2002 Arkansas Razorbacks football team The 2002 Arkansas Razorbacks football team represented the University of Arkansas in the 2002 NCAA Division I - A football season . The Razorbacks played five home games at Donald W . Reynolds Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville , Arkansas and three home games at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock , Arkansas . The Razorbacks reached the 2002 SEC Championship Game and the 2002 Music City Bowl in Houston Nutt ' s fifth season as head coach . Schedule . " Source : 2002 Arkansas Razorbacks Football Schedule / Results " Awards and honors . All SEC Teams . " Source : 2002 SEC Football Awards " Game notes . Boise State . Arkansas beat Boise State for their first win of 2002 . An impressive day on the ground , 217 yards , coupled with seven Boise State turnovers , helped secure the Razorback victory . A blocked punt , a passing TD and then a rushing TD put the Razorbacks off to a 21 – 0 advantage . After two field goals and a TD strike to Decori Birmingham , the Hogs were out to a 34 – 0 lead , but the Broncos got on the board twice to make it 34 – 14 . A fake field goal gave the Hogs a first down before Jones hooked up with Richard Smith on an 18 - yard touchdown pass that closed the scoring at 41 – 14 . South Florida . Thirty five first half points and 547 yards of total offense set the Razorbacks well on their way to their second win of the season , at the expense of the South Florida Bulls . Only a field goal with a minute left in the game kept the Razorbacks from having a shutout , which would have been their first in two years . Back - up quarterback Tarvaris Jackson led a 94 yard scoring drive of his own , after three scoring drives by Matt Jones . Jackson would eventually transfer from Arkansas to Alabama A & M after Matt Jones became the apparent starting quarterback . South Florida had eight consecutive wins , the second - longest win streak in the nation , coming in to this contest . Alabama . Both Santonio Beard and Shaud Williams went over 100 yards for Alabama as the Tide beat Arkansas 30 – 12 at home . The Razorbacks never were within striking distance , as the Tide jumped out to a 14 – 0 lead , the first touchdown being an 80 yard scamper by Shaud William on the first play of the game . A Crimson Tide field goal and Matt Jones TD run pushed the score to 17 – 7 , but the Razorbacks could not penetrate the end zone again , as the two teams swapped field goals . A fourth quarter fifty yard touchdown pass from Brodie Croyle finished the Hogs , who tacked on an intentional safety to make the final 30 – 12 . Jones struggled throwing the ball , going just 7 - of - 18 for 111 yards with two interceptions . The loss was only the fourth home loss under Houston Nutt . Tennessee . A six - overtime shootout was the result of the meeting between the Volunteers and the Razorbacks at Neyland Stadium in 2002 . The battle - tested Razorbacks had come out victorious from a seven - overtime affair against Ole Miss the year previous . This was the longest game in NCAA Division I - A ( now FBS ) history . Arkansas ' success in ( especially multiple ) overtime situations provoked Coach Houston Nutt into being quoted as saying at the beginning of the first overtime : " This is our game . We ' re ready . " This overtime loss was the first for Arkansas in their football history . The game began relatively low - scoring , with the Volunteers holding a 17 – 3 lead for the majority of the game . Tennessee leading rusher Cedric Houston missed the game with a torn ligament in his left thumb . Arkansas had injury problems of its own , and became one - dimensional with Cedric Cobbs , the Hogs ' starting running back , missing much of the second half with a turf toe injury . The Razorbacks got the ball with ten minutes left in the fourth quarter and scored two touchdowns in a span of 4½ minutes . The tying touchdown was a 92 - yard touchdown pass to Richard Smith from Matt Jones . Said Jones of that play after the game , " The coaches have told us never to quit , and we were down seven at our own 8 , I kept thinking about that . " This was at the time the longest offensive play in the history of Arkansas football , since surpassed by Broderick Green ' s 99 - yard rush against Eastern Michigan in 2009 . Both teams swapped field goals for the first two periods . The third was scoreless , despite an opportunity for Arkansas to shut the door with a field goal attempt . Arkansas then scored on a Matt Jones run , but failed the two point conversion , which is required versus an extra point in the third overtime or later . The Volunteers answered the call on their first play , a 25 yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Tony Brown , but the Volunteers also failed the two , sending the game into a fifth extra period . Tennessee ' s Jabari Davis then ran into the end zone , but fumbled the ball as he crossed the plane of the goal line , but teammate and backfield mate Troy Fleming fell on the ball giving Rocky Top a six point lead . Quarterback Casey Clausen was then sacked on the two point try . De ' Arrius Howard ran in for the Hogs , but an interception by Tennessee ' s Julian Battle kept the game continuing to a sixth overtime . David Carlton kicked a 47 yard field goal for Arkansas in the sixth overtime , but future NFL All - Pro tight end Jason Witten caught a touchdown pass from Casey Clausen , ending the game in dramatic fashion , 38 – 41 . Auburn . Arkansas came out strong after their six overtime game with Tennessee . The Hogs Fred Talley rushed for 241 yards , 80 of those in one play , in a 38 – 17 upset of the Tigers at Auburn . 