MEMPHIS – Big plays and a surprisingly stout defense were key as Arkansas defeated Texas Tech, 39-26, on Friday night at the 66th annual AutoZone Liberty Bowl in Memphis.
With the win, Arkansas went to 7-6 to end the regular season, while Texas Tech ended the year at 8-5.
Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green was named the game’s Most Valuable Player after passing for 341 yards and two touchdowns, while rushing for 81 yards and another touchdown.
Arkansas coach Sam Pittman, recovering from hip surgery, walked the sidelines with the assistance of cane. From the pressbox distance, it couldn’t be determined if it was blinged out pimp-style. It should have been.
Humble suggestion: Eschew the celebration belt or whatever for next season and reward players on-field success with a pimp cane!
“People will ask you,” Pittman said in the postgame press conference, “are you ready to play in a bowl game? Hell yeah. We’re going to a bowl game. It is exciting. They’re hard to get to and they’re awfully hard to win. And, fortunately, we were able to win tonight.”
As for Texas Tech, coach Joey McGuire was blunt in his assessment.
“We lost this game because we didn’t play good football,” he said. “We just didn’t play good enough football. … Hats off to Arkansas, they played a great game.
Freshman Dazmin James was named the game’s outstanding offensive player for Arkansas and had three catches for 137 yards and one touchdown. His first career catch at Arkansas was a 94 yard touchdown that was both the longest reception at Arkansas and also set the record for the longest scoring catch in the Liberty Bowl.
“It’s just the beginning, you know,” he said after the game. “I just had the opportunity and I got my opportunity and I ran with it.”
He also noted he was fast. Very fast.
Pittman noted James was the North Carolina state champ as a high school senior in the 100 and 200 meter dashes.
James was but one example as both teams played with depleted rosters as the transfer portal taketh while other players opted out to get ready for the NFL Draft or some were just good ol’ fashioned injuries.
Those departures created opportunities though as North Little Rock’s Quincy Rhodes Jr., above, drew the start at defensive end. Rhodes primarily ran as a second and third-team defensive end as he spelled Landon Jackson, who is getting ready for the NFL, and Maumelle’s Nico Davillier, who entered the transfer portal and announced he was headed to UCLA.
As for Rhodes, the 6-foot-6, 280-pound sophomore, played well in his first start of the season and finished the game with two total tackles and one pass breakup.
Rhodes had 13 tackles and one sack in the regular season after playing in nine games as a true freshman.
The game’s most outstanding players
MVP: Taylen Green - Arkansas
Arkansas Outstanding Offensive Player: Dazmin James
Arkansas Outstanding Defensive Player: Xavian Sorey Jr.
Texas Tech Outstanding Offensive Player: J'Koby Williams
Texas Tech Outstanding Defensive Player: Jacob Rodriguez
The view from the top of the press box. (Jeremy Peppas)
Attendance was 37,764 at the AutoZone Liberty Bowl but it is worth noting that the stadium was missing roughly 30,000 seats as a massive construction project is underway in Memphis. The project is not expected to be complete next season as Arkansas is scheduled to face the Memphis Tigers on Sept. 20.
Bowl game history
Arkansas entered the AutoZone Liberty Bowl with a 3-3 record in the game but having three of the last three games.
They were some of the most notable games in Liberty Bowl history as the Jan. 2, 2010, famous for being freezing cold, was the first overtime game in Memphis as Arkansas defeated East Carolina, 20-17.
On Jan. 2, 2016, Arkansas defeated Kansas State, 45-23, before a sellout crowd of 61,163 and the game also drew huge ratings as more than 7 million watched on ESPN.
Then, on Dec. 22, 2022, Arkansas beat Kansas 55-53, in three overtimes in the highest scoring game in Memphis history.
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Pittman: ‘Hell yeah’ Arkansas beats Texas Tech
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MEMPHIS – Big plays and a surprisingly stout defense were key as Arkansas defeated Texas Tech, 39-26, on Friday night at the 66th annual AutoZone Liberty Bowl in Memphis.
With the win, Arkansas went to 7-6 to end the regular season, while Texas Tech ended the year at 8-5.
Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green was named the game’s Most Valuable Player after passing for 341 yards and two touchdowns, while rushing for 81 yards and another touchdown.
Arkansas coach Sam Pittman, recovering from hip surgery, walked the sidelines with the assistance of cane. From the pressbox distance, it couldn’t be determined if it was blinged out pimp-style. It should have been.
Humble suggestion: Eschew the celebration belt or whatever for next season and reward players on-field success with a pimp cane!
“People will ask you,” Pittman said in the postgame press conference, “are you ready to play in a bowl game? Hell yeah. We’re going to a bowl game. It is exciting. They’re hard to get to and they’re awfully hard to win. And, fortunately, we were able to win tonight.”
As for Texas Tech, coach Joey McGuire was blunt in his assessment.
“We lost this game because we didn’t play good football,” he said. “We just didn’t play good enough football. … Hats off to Arkansas, they played a great game.
Freshman Dazmin James was named the game’s outstanding offensive player for Arkansas and had three catches for 137 yards and one touchdown. His first career catch at Arkansas was a 94 yard touchdown that was both the longest reception at Arkansas and also set the record for the longest scoring catch in the Liberty Bowl.
“It’s just the beginning, you know,” he said after the game. “I just had the opportunity and I got my opportunity and I ran with it.”
He also noted he was fast. Very fast.
Pittman noted James was the North Carolina state champ as a high school senior in the 100 and 200 meter dashes.
James was but one example as both teams played with depleted rosters as the transfer portal taketh while other players opted out to get ready for the NFL Draft or some were just good ol’ fashioned injuries.
Those departures created opportunities though as North Little Rock’s Quincy Rhodes Jr., above, drew the start at defensive end. Rhodes primarily ran as a second and third-team defensive end as he spelled Landon Jackson, who is getting ready for the NFL, and Maumelle’s Nico Davillier, who entered the transfer portal and announced he was headed to UCLA.
As for Rhodes, the 6-foot-6, 280-pound sophomore, played well in his first start of the season and finished the game with two total tackles and one pass breakup.
Rhodes had 13 tackles and one sack in the regular season after playing in nine games as a true freshman.
Attendance was 37,764 at the AutoZone Liberty Bowl but it is worth noting that the stadium was missing roughly 30,000 seats as a massive construction project is underway in Memphis. The project is not expected to be complete next season as Arkansas is scheduled to face the Memphis Tigers on Sept. 20.
Bowl game history
Arkansas entered the AutoZone Liberty Bowl with a 3-3 record in the game but having three of the last three games.
They were some of the most notable games in Liberty Bowl history as the Jan. 2, 2010, famous for being freezing cold, was the first overtime game in Memphis as Arkansas defeated East Carolina, 20-17.
On Jan. 2, 2016, Arkansas defeated Kansas State, 45-23, before a sellout crowd of 61,163 and the game also drew huge ratings as more than 7 million watched on ESPN.
Then, on Dec. 22, 2022, Arkansas beat Kansas 55-53, in three overtimes in the highest scoring game in Memphis history.
Other games
1971: Tennessee 14 - Arkansas 13
1984: Auburn 21, Arkansas 15
1987 Georgia 20 - Arkansas 17
2024: Arkansas 39, Texas Tech 26
Arkansas AutoZone Liberty Bowl MVPs
1971: Joe Ferguson, QB
1987: Greg Thomas, QB
2009: Ryan Mallett, QB
2015: Alex Collins, RB
2022: K.J. Jefferson, QB
2024: Taylen Green, QB