FAYETTEVILLE -- The Arkansas Razorbacks were not surprised to see Ole Miss being aggressive in the final two minutes of the first half Saturday.
The Rebels stayed in their up-tempo approach after Cole Kelley's 15-yard touchdown run pulled the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville within 31-14 with 2:44 remaining before halftime.
Junior quarterback Jordan Ta'amu drove Ole Miss 37 yards to the Arkansas 42 before being pressured by McTelvin Agim and throwing an interception over the middle to safety Josh Liddell, who returned the pick 54 yards to the Ole Miss 21 with 1:08 left in the half.
Arkansas capitalized on Deon Stewart's 23-yard catch-and-run touchdown with 13 seconds left in the half.
"They're an aggressive offense," Liddell said. "They have really good receivers, and it had been working for them. They were being who they are, an aggressive, attacking, downfield team."
"With that time left, we took the field knowing we were going to get a two-minute offense, and they were going to continue to gain on the momentum they had thus far in the first half if they could get another score," defensive coordinator Paul Rhoads said.
He said multiple defenders did their jobs on the long interception.
"The interception was the result of pressure on the quarterback," he said. "He couldn't follow through with his arm and hand on that play, which affected his throw.
"Scoota Harris had great underneath technique in coverage on the play and Josh Liddell was in great position on the up-field shoulder and made a great adjustment on the ball to make the play. Post-interception, Grant Morgan, Kevin Richardson and Bijhon Jackson all gave great hustle and threw key blocks to get the ball down to ... give our offense an opportunity to score."
Coach Bret Bielema said he jokingly gave the former quarterback Liddell some "heat" for not scoring on the interception return.
"Yeah, I wanted to score," Liddell said. "I saw Bijhon coming with the block ... and I had a cutback for the quarterback, and when I cut back the running back [Jordan Wilkins] had me on the ankle. I wish I would have scored, but the offense got it in the end zone, so it's all right."
Return of Allen?
Coach Bret Bielema said Thursday that senior quarterback Austin Allen took about one third of the first-team reps in practice Wednesday and Thursday and could see action against Coastal Carolina.
Freshman Cole Kelley, who took about two-thirds of the practice snaps the past couple of days, is expected to make his fourth consecutive start.
"Our plan and intention is to play both of them on Saturday," Bielema said on his radio show.
$1.5 million
Coastal Carolina will pull down a game guarantee of a reported $1.5 million from Arkansas to serve as the Razorbacks' homecoming opponent Saturday.
The guarantee, believed to be the highest paid by Arkansas, was first reported by the The Sun News of Myrtle Beach, S.C., in April 2016.
Arkansas is the third SEC opponent for Coastal Carolina, which is transitioning to the Sun Belt this season.
Ragnow a semifinalist
Arkansas center Frank Ragnow was named one of 11 semifinalists Thursday for the Wuerffel Trophy, which has been awarded since 2005 to the player who best combines exemplary community service with athletic and academic achievement.
Ragnow, a senior team captain from Victoria, Minn., was a preseason All-America and All-SEC choice. He will miss the final five games with an ankle injury.
Ragnow, who has a 3.31 grade-point average, needs three credit hours to earn a degree in recreation and sport management in December.
He has volunteered with such efforts as the Northwest Arkansas Children's Shelter, the Razorback Relief program to aid efforts in Baton Rouge after floods, and Special Olympics Arkansas, as well as others.
Ragnow did not allow a sack in 2,603 career snaps at center and right guard. He started 33 consecutive games before being injured.
Three finalists for the Wuerffel Trophy will be announced Dec. 5. Texas A&M quarterback Trevor Knight won the award last season.
Surgery a success
Frank Ragnow underwent successful surgery for his high ankle sprain Wednesday with a specialist in Charlotte, N.C., Bret Bielema said on his radio show.
Ragnow was accompanied by his mother, Marty, for the trip to see Dr. Robert Anderson, who also performed surgery on Arkansas linebacker Dre Greenlaw's foot last year.
Hall starts
Defensive end Jake Hall, a redshirt junior from Springdale Har-Ber, got his first career start last week at Ole Miss in place of McTelvin Agim, who was suspended for the first quarter due to a disciplinary issue.
"It was special to get the first start," Hall said. "I just get out there and do what I can."
Hall, who posted one assisted tackle against the Rebels, has 6 stops, including 1 sack, on the season.
The 6-5, 263-pounder came to Arkansas as a defensive end but moved to offensive line and tight end for a while before returning to defense.
"I moved to offense to get in there as a jumbo tight end a little bit," Hall said. "We were just so deep the year before when I was a freshman. I just want to get out there and do what I can.
"That's where I started and where I'm comfortable. I'm glad to be back."
Coastal connection
The top former Coastal Carolina football player in the NFL is Washington Redskins cornerback Josh Norman, one of the stars on the Carolina Panthers' Super Bowl team two season ago.
Other Chanticleers in the pros are Bills running back Mike Tolbert, Colts wide receiver Matt Hazel and Broncos running back De'Angelo Henderson.
Coastal Carolina is best known in the athletics world for upsetting Arizona in the 2016 College World Series for the school's first national championship of any kind.
Back to back
The Razorbacks will face back-to-back teams who have interim coaches in place. Arkansas downed Ole Miss 38-37 last week with the Rebels led by interim coach Matt Luke. The Chanticleers are led by interim coach Jamey Chadwell after Joe Moglia stepped down for a one-season leave of absence due to a health concern.
One-score count
Arkansas has a 7-12 record in games decided by one possession under Bret Bielema after last week's 38-37 victory at Ole Miss. The Hogs started 0-9 in those games under Bielema and have gone 7-3 since breaking that skid by defeating Tennessee 24-20 on Oct. 3, 2015, in Knoxville, Tenn.
The Hogs are 4-5 in such games on the road, 3-4 at home and 0-3 at neutral sites.
Extra points
• Dave Cawood, the former sports information director at Arkansas who went on to work at the NCAA and the Final Four for more than 20 years, is the uncle of Mike Cawood, the Coastal Carolina associate athletic director for media relations.
• Coastal Carolina's seven-game losing streak is the longest for the school since its football program started in 2003.
• Coastal Carolina has 17 graduates on its roster, second most behind Northwestern (18) in the FBS.
• Chanticleers cornerback Anthony Chesley was named the team's offensive MVP for scooping and scoring on a 50-yard fumble return on a muffed field goal for Coastal Carolina's only touchdown last week against Texas State.
• The NCAA does not include Coastal Carolina in its national statistical rankings because the Chanticleers are reclassifying into the Sun Belt Conference of the FBS this season.
Sports on 11/03/2017