though he wanted to pass the ball. But as he crossed the first down marker near the right sideline, he finally committed to the run, but angled out of bounds, ending the game without a truly competitive play, and Arkansas held on to a 19-14 advantage.
Tennessee’s offense never looked good, and the numbers supported that. They went 0-2 on 4th down, were bested by nearly 100 yards of offense, averaged a paltry 5.4 yards per pass attempt, and less than 5 yards per rush. Most upsetting, they were charged 60 yards on 10 penalties. The penalties stalled offensive drives, and extended their defensive drives, allowing Arkansas to hang in, score points, and eventually grab the win. It has been a staple of Heupel’s teams to be flagged, especially the offensive line.
But also, give credit to the Razorbacks defense. This was far and away the most Joe Milton III performance from Nico Iamaleava. In 2023, Milton, a supremely gifted athlete, was a nightmare to watch. Blessed with a massive frame, a rocket arm, and great speed, Milton would rarely scramble when he had the grass, would miss throws deep, short, and wide, and his lack of anticipation led to incompletions on throws with small windows. In Fayetteville, Nico missed deep, short, and wide. He missed on leading his receiver, and often made the throw late to tight window opportunities. Additionally, he continued to hold the ball before throwing it away instead of taking the chance to run when wide field space was available in front of him. His failure to elevate the offense was encapsulated on the last play by his decision to slowly drift right before going out of bounds after the clock hit zero.
But the whole team looked unprepared. The defense was often confused, missed coverages, especially across the middle of the field, and were outplayed along the boundaries where they did maintain coverage. The vaunted D line was frequently pushed back, with every Razorback rusher enjoying at least a few wide-open lanes to run through, even while Tennessee’s line could rarely generate the same opportunities for their running backs. It seems apparent the team as a whole looked past Arkansas, and they paid for it with a loss.