241 yards remains to this day the most given up by an Auburn defense to a single rusher . Talley was a pleasant surprise fill - in for injured starter Cedric Cobbs . Talley lead the Hogs in a 426 yards rushing effort as a team . Talley had only 123 yards in the first four games of the year . Fullback Mark Pierce also had a 44 yard run on a fourth - and - one , with Matt Jones adding a 70 yard touchdown scamper in the fourth quarter . Auburn seemed the more likely one for a big day on the ground with highly - touted running back Carnell " Cadillac " Williams . A year previous Cadillac had his break - out game against Arkansas , moving him from third to first on the depth chart at the expense of the Razorbacks . Said Arkansas defensive tackle Jermaine Brooks on Williams , " We gave the Cadillac a flat tire " and , " we just got sick and tired of [ hearing about Williams ] . If you stop him , you stop Auburn . " Kentucky . Arkansas ' ground game continued to impress , with 293 yards , 182 of those from freshman Fred Talley . Overall , Arkansas had 515 yards of total offense to UK ' s 332 . Quarterback Matt Jones set career marks with 15 completions and 210 yards . None of this , was enough as Kentucky managed a 29 – 17 victory . Kentucky drove the opening kickoff 40 yards and kicker Taylor Begley hit on a 50 yard field goal . Arkansas had their field goal blocked on the ensuing possession , but fullback Mark Pierce later rumbled for a 34 - yard score for the Razorbacks . An Arkansas field goal added to the lead to make it 10 – 3 . Jared Lorenzen threw a touchdown pass right before halftime , but the extra point was blocked by Pervis Osborne of Arkansas . Arkansas held a one point edge coming out of halftime when the Wildcats came out with a twenty point scoring flurry . First a Matt Jones interception gave the Wildcats good field position , setting up an Artose Pinner TD run . Then , an 86 - yard punt return by Derek Abney gave Kentucky a 22 – 10 lead , following a missed extra point . Razorback De ' Arrius Howard scored from one yard out , but Jared Lorenzen hit Aaron Boone on a screen pass that went 18 yards to paydirt . Arkansas had two red zone opportunities in the fourth quarter , but neither team could dent the scoreboard , and Kentucky won , 29 – 17 . Ole Miss . Arkansas ran for 257 yards , and Ole Miss QB Eli Manning threw for 414 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions . The first points of the game came for the Rebels when Matt Jones was called for intentionally grounding in the end zone , which by rule is scored a safety . Ole Miss gained a 2 – 0 lead , but fumbled near the close of the first quarter , resulting in a Razorback field goal . Lerinezo Robinson for the Hogs then returned a fumbled kickoff eight yards for a touchdown , giving Arkansas a 10 – 2 lead . Jonathan Nichols of Ole Miss then hit a 48 - yard field , but a Jimmy Beasley interception of Eli Manning set up Arkansas for a 34 yard option keep touchdown by Matt Jones , giving an edge to the Hogs , 17 – 5 . Manning then connected with Justin Sawyer , but the two point play was no good . First a field goal , then a touchdown closed out the first half for the Razorbacks , the TD set up by a 55 yard punt return by Decori Birmingham , to the Ole Miss 20 . The Rebels began the second half with 25 yard field goal . A 63 yard run by Fred Talley set up another Razorback touchdown , and Razorback Tom Crowder recovered the kickoff fumbled by Ole Miss in the end zone , to push the score to 41 – 14 . Manning completed a drive with a 20 yard touchdown pass , but with just over ten minutes left , it was too little to late . Each team then added another touchdown before the Razorbacks homecoming game went final , 48 – 28 . The Razorbacks ' outstanding ground game was helped out by five Rebels turnovers , which led to 24 Razorback points . Troy State . The game was dominated by both defenses , despite a lopsided finish . Troy State ' s ninth - ranked defense held Arkansas under 150 total yards and six first downs . Arkansas shut out their first opponent since blanking Southwest Missouri State 38 – 0 in 2000 . Special teams stepped up for the Hogs , and two blocked punts , one recovered in the end zone , helped out a struggling offense . South Carolina . Arkansas beat South Carolina at home as the Hogs won their second consecutive game by the count of 23 – 0 . Matt Jones completed 10 of 18 passes for 113 yards and two scores . Defenders Gavin Walls , Eddie Jackson and Lawrence Richardson had interceptions that each lead to Arkansas points . All of these turnovers helped add to Arkansas ' turnover margin of plus - 1 . 