Jackson, Green power Arkansas past mistake-plagued Auburn 24-14 in SEC opener

Published Sep. 21, 2024 7:10 p.m. ET

Associated Press

AUBURN, Ala. (AP) — Ja'Quinden Jackson ran for two touchdowns, including the clincher with 3:38 left, and Arkansas capitalized on five Auburn turnovers to win the teams’ Southeastern Conference opener 24-14 on Saturday.

Taylen Green passed for 151 yards and a touchdown and ran for 80 yards for the Razorbacks (3-1), getting intercepted twice but also delivering a number of drive-saving runs and passes. Payton Thorne came off the bench for two second-half scoring passes to KeAndre Lambert-Smith for the Tigers (2-2).

Takeaways

Arkansas: It was a good way to start off SEC play for the Razorbacks and coach Sam Pittman, who went 1-7 in league games last season. TJ Metcalf had two interceptions and a touchdown-saving forced fumble for Arkansas.

Auburn: Hank Brown's three first-half interceptions show the Tigers may have no good answer at quarterback. Thorne, benched after throwing four interceptions in a loss to California, started the second half and also was picked off once on a deflected pass. His 67-yarder to Lambert-Smith in the fourth quarter cut it to 17-14.

Key moment

Green converted a third-and-19 with a scramble and 58-yard touchdown pass to Isaiah Sategna with 2:03 left in the third quarter. Sategna leapt over a defender to grab the ball and a 14-7 lead.

Key stat

The Razorbacks converted 9 of 19 third-down attempts and 2 of 4 fourth-down tries. Bobby Petrino's offense came in leading the nation in third-down conversion rate.