In all the drama surrounding quarterback Casey Dick, receiver London Crawford and Arkansas’ late-game heroics, one fact might’ve been overlooked Friday.
The Razorbacks had success running the football even though junior Michael Smith was out.
Arkansas grinded out 118 rushing yards in its 31-30 win against the Tigers. It was the Hogs’ best rushing day since putting up 255 yards at Kentucky in late October.
“We felt like if we could get the front blocked and get the ball to the linebacker level, (LSU’s) safeties hadn’t been coming to run like most of the safeties all year long so we felt like we could do some damage if we could get the ball in the secondary,” Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino said.
Most of the credit went to Dennis Johnson, who ran for a career-high 127 yards on 18 carries. Johnson — who earned his second start in place of Smith — gave the offense a lift from the start, running for 97 yards in the first quarter.
He scored the Razorbacks’ first touchdown on a 17-yard scamper and set up the second with a 54-yard run.
“I came out there and exploded the way I wanted to explode,” Johnson said. “I was just thinking in my mind, explode in the first quarter and we’ll have a chance to win.”
It didn’t come easy after that, though. Johnson said LSU clamped down on the run and yards were harder to come by.
But Johnson still played a pivotal role. He helped Arkansas convert two third downs on a 17-play drive that led to a field goal and cut LSU’s lead to 30-24. He added another third-down conversion later in the fourth quarter.
Johnson is hoping it proved plenty to his coaches for 2009.
“I know I can run the ball,” Johnson said. “Michael Smith is a good back. You can’t take nothing from him. But they’ll have more confidence in me and we can rotate backs now.”
Deja Vu?
Arkansas center Jonathan Luigs said he had an up-close look at the last time the Razorbacks beat LSU with a dramatic fourth-quarter touchdown pass in Little Rock.
Luigs, when in high school, said he was sitting in the stands during the 2002 game better known as the “Miracle on Markham.” The Razorbacks scored a last-minute touchdown to beat LSU 21-20 and win the SEC Western Division title.
Luigs was then asked if it was more fun to be a participant in the heroics this time around in his final collegiate game.
“Heck yeah, it was fun,” Luigs said. “I was looking around for yellow flags just hoping it wouldn’t be called back.”
Kudos for Willy
Arkansas’ defense had a rough season under coordinator Willy Robinson. The Razorbacks entered the finale last in the SEC in scoring defense (31.3 points), rushing defense (171.6 yards) and total defense (381.6).
But defensive tackle Malcolm Sheppard had plenty of compliments for Robinson and the staff on Friday.
“You can’t count the hours they spend in the film room,” he said. “He’s a great coordinator, a great coach and a great person. You can’t say enough about him.”
Arkansas allowed 30 points for the sixth time this season on Friday, but Petrino credited the group in the win because it held LSU to three field goals. The Razorbacks also held the Tigers scoreless through the final 28 minutes.
“Our defense fought extremely hard,” Petrino said. “Their ability to hold them to field goals, get that big stop in the fourth quarter, gave us the opportunity to win.”
Salters Steps Up
Receiver Carlton Salters has spent much of the season on the sideline. But the sophomore — who replaced injured starter Lucas Miller in the second half — turned in one of the game’s biggest plays Friday.
Salters caught a 21-yard pass from Dick on a fourth-and-6 play in the closing minutes. It kept the winning drive alive.
“He’s a guy that we have a lot of confidence in,” Petrino said. “He catches the ball well. He kind of had an up-and-down year where some things haven’t went good for him and he’s had a couple nagging injuries that slowed him down.
“But he was the guy in there and he ran an excellent route, made a big catch and really ran well after the catch.”
Extra Points
Arkansas quarterback were sacked six times Friday, bumping their season total to 46 sacks. It is the most in school history, topping the 42 sacks allowed in 1997. ... Sheppard had 3.5 tackles for losses Friday, giving him a team-best 14.5 this season. ... Crawford and freshman Joe Adams both caught passes Friday. The two receivers caught at least one pass in every game this season.
HARRY KING
ROBBIE NEISWANGER