88 per game . Louisiana - Lafayette . Arkansas won their fourth straight game and improved to 16 – 0 in non - conference play under Houston Nutt with this win . Matt Jones lead rushers with a season - high 129 yards , and the Razorbacks out gained the Ragin ' Cajuns on the ground 263 yards to 61 . The Hog defense had held every opponent out of the end zone for nine quarters until a pass from Eric Rekieta to Fred Stamps late in the second quarter . Future NFL cornerback Charles Tillman recovered a blocked punt in the fourth quarter , which was the first time since 1991 the Hogs allowed a touchdown off a blocked punt . Mississippi State . Arkansas went to Scott Field to play winless - in - the - SEC Mississippi State . The Razorbacks defense held on a fourth down play which saved the game . The Razorbacks ran for 237 yards , 121 of those from freshman tailback De ' Arruis Howard . Fred Talley fell just short of his fourth 100 - yard game as he ran for 94 yards . Mississippi State used two quarterbacks , Kevin Fant was 14 - of - 26 for 115 yards with an interception . Kyle York entered in the third quarter and went 11 - of - 22 for 174 yards with one interception and two TDs . Bulldogs kicker Brent Smith scored the first points of the contest , but two Matt Jones touchdown passes put the Hogs up 14 – 3 . Kevin Fant was sacked by Clarke Moore in the end zone to add two more points for Arkansas . David Carlton added a field goal , his fifth consecutive made field goal . Mississippi State added its own field goal , just before fullback Mark Pierce reached the end zone from five yards out . A comeback was engineered by replacement quarterback Kyle York for the Bulldogs , but it fell seven points short , 26 – 19 . LSU , The Miracle on Markham . Arkansas and LSU played in War Memorial Stadium for the Golden Boot , a gold trophy that resembles the two states of Arkansas and Louisiana , forming a boot . Arkansas clinched the SEC West crown with this win , moving the Razorbacks to 9 – 3 overall . With nine seconds left , Quarterback Matt Jones threw a 31 yard touchdown pass to Decori Birmingham , and kicker David Carlton made a long extra point to finish the Tigers off , 21 – 20 . Down 20 – 14 with 34 seconds remaining , the Razorbacks first play was a 50 yard pass to Richard Smith . After an incompletion , Jones found Birmingham in the end zone , who outleaped Randall Gay for the catch . As Hog fans poured onto the field , Arkansas was then penalized 15 yards for excessive celebration , moving the go - ahead extra point to the 35 yard line . Carlton ' s kick was long enough , but curved left and just snuck in the goal post for a 21 – 20 lead . Houston Nutt later said that when he was sharing with Jones the plays to run Jones simply said , despite completing only two passes up to that point , " I ' ve got it . " The finish was similar to the Bluegrass Miracle , which involved the same LSU Tigers winning on a last second 75 yard Hail Mary pass to Devery Henderson to beat the Kentucky Wildcats . Georgia , SEC Championship . Arkansas represented the Western Division of the SEC in the SEC Championship game in 2002 . Arkansas was down 17 – 0 to Georgia before they gained one yard in the contest , giving the Conference Title to the Bulldogs . With the loss , Arkansas had only scored six points in two SEC title game appearances , while in contrast , Razorbacks opponents have scored 64 points against them . Arkansas would make a much better showing their next time in Atlanta , but fail to win again in the 2006 SEC Championship Game against the Florida Gators . Arkansas got off on the wrong foot as punter Richie Butler ' s punt was blocked , setting up a one yard touchdown run for Georgia running back Musa Smith . Another run by Smith pushed the Bulldog advantage to 14 – 0 . Three Georgia field goals added to the score to make it 23 – 0 . Arkansas had only one scoring drive , but even that was on life support , kept alive by two personal fouls , one after an incompletion on 3 and 23 . Georgia added a touchdown , won the game 30 – 3 , and with the victory won the Southeastern Conference . Coach Houston Nutt said after the game , " I felt like they were playing with 12 men , they have few weaknesses . " Minnesota , Music City Bowl . Minnesota kicker Dan Nystrom made five field goals as the Golden Gophers upset Arkansas in the Music City Bowl . Nystrom was named the MVP , a rarity for a kicker . Nystrom could have had a sixth attempt , but Minnesota instead went for a first down on a fourth and five and was denied with 2 : 46 remaining in the game . Arkansas , the best rushing team in the SEC , had only eighty yards on the ground . This was well below their average of 226 . 9 yards per game . A halftime pass caught by Smith in the end zone would have given Arkansas a halftime lead , but Smith was declared out of bounds , and the score was nullified . The Razorback defense , ranked 40th best in the nation , bent but did not break . The Gophers were stopped and had to settle for field goals three times inside the Arkansas 7 . Coaching staff . < / div > Statistics . Arkansas native Matt Jones was the signal caller for the Razorbacks in 2002 . Jones also played basketball on the Razorback basketball team . Jones currently holds the SEC record for most rushing yards by a quarterback , but with the advent of the Spread offense in college football , and new dynamic players like Tim Tebow in the SEC , his record is in danger of being broken .