Legendary - The Career of Porter Davis

[djp73]

2018 Arkansas Football Game Preview
SUGAR BOWL
-
#4 10-2 | #7 11-2
Georgia Tech vs Arkansas
January 2nd, 2019 8:00PM
Mercedes-Benz Superdome - New Orleans, Louisiana

[redsox907]

oh yeah - no playoff

Georgia Tech in the Sugar Bowl sounds wrong. Wreck em

[djp73]

ROBINETTE RETURNS, RAZORBACKS FINISH HISTORIC SEASON WITH SUGAR BOWL VICTORY
2018 Arkansas Football Game Report
SUGAR BOWL
Georgia Tech vs Arkansas
January 2nd, 2019 8:00PM
Mercedes-Benz Superdome - New Orleans, Louisiana




ROBINETTE SEALS THE DEAL WITH A LAST SECOND TD RUN

Arkansas' remarkable resurgence under first-year head coach Porter Davis reached its storybook conclusion Saturday night in the Sugar Bowl, as the Razorbacks defeated No. 4 Georgia Tech 31-24 to secure the program's first-ever 12-win season.

The victory was especially meaningful because it was powered by the return of quarterback D'Eriq Robinette, who delivered one of the defining performances of Arkansas' season just weeks after suffering an injury in the SEC Championship Game that left his postseason status in doubt.

Robinette rushed for 105 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-winning score with six seconds remaining, helping the seventh-ranked Razorbacks cap one of the most dramatic turnarounds in college football. Arkansas finished 12-2 after entering the season with little national attention and coming off consecutive losing years, but Davis quickly transformed the Razorbacks into an SEC champion and Sugar Bowl winner.

The game itself was a tightly contested battle throughout. Arkansas struck first when Marques Long punched in a one-yard touchdown run midway through the opening quarter, but Georgia Tech answered less than three minutes later when Greg Barrow connected with Derron McCall for a 42-yard touchdown pass. The teams continued trading blows in the second quarter. Joey Christodoulou gave Arkansas a brief lead with a 34-yard field goal before Georgia Tech responded with a seven-yard touchdown run by Ricky Hines. Long's second one-yard touchdown run restored Arkansas' advantage late in the half, but a 24-yard field goal by Georgia Tech's Braylon Washington as time expired sent the teams into the locker room tied at 17-17.

With both defenses tightening in the second half, it was Robinette who provided the breakthrough. On a critical drive midway through the third quarter, the Arkansas quarterback found a crease and raced 20 yards for a touchdown to give the Razorbacks a 24-17 lead. It was the type of explosive play Arkansas had feared it might not have available after Robinette's injury scare in Atlanta, but the quarterback looked every bit like the dynamic playmaker who had guided the Razorbacks to an SEC title.

Georgia Tech refused to go away. Barrow engineered a fourth-quarter drive that culminated in a three-yard touchdown pass to Blaine Hurd, tying the game at 24 with just over six minutes remaining. The Yellow Jackets had already proven capable of creating explosive plays throughout the evening, finishing with 444 total yards and averaging nearly 20 yards per completion, but Arkansas' defense continued to bend without breaking.

As the clock wound down, Arkansas turned once again to its rushing attack. Robinette and Long methodically moved the Razorbacks into scoring position before Robinette delivered the final blow. With only six seconds remaining, he powered into the end zone from four yards out, sending the Arkansas sideline into celebration and effectively ending Georgia Tech's comeback hopes.

“Honestly we were just looking to center the ball for Joey there.” Coach Davis said of Robinette's game-winning score. “D'Eriq asked if he should go down or score if he had the chance. We told him 'don't fight for it and run out of time but if it's there, score.' It was there.”

Robinette's stat line underscored just how important his return was. While he completed 11 of 19 passes for only 88 yards and threw an interception, he controlled the game with his legs, rushing for 105 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries. Long complemented him perfectly with 98 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries as Arkansas piled up 252 rushing yards and four scores on the ground.

The Razorbacks' offensive identity under Davis was on full display. Arkansas attempted just 21 passes while running the ball 44 times, controlling key moments with physicality and execution. Despite being outgained 444-351 overall, Arkansas won the battle in the red zone, converted both of its fourth-down attempts, and capitalized on its opportunities.

Defensively, Arkansas was led by Roger Smith's 11 tackles, while Bart Wilson added seven stops and Derek Jones contributed six. Brian Browne delivered the game's lone interception, picking off Barrow on a last second hail mary attempt, and helping the Razorbacks neutralize a Georgia Tech offense that entered the night averaging over 30 points per game.

