Spring practice is over in Fayetteville and Ryan Silverfield’s first chapter as Arkansas coach closed with a competitive one-point finish that gave fans a little bit of everything to talk about.
The Red beat the White 14-13 Saturday afternoon at Razorback Stadium, but the final score doesn’t tell the whole story.
Two plays — a pick-six by sophomore cornerback Nsongbeh Ginyui and a 65-yard touchdown reception by CJ Brown — were the backbone of the Red’s win and neither one came with much buildup.
The Hogs ran two standard 15-minute quarters before Silverfield announced each offense would get one final drive from midfield to close the scrimmage.
No live special teams were used, though punts and kicks exchanged possession throughout.
White draws first blood
AJ Hill ran the White offense to open the game and moved the ball efficiently on the team’s second possession.
Cam Settles carried the load on the ground, ripping off runs that set up short-yardage situations.
Hill finished the drive himself on a quarterback keeper and just like that the White had a 7-0 lead with under three minutes left in the first quarter.
The Red couldn’t answer. Braeden Fuller spelled starter KJ Jackson on one possession and the drive went nowhere.
Earlier in the quarter Jackson had moved the offense with purpose — true freshman TJ Hodges picked up a first down on the ground, Jasper Parker turned a stutter-step into a 16-yard gain and Jackson found Antonio Jordan over the middle for 17 yards — but a missed 40-yard field goal by Braeden McAlister kept the scoreboard blank for the Red.
Cade Trotter entered at quarterback for the White and found Blair Irvin for 14 yards on a crosser but couldn’t convert on fourth down and the Red got the ball back still trailing 7-0.
Ginyui and Brown flip the game
That’s when the scrimmage shifted. Hill took over for the White and on his first pass, Ginyui jumped the route and returned the interception for a touchdown.
McAlister’s extra point tied the game 7-7 and the momentum swung hard toward the Red Team.
It didn’t take long for Jackson to make the most of it. He found Brown on a deep post route and Brown hauled it in and sprinted untouched for a 65-yard score. The Red led 14-7 and the White offense was uddenly in a hole.
Jamari Hawkins gave the White life in the final drive, catching a 33-yard pass from Hill on a comeback route and breaking a tackle that kept the drive alive. Settles punched in a seven-yard touchdown run to cut the deficit to one.
The White Team passed on the extra point and lined Settles up in the Wildcat for a 2-point conversion. The snap sailed over his head. He threw it away. The deficit stayed at one.
Red closes it out
Jackson took over at midfield for the Red’s final possession needing only to manage the clock.
He faced a fourth-and-9 and delivered anyway, finding Jordan on a post for a 17-yard leaping catch that drew a loud reaction from the crowd.
Quincy Rhodes closed the scrimmage with a sack and the Red’s 14-13 lead was official.
Silverfield’s first spring in Fayetteville is done. Fall camp can’t come soon enough.
