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FAYETTEVILLE — For most of 2025, Arkansas’ defense was not good enough to capitalize on the team having one of college football’s best offenses.

On Saturday, the roles reversed and the Razorbacks’ offense failed to take advantage of the team’s best defensive performance of the year.

Four Arkansas turnovers in as many drives in the fourth quarter allowed Auburn to rally, then pull away for a 33-24 victory on a rainy day at Reynolds Razorback Stadium. The Tigers outscored the home team 17-0 in the fourth quarter.

Arkansas (2-6, 0-4 SEC) lost its sixth consecutive game. Auburn (4-4, 1-4) snapped a 4-game losing streak.

“The defense I thought competed extremely hard,” said Bobby Petrino, who fell to 0-3 with his third single-digit loss since taking over as Arkansas' interim head coach. “We were able to hold them to field goals. They got us in a position in the fourth quarter where we could have went and won the game offensively, and the offense didn’t do it.”

With 9:15 remaining, Rayshawn Pleasant’s 49-yard interception return for a touchdown gave the Tigers a 27-24 lead when quarterback Ashton Daniels ran in the 2-point conversion.

Pleasant undercut receiver Raylen Sharpe’s route on a telegraphed pass from Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green and ran untouched to the end zone.

That was only the beginning of the Razorbacks’ misery.

Arkansas receiver O’Mega Blake fumbled on the next possession at the Auburn 43. Sylvester Smith returned the fumble 23 yards to the Razorbacks’ 34 to set up Alex McPherson’s 47-yard field goal that gave Auburn a 30-24 lead.

Pleasant intercepted Green for a second time to set up McPherson’s sixth field goal with 1:08 remaining to put the Tigers ahead 33-24. Green’s final pass was also intercepted by Hensley Louidor-Faustin to allow Auburn to run out the clock.

Green was 14 of 22 for 268 yards, 1 touchdown and a career-high 3 interceptions. Arkansas’ offense only scored 2 touchdowns, matching a season low set during a 56-14 loss to Notre Dame on Sept. 27.

“I’m disappointed in the offense [for] the entire game, really,” Petrino said. “Even in the first half we weren’t able to establish and drive the ball, and run the football the way that we could.”

The Razorbacks got a defensive score on an 89-yard interception return by Kani Walker late in the second quarter to go ahead 21-10 at halftime. It was Arkansas' first turnover forced since Sept. 20 at Memphis.

Walker jumped a route intended for Perry Thompson after the Tigers had reached the Arkansas 15. Walker intercepted his former Oklahoma teammate, Auburn quarterback Jackson Arnold.

That was the final pass thrown by Arnold, who was benched. He was replaced by Ashton Daniels late in the second quarter and for all of the second half.

“I felt like at that time the decision that Jackson made obviously wasn't a great one,” Freeze said.

Daniels did not lead a touchdown drive, but the Tigers took advantage of good starting field position that led to 5 McPherson field goals in the second half. Auburn’s average starting field position after halftime was the Arkansas 49.

Two of those drives were aided by special teams breakdowns. Pleasant returned the second half kickoff 49 yards to the Auburn 49, and Justin Jones got a piece of Devin Bale's punt to give the Tigers the ball at the Arkansas 43 on their second drive of the second half.

Both drives ended in field goals of 23 and 43 yards by McPherson to cut Arkansas' lead to 21-16. McPherson bounced back after he 1 of 4 last week during the Tigers' 23-17 loss in double overtime to Missouri.

“He’s the first one in my office Monday to say, 'I'm sorry, Coach. I lost that game for you,’” Auburn coach Hugh Freeze said. “And I said, 'Dude, I believe in you. You're going to make the next one,' and he ties the school record today with six. So what a redemption story that is, and [I’m] thrilled for him.”

For a while it appeared that holding Auburn to field goals would be the reason the Razorbacks would win the game. Six of the Tigers' drives reached the red zone, but none ended with a touchdown.

“I really felt like the defense played well enough for us to win the game,” Petrino said, “and offensively and special teams-wise we didn’t play well enough to get the job done.”

Auburn's 380 yards and 25 points to end offensive possessions were both the lowest Arkansas has allowed during its losing streak.

“I told everybody…we really had a very small sample size of what they wanted to do on defense,” Freeze said. “[They] had two games with the new coordinator [Chris Wilson] and the new staff, and they played us absolutely, totally different than either game [against Tennessee or Texas A&M]. They’ve been a man coverage team, and boy, they were just not going to do that to us early on.”

Arkansas freshman Scott Starzyk kicked a 27-yard field goal with 57 seconds left in the third quarter to give the Razorbacks a 24-16 lead. That was the team's last possession that did not end in a turnover.

“You’re not going to win games when you turn the ball over in the fourth quarter,” Petrino said.

McPherson's 36-yard field goal early in the second quarter put Auburn ahead 10-0. The Tigers scored their only offensive touchdown on their first possession with a 23-yard pass from Arnold to Cam Coleman to cap a 9-play, 67-yard drive.

Green’s 58-yard touchdown pass to Raylen Sharpe pulled Arkansas within 10-7 with 8:36 left before halftime. Following a defensive stop, the Razorbacks took a 14-10 lead on Braylen Russell’s 2-yard touchdown run that followed a 41-yard pass from Green to Rohan Jones.

Jones led Arkansas with 3 catches for 127 yards — receptions of 36, 41 and 50 yards. He has 9 catches for 281 yards this year for an average of 32.3 yards per catch.

“Coach Petrino is scheming up some good plays on offense,” Jones said, “and when my number is called I'm just trying to do the most with it.”

Player of the Game: Auburn CB Rayshawn Pleasant

Pleasant had a pair of interceptions in the fourth quarter, including the 49-yard touchdown return that gave the Tigers the lead for good.

“I kissed him on the forehead,” Freeze said.

Pleasant also had 3 kickoff returns for 79 yards with a long of 49 to open the second half.

On the Road

The home team lost in the Arkansas-Auburn series for the fifth consecutive game and the Tigers won their fifth in a row in Fayetteville.

The last time the home team won in this series was 2020 when Auburn secured a 30-28 victory in the rain at Jordan-Hare Stadium. Anders Carlson kicked a 39-yard field goal with 7 seconds remaining following a controversial ruling.

Referee Jason Autrey ruled Auburn quarterback Bo Nix did not fumble when he spiked the ball backward to stop the clock in the closing seconds. The SEC later said Nix fumbled but Arkansas did not recover the ball quickly enough to take possession.

Since then Auburn has won in Fayetteville by scores of 38-23 in 2021 and 48-10 in 2023. Like this year, the Tigers were road underdogs both times.

Arkansas won 24-14 as the underdog at Auburn last year. The Razorbacks also won 41-27 as the favorite at Jordan-Hare Stadium in 2022, resulting in then-coach Bryan Harsin's firing the following day.

Not since a 54-46 victory in quadruple overtime in 2015 has Arkansas won a home game in the series. Auburn is 6-1 at Reynolds Razorback Stadium since 2013.

Up Next

Arkansas is scheduled to host Mississippi State next Saturday at 3 p.m.

The Bulldogs (4-4, 0-4) blew a 17-point lead in the fourth quarter and lost 45-38 in overtime to No. 22 Texas at home Saturday.

It was Mississippi State's 16th consecutive conference loss. The Bulldogs' last SEC win was 7-3 at Arkansas on Oct. 21, 2023.

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