For Georgia Tech, Barrow threw for 188 yards and two touchdowns, while Hines was a constant threat with 75 rushing yards and 99 receiving yards. McCall's 42-yard touchdown reception highlighted an explosive Yellow Jacket passing attack that repeatedly tested Arkansas downfield.

In the end, however, the night belonged to Arkansas and its remarkable transformation. When Porter Davis arrived in Fayetteville, expectations centered around rebuilding a struggling program. Instead, the Razorbacks produced one of the greatest seasons in school history. They captured an SEC Championship, won a New Year's Six bowl game, finished with a school-record 12 victories, and watched their injured star quarterback return to deliver one final unforgettable performance on one of college football's biggest stages.

For Arkansas fans, the Sugar Bowl trophy represented more than a postseason victory. It was the culmination of a season that changed the trajectory of the program and established a new standard in Fayetteville.

“Just a grear team effort from everyone on and off the field. This isn't a one man thing.” Davis said when asked what the key was that allowed to make such a drastic difference in one season.

Scoring

GT|07|10|00|07|24
ARK|07|10|07|07|31

1Q 4:15 TD ARK M. Long 1 Yd run (J. Christodoulou kick)
1Q 1:58 TD GT D. McCall 42 Yd pass from G. Barrow (B. Washington kick)

2Q 6:56 FG ARK J. Christodoulou 34 Yd FG
2Q 4:49 TD GT R. Hines 7 Yd run (B. Washington kick)
2Q 1:43 TD ARK M. Long 1 Yd run (J. Christodoulou kick)
2Q 0:03 FG GT B. Washington 24 Yd FG

3Q 3:48 TD ARK D. Robinette 20 Yd run (J. Christodoulou kick)

4Q 6:07 TD GT B. Hurd 3 Yd pass from G. Barrow (B. Washington kick)
4Q 0:06 TD ARK D. Robinette 4 Yd run (J. Christodoulou kick)

Key Player Stats

Passing: Robinette 11/19 88 Yds 1 Int, Rivas III 1/ 2 4 Yds
Rushing: Robinette 15/105 2 TD, Long 21/98 2 TD, Powell 5/35, Williams Jr 3/14
Receiving: Martell 1/17, Browne 3/13, Long 2/12, Brant 2/12, Harris 1/11
Tackles: Smith 11, Wilson 7, Jones 6
Sacks: N/A
Takeaways: Browne 1 Int
Special Teams: Christodoulou 1/1 FG 4/4 XP, Payne 2 Pt 97 Yds, Browne 2 PR 7 Yds


Passing: Barrow 10/18 188 Yds 2 TD 1 Int
Rushing: Hines 18/75 1 TD, Barrow 14/45, McCall 4/29
Receiving: Hines 4/99, McCall 2/45 1 TD, Graham 2/32, Hurd 1/3 1 TD
Tackles: Maxey 10, Davis 7, Seward 5
Sacks: Jackson 1.0
Takeaways: Maxey 1 Int
Special Teams: Washington 1/ 2 FG 3/3 XP, Booker 1 PT 94 Yds, Hurd 3 KR 68 Yds 1 PR 5 Yds, McCall 1 KR 20 Yds

LONG PUTS THE FIRST POINTS ON THE BOARD FOR ARKANSAS


MCALL FINDS THE ENDZONE FOR GEORGIA TECH TO TIE IT UP


HINES PUTS THE YELLOW JACKETS ON TOP


GEORGIA TECH PICKS OFF A ROBINETTE PASS, ALLOWING THEM TO TIE THE GAME AT THE HALF


ROBINETTE SCORES ON A 20 YARD RUN, PUTTING ARKANSAS ON TOP IN THE THIRD QUARTER


HURD TIES THE GAME AT 24-24 WITH SIX MINUTES LEFT


ROBINETTE FINDS THE ENDZONE WITH SIX SECONDS TO PLAY, SECURING THE WIN FOR ARKANSAS


ROBINETTE AND DAVIS HOIST THE TROPHY

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[djp73]

SEC Week in Review

[djp73]

NCAA Week in Review

[Agent]

We are the (Sugar Bowl) champions!

Nice one brodie

[djp73]

We are the (Sugar Bowl) champions!

Nice one brodie

really a great season for us

[djp73]

ARKANSAS 2018 TEAM STATS AND INFO

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333333

[djp73]

ARKANSAS 2018 PLAYER STATS

Player	Comp	Att	Pct	Yards	YPG	TD	INT	Rating	Yds/Comp	Long	Sacks
D. Robinette	155	240	64%	1,704	121.7	7	9	126.4	10.9	49	16
C. Rivas III	32	49	65%	352	29.3	3	1	141.8	11.0	44	0

Player	Att	Yards	Avg	YPG	TD	Long	YAC	20+	Broken Tackles	Fumbles
D. Robinette	173	1172	6.7	83.7	14	51	214	12	7	5
M. Long	235	1070	4.5	76.4	16	59	356	1	15	0
J. Powell	98	446	4.5	31.8	4	17	124	0	2	1
C. Rivas III	23	155	6.7	12.9	1	21	31	1	0	0
K. Williams Jr	22	118	5.3	9.8	1	27	26	1	0	1
J. Garcia	9	95	10.5	6.7	0	52	13	2	2	0
B. Browne	2	16	8.0	1.1	0	9	3	0	7	1
J. Calhoun	7	7	1.0	0.5	2	4	1	0	0	0
R. Ryan	1	5	5.0	0.4	0	5	0	0	0	0
J. Anderson Jr	2	4	2.0	0.2	0	4	0	0	0	0
C. Payne	1	3	3.0	0.3	0	3	1	0	0	0
J. Palmer	1	-2	-2.0	-1.0	0	0	1	0	0	0

Player	Rec	Yards	YPG	Avg	TD	Long	YAC	Drops
B. Browne	43	474	33.8	11.0	3	28	156	4
J. Garcia	33	396	28.2	12.0	0	49	93	2
M. Long	32	240	17.1	7.5	0	40	237	3
B. Brant	29	328	23.4	11.3	5	44	107	4
J. Anderson Jr	14	253	18.0	18.0	1	49	92	1
C. Harris	12	155	11.0	12.9	0	26	65	5
R. Ryan	6	62	5.1	10.3	0	19	23	2
J. Powell	6	35	2.5	5.8	0	9	31	1
M. Weber	5	47	3.3	9.4	0	15	32	3
P. Young	2	28	4.0	14.0	0	21	13	0
M. Martell	2	20	5.0	10.0	1	17	2	0
J. Ford	2	19	2.3	9.5	0	10	10	0
K. Williams Jr	1	-1	0.0	-1.0	0	0	3	0

Player	Pancakes	Sacks Allowed
J. Holden	22	2
M. Hodge	17	1
L. Paulsen	16	4
C. Harris	13	0
M. Smith	10	4
A. Montgomery	7	2
J. Ford	5	0
J. Garcia	3	0
R. Ryan	3	0
A. Freedman	2	1
A. Brown	2	0
J. Smith	1	0
M. Weber	1	0
M. Henderson	1	0

Player	Tackles	Solo	Ast	TFL	Sacks	INT	PD	FF	FR
R. Smith	72	72	0	17	5.0	0	1	0	0
D. Jones	58	57	1	15	5.0	1	1	0	0
J. Cabral	49	48	1	6	2.0	1	4	0	0
B. Wilson	47	47	0	18	8.0	0	1	1	1
P. Young	46	44	2	6	0.0	1	8	1	1
L. Parker	41	40	1	1	0.0	2	3	0	1
B. Davis	36	36	0	1	0.0	1	6	0	0
B. Browne	31	28	3	2	0.5	3	5	0	0
C. Anderson	30	28	2	0	0.0	2	7	1	1
C. Davies	30	28	2	10	3.5	0	0	0	0
C. Whitaker	28	28	0	7	3.0	0	0	2	0
K. Everson	17	16	1	2	0.0	1	0	0	0
A. Little	16	15	1	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
W. Lucas	14	14	0	1	0.0	0	1	1	1
A. Graham	9	9	0	2	1.0	0	0	0	0
T. Merritt	9	9	0	1	0.0	0	0	0	0
J. Anderson Jr	5	5	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
D. Bowser	4	4	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
R. Hayes	4	4	0	1	1.0	0	0	0	0
M. Weber	3	3	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
J. Ford	2	2	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
M. Long	2	2	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
J. Calhoun	1	1	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
J. Christodoulou	1	1	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
D. Robinette	1	1	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
C. Payne	1	1	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
J. Johnson	1	1	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
C. Harris	1	1	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
J. Holden	1	1	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0

Player	FGM	FGA	FG%	Long	XPM	XPA	XP%	Kickoffs	Touchbacks	TB %
J. Christodoulou	19	21	90.5	39	47	47	100.0	81	33	40.7

Player	Punts	Yards	Avg	Net	Net Avg	Inside 20	Touchbacks	Long
C. Payne	25	1078	43.1	914	36.5	4	3	51

Player	KR	Yards	Avg	TD	Long
B. Browne	22	587	26.6	1	104
P. Young	8	243	30.3	1	94
B. Brant	1	1	1.0	0	1

Player	PR	Yards	Avg	TD	Long
B. Browne	29	347	11.9	1	72
P. Young	1	20	20.0	0	20