FAYETTEVILLE -- Arkansas strong safety Rohan Gaines was a lonely guy in the first half of the Razorbacks' home finale Saturday against Ole Miss.
Gaines wasn't allowed to be on the field -- or even on the sideline -- during the first half because of an automatic suspension resulting from a targeting call last week against LSU.
So while the Razorbacks played the Rebels before an announced crowd of 64,510 in Reynolds Razorback Stadium, Gaines watched the first half on television by himself in the Broyles Center training room. It was especially hurtful for him to miss the pregame senior day ceremony.
"I'm really close with a lot of those seniors, and to see them walk out that tunnel and me not be there to congratulate them, it was hard," said Gaines, a redshirt junior from Bainbridge, Ga. "I was kind of anxious to get out there, but I knew I had to be humble and just wait for my time."
Gaines' finally got into the game on the second defensive series of the third quarter, and he made an immediate impact.
Gaines intercepted a Bo Wallace pass at the Arkansas goal line and returned it 100 yards for a touchdown to help the Razorbacks beat the Rebels 30-0.
Gaines became the first Razorback with a 100-yard touchdown interception return since Jerrell Norton did the same in Arkansas' 66-7 victory over North Texas on Sept. 29, 2007.
The interception, the first in Gaines' three seasons with the Razorbacks, gave them a 27-0 lead with 3:38 left in the third quarter when Ole Miss had second and 10 at the Arkansas 16 trying to pull within 20-7.
"It was a big-time play in a big moment," Arkansas senior defensive end Trey Flowers said. "For him to sit out the first half and come back and play the game he did, that just shows you how mentally locked in he was.
"All credit to him. He played big when he came out there."
Gaines said the Rebels showed a fake screen pass on the play, but he read the wheel route to the end zone with Wallace's pass intended for running back Jaylen Walton and jumped in front to make the interception.
"I was just being patient," Gaines said. "I remembered the route from film study, and I just played it."
Wallace didn't do interviews after the game, and Ole Coach Hugh Freeze said he wasn't sure what happened on the play.
"I'd have to watch it on film," Freeze said. "I don't know if he got pressure and floated it. When the snap was made, I thought that was where he should go, but I thought he would try to throw it on a line on the back shoulder instead of up in the air over the top."
Gaines got key blocks from Flowers and cornerbacks Tevin Mitchel and D.J. Dean to reach the Ole Miss end zone.
"I caught it and instantly I saw all my teammates in front of me," Gaines said. "All I saw was red, and I thought, 'There it is!' "
Flowers said he was thinking touchdown immediately on the play.
"As as he got it, I said, 'I'm going to make sure he gets in the end zone," Flowers said. "I got a block, and I looked up and saw all the red jerseys, and we just escorted him in."
Ole Miss receiver Cody Core chased Gaines down in the end zone, where the ball came loose. An official review followed, and it was confirmed as a touchdown.
Gaines said he was "kind of out of gas" as he neared the end zone and looked up at the large video board to see Core closing fast.
"My initial reaction was to dive," Gaines said, acknowledging that Core hit the ball, "but I figured I was in. I've never been that happy to be that gassed."
Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema praised Gaines for how he responded in the second half after his suspension was lifted.
"Rohan faced obviously a huge moment of adversity, a lot of things to get down about, and he just wrapped his arms about it, embraced it," Bielema said. "I knew no one would come out better in the second half than Rohan."
Gaines wears No. 26, and Flowers previously kidded his roommate about his Twitter account -- @PickSixTwoSix -- because Gaines didn't have any interceptions.
"I told him that was God humbling him," Flowers said with a laugh.
Gaines said he changed his Twitter account this week to @HitManGaines_26. He doesn't plan to change it back after he finally got his pick six Saturday.
"I'm going to keep it HitManGaines_26," Gaines said. "That's working out pretty good for me."
Sports on 11/23/2014