NCAAF Game Recap - San Jose State at Arkansas
Sat Sep 21, 2019 7:30 PM EDT

UNCC
10
Clem
52
F
SMiss
7
Bama
49
F
ND
17
UGA
23
F
LSU
66
Vand
38
F
MiaOH
5
OSU
76
F
Aub
28
TxAM
20
F
Tenn
3
Fla
34
F
Utah
23
USC
30
F
Mich
14
Wisc
35
F
OkSt
30
Tex
36
F
UCF
34
Pitt
35
F
Oreg
21
Stan
6
F
UCLA
67
WaSt
63
F
AF
19
Boise
30
F
OD
17
UVA
28
F
Wash
45
BYU
19
F
Cal
28
Miss
20
F
Colo
34
AzSt
31
F
SMU
41
TCU
38
F
Hou
31
Tul
38
F
FLInt
31
LT
43
F
MSU
31
NW
10
F
ULMon
20
IASt
72
F
Elon
7
Wake
49
F
WestMI
33
Syr
52
F
BC
30
Rut
16
F
UConn
3
Ind
38
F
Mor
21
Army
52
F
CoCar
62
UMass
28
F
ULLaf
45
Ohio
25
F
CenCt
29
E Mi
34
F
Troy
35
Akr
7
F
BGSU
20
Kent
62
F
SoAl
3
UAB
35
F
Wyo
21
Tuls
24
F
App
34
UNC
31
F
Lou
24
FlaSt
35
F
Temp
22
Buff
38
F
JMU
37
Chat
14
F
SCar
14
MIZ
34
F
KY
13
MissSt
28
F
C Mi
12
MiaFL
17
F
NMS
52
NM
55
F
WVU
29
Kans
24
F
W&M
7
ECU
19
F
Hamp
27
Lib
62
F
Wagn
7
FlAtl
42
F
GASt
34
TxSt
37
F(2OT)
(N/A)
6
SamHu
45
F
SIU
28
ArkSt
41
F
N AL
12
JacSt
30
F
Bayl
21
Rice
13
F
Ball
23
NCSt
34
F
UTSA
3
NorTx
45
F
SJSU
31
Ark
24
F
NEV
37
UTEP
21
F
Neb
42
Ill
38
F
SacSt
20
Fres
34
F
Toled
41
ColSt
35
F
UtSt
23
SDSU
17
F
C Ark
16
Hawaii
35
F

Sep 21, 2019, 7:30 PM EDT

Final

1

2

3

4

T

San Jose State (2-1)

7

17

0

7

31

Arkansas (2-2)

7

0

3

14

24

San Jose State upsets Arkansas with late score
Sun Sep 22, 2019 2:14 AM

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) Coming into Saturday night, the last time San Jose State beat a power conference opponent was in 2006 when the Spartans beat Stanford - a team that finished 1-11 - by a single point. Cardinal coach Walt Harris, who was in his second season, was fired at its conclusion.

Arkansas coach Chad Morris is in his second season, coming off a 2-10 year and Saturday's game between his Razorbacks and San Jose State was only briefly that close.

DeJon Packer's 19-yard touchdown scamper with 1:13 left lifted three-touchdown underdog San Jose State past Arkansas on the road, 31-24. Third-year Spartans coach Brent Brennan's team went 1-11 last year and 2-11 the year before.

"It's been two really, really hard years," Brennan said. "To see (us) rise to the occasion, to stay together, to keep believing. We didn't fold. We actually bowed up. We made it hard on them."

Packer's score was the game-winner, but San Jose State's (2-1) five interceptions of Arkansas quarterback Nick Starkel were the true catalyst. Two of Starkel's picks came after he and the Arkansas offense had marched into the red zone. But an overthrow was picked off by Jay Lenard at the 13 on the first drive after halftime and an errant pass was nabbed by Nehemi Shelton at the 1 on the next series.

Those came when Arkansas (2-2) was already trailing, 24-7

"This performance is completely unacceptable," Morris said. "You get what you deserve in life. We didn't deserve to win this football game."

San Jose State scored on each its final three possessions of the first half, breaking a 7-all tie behind quarterback Josh Love's 18-for-26, 240-yard passing performance to that point. He would finish with a career-high 32 completions on 49 attempts for 402 yards and two touchdowns, both of which seemed unlikely if not for Arkansas' harried defensive play.

An improbable third-down conversion propelled San Jose State to its third first-half touchdown. A 5-yard pass over the middle on third-and-10 should have ended the Spartans' drive. But instead of turning up field and trying to force his way through, Tre Walker - who finished with 161 yards on 12 catches - danced, waited on blockers and turned the opposite way, finding the edge, picking up 20 yards and drawing a smattering of boos from the Arkansas crowd. Those calls of disapproval disappeared four plays later, replaced by silence brought on by incredulity after Love threw a 26-yard touchdown pass to Isaiah Holiness to make the score 24-7.

It came after some on the Arkansas defense boasted during the week about shutting down the San Jose State defense. Spartans offensive lineman Troy Kowalski, who in his fifth season has never seen a winning record, cried when the final horn sounded.

"Being here, this my fifth year, being through what I've been through, coming to an SEC school, no one believes in you," Kowalski said. "One of their linebackers says, `You're going to run for zero yards against us.'

"It means so much to me."

Starkel was making just his second start of the season. He failed to win the job out of fall camp, but replaced an ineffective Ben Hicks in the second half of Arkansas' Week 2 loss to Ole Miss and then led the Razorbacks to a 21-point win over Colorado State last week in throwing for 305 yards. He never looked like the same quarterback against San Jose State.

Besides his five interceptions, three more of his passes bounced in and out of the hands of Spartans defenders. He didn't receive much help from the Arkansas rushing attack, either, as the Razorbacks ran for just 131 yards on 32 carries and didn't score. Starkel finished 28 for 50 for 356 yards, the most by an Arkansas quarterback since October 2016 against Alabama.

"I feel like I let everybody down," Starkel said. "I let my teammates down, my brothers, my family, these coaches who work so hard to prepare us, get us in the right calls. I just let them down."

The Texas A&M transfer did lead Arkansas to a 24-all tie after trailing by 14 in the fourth-quarter. He threw two touchdown passes in the final 15 minutes, including the tying score on an 8-yard pass to Trey Knox with 2:56 left. Love and San Jose State responded with a 5-play, 75-yard series capped by Packer's touchdown. Starkel then threw his final interception on the next play, a last-ditch deep ball.

The boos grew louder again as Arkansas walked off the field after the game. Morris, despite the clear rebuild he had to begin upon his December 2017 arrival, knows the pressure is on after a poor first 16 games under his watch.

"Outplayed us, outcoached us, and I was very disappointed in the effort we got tonight," he said. "For three quarters, they were the SEC football team."

THE TAKEAWAY

San Jose State: A 2-1 start is the Spartans' best since 2015, the last time they made a postseason bowl.

Arkansas: The Razorbacks are searching for answers as they prepare for the bulk of SEC play. Arkansas hasn't won consecutive games since beating Ole Miss and Coastal Carolina, each by a single point, in then-coach Bret Bielema's final season in 2017.

TURBULENCE IN THE AIR

Arkansas' five interceptions thrown are tied for the second most in a game in school history. The last time a Razorbacks quarterback threw five picks was in the 1991 Independence Bowl when Arkansas, then in the Southwest Conference, lost to Georgia, 24-15

FIRST TIME EVER

San Jose State had never beaten an SEC opponent until Saturday. It was just the Spartans' fourth win over a power conference team this century. The Spartans beat Stanford in 2000 and 2006 and beat Illinois in 2002.

HE SAID IT

"Last drive, everybody on the sidelines is coming up to you and saying they believe in you. That's been the big word this week, believing in yourself," Love said.

UP NEXT

San Jose State opens its Mountain West Conference season Friday night when the Spartans travel to Air Force.

Arkansas will look to snap a seven-game losing streak to SEC foe Texas A&M when the two meet at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, next Saturday.

Passing

SJSU Att Cmp % TD-Pa Yds-Pa LgPa Int Rat
J. Love 49 32 65.3 2 402 50 1 95.8
Ark Att Cmp