Arkansas played its worst game of the season across the board. The offense didn’t get a first down unti the second quarter and was limited to fewer than 200 yards from its starters. The defense gave up a season high in points and the most yards rushing – 354 – in an SEC game since Auburn ran for more than 440 back in the mess that was the 2016 season.
Looking for a bright spot is too much homerism, so we’re just going by raw numbers. Here are Arkansas’ Players of the Game against Auburn from RazorbacksWire staffers E. Wayne, Derek Oxford, Connor Goodson and Steve Andrews.
It’s safe to say Kenny Guiton’s first game as Arkansas’ offensive coordinator was a success.
KJ Jefferson had the game-winning touchdown pass in overtime. Cam Little kicked four field goals.
Arkansas’ quarterback and kicker were, accordingly, easy choices as RazorbacksWire Players of the Game in Arkansas’ 39-36 win over Florida on Saturday. A win, by the way, that snapped a six-game losing streak and gave the program its first-ever victory in Gainesville.
Jefferson and Little were hardly the only players that shined, though. New offensive coordinator Kenny Guiton’s offense was dynamic througout, especially as it had a healthy Rocket Sanders at running back.
On defense, Arkansas has had better games this year, but the defensive backs were especially aggressive, providing a showcase for Dwight McGlothern, Jaylen Braxton and Snaxx Johnson.
In all, we have five Players of the Game, but on a day like Saturday, to say it was a team effort is wholly accurate.
Arkansas would actually be one of those bad teams its most angry fans think if it weren’t for KJ Jefferson.
KJ Jefferson’s 2023 season has not gone to plan. The preseason second-team All-SEC pick was even a dark horse pick for All-American honors by season’s end. Arkansas’ struggles through its first seven games have all but eliminated those.
But more important to Jefferson and his teammates is what the Razorbacks do on the field, as opposed to the plaudits earned off it. And even in Saturday’s loss against Alabama, proof was positive that Jefferson, a three-starter and fifth-year senior, is the best man to lead the Hogs on the field, earning our top selection as Arkansas’ Player of the Game.
Joining him were kicker Cam Little, running back AJ Green, linebacker Jaheim Thomas and defense end Landon Jackson.
Check out more on each of their performances below as the selections from editor E. Wayne and contributors Steve Andrews, Connor Goodson and Derek Oxford come in.
Just about every Arkansas player was in on the action Saturday in the season opener.
The depth of Arkansas’ roster appears to be as good as it has been in years.
Granted, the Razorbacks’ opponent for their season opener was a mediocre FCS team. But plenty of Arkansas individuals had what one would qualify as a good game.
Accordingly, picking the RazorbacksWire Players of the Game was a tough task for our crew of four.
Each week, after each game, our staff of editor E. Wayne and contributors Derek Oxford, Connor Goodson and Steve Andrews will make their selections – one on offense and one on defense, individually – of the player each writer felt was most significant on that particular day.
That means you’ll likely see plenty of KJ Jefferson and Rocket Sanders.
There were plenty of worthy choices for Players of the Game following Arkansas’ 42-27 upset of Ole Miss. Here’s who the Razorbacks Wire staff selected this week.
The winning effort on offense was once again led by the dynamic backfield duo of KJ Jefferson and Raheim “Rocket” Sanders. The two combined for 447 of Arkansas’ 507 total yards of offense and were responsible for three touchdowns each.
On the other side of the ball, it was a complete team effort from the Arkansas defense. Ole Miss’ high-powered offense was able to move the ball, but once they were in the red zone the Hog defense held time and time again.
After such a complete team performance on both sides of the ball, the Razorbacks Wire staff had plenty of players to choose from for their Players of the Game, but ultimately decided on five worthy Hogs.
Here’s more on our selections and details on why they were selected.
Arkansas outplayed Texas A&M on Saturday night and these performances prove it.
Things did not go Arkansas’ way on Saturday. A field-goal attempt in the final two minutes clanged off the top of the right upright and fell harmlessly into the end zone as the 10th-ranked Razorbacks fell to Texas A&M, 23-21.
