Good morning to everyone but especially to...
ARKANSAS
Kansas got off to its first 5-0 start since 2009 this season, but an injury to quarterback Jalon Daniels resulted in a second-half pendulum shift that left the Jayhawks 6-6. Last night's Liberty Bowl between Kansas and Arkansas was an encapsulation of the Jayhawks' seesaw season -- but in reverse, Christopher Nolan's "Memento" style.
A 20-yard touchdown run by AJ Green gave Arkansas a resounding 31-7 lead midway through the second quarter. But Kansas would not go down without a fight in its first bowl game in 14 years, matching the Razorbacks with their own 31-7 run (!) to tie the game at 38 with 41 seconds left in regulation.
The Jayhawks, in fact, scored 18 unanswered in the fourth to force overtime, including two touchdowns, a two-point conversion and a successful onside kick within the final 1:05. A wild three overtimes ensued, and here's how they played out:
Kansas kept its momentum going by striking first in overtime, with Daniels finding Jared Casey for a two-yard score to make it 45-38. Arkansas answered with a six-yard touchdown run from Rashod Dubinion.In the second overtime, Arkansas quarterback KJ Jefferson took matters into his own hands by rushing for a 20-yard touchdown to give him four all-purpose scores for the game, and he then hit Jaedon Wilson for a two-point conversion. Daniels kept the incredible QB duel going by rushing for a two-yard touchdown and completing a pass to Casey for the game-tying two-point conversion. Jefferson led Arkansas to victory with a two-point pass to Dubinion in the third overtime, a score Kansas couldn't match.Arkansas' win means they've now gone above .500 and won a bowl game each of the last two seasons under coach Sam Pittman. Not a bad stretch at all considering the Razorbacks hadn't won more than four games in a season since 2016 before then.