The good to take from it? Arkansas played poorly and still almost beat an awfully good team, a team that was picked to finish second in the SEC West at the conference’s media days over the summer.
Arkansas’ offense went over the 400-yard mark. Arkansas’ defense, which entered as with the bottom-ranked pass defense in FBS, gave up just 151 yards in the air.
But Arkansas’ dream of a College Football Playoff appearance and a matchup between two undefeated teams next week in Fayetteville was dealt a blow.
Our three Razorbacks Wire writers have selected their Players of the Game below.
LSU entered the game with a 4-5 record, but it’s LSU. The Tigers are the second biggest team in the country, as far as non-SEC folks are concerned, in the conference, behind only Alabama. The college football world knows the difficulty of playing in Tiger Stadium. And at night? Get out of here. LSU rarely loses at home under the lights.
But Arkansas find a way, despite the grime and muck of the first two-and-a-half quarters (or, the entire game, if you wish), the Razorbacks didn’t buckle and didn’t quit. They left with the program’s fourth win in Baton Rouge since joining the SEC in 1992.
Here are the Chiefs’ players of the game for Super Bowl LV.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LV. The Chiefs had a great season and accomplished a lot of their goals, but unfortunately, the “Run It Back” tour fell just short of reaching the finish line. It stings but the future is nothing but bright.
Here are the players of the game for Super Bowl LV.
After the Oklahoma Sooners took care of business at Lloyd Noble Center, we hand game balls to the best performers of the day. OU won 79-72.
The No. 9 ranked Oklahoma Sooners men’s basketball team returned to the court on Saturday. Lon Kruger’s team won’t take the floor again until next Saturday when they travel to Morgantown to take on the No. 17 West Virginia Mountaineers. Their game against Baylor was postponed due to the Bears halting basketball operations due to coronavirus protocols.
After taking time to digest the events of the early afternoon at Lloyd Noble Center, Sooners Wire hands out game balls for the best performances on the court.
Game Ball 1: Brady Manek
Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports
Minutes
Points
Rebounds
Assists
+/-
32
9
15
4
+21
Brady Manek returned to the starting five against the Cyclones for the first time since returning from COVID-19 protocols. “Prairie Bird” has been coming off the bench for Lon Kruger since his return. Manek was huge on the floor in this game but not for his scoring. He was creating for his teammates from the post and collected a career-high 15 rebounds in the game. His teammate Austin Reaves found him on the pick and roll for a huge bucket on the alley-oop. Manek posted the best “+/-” of any Sooner on Saturday.
The Sooners welcomed back Austin Reaves for this game. After the team dished out a whopping three assists against Texas Tech, Reaves fixed that issue quickly. He even challenged a triple-double in the game needing just two more rebounds and two assists. His ability to facilitate throughout the game helped Oklahoma close it out against Iowa State.
There was no Sooner bigger than Elijah Harkless as Oklahoma tried to close out the game. Harkless was responsible for nine of the Sooners’ final 11 points. He was a huge part of the closeout as OU won their seventh conference game of the season. Harkless set a Sooners career-high on the afternoon with those 19 points to lead all Oklahoma players.
Typically we would hand out just three game balls after the game but Umoja Gibson was deadly from outside the arc. He would hit four of his nine shots from three-point land. Not to mention he created one breakaway bucket off a steal. When Gibson gets hot, it is best to get him the ball and let him fire away.
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Here are the Chiefs’ Players of the Game for the AFC Championship Game.
Back-to-back AFC Championship Games and Super Bowls for the Kansas City Chiefs. The game was never in doubt once K.C. came back from an early 9-0 deficit. Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and Tyreek Hill yet again set the tone for the win. The defense did a marvelous job of keeping Stefon Diggs and the Buffalo offense in check. As great as it is to represent the AFC two years in a row, the job is not finished. Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers await.
Here are the Players of the Game for the AFC Championship Game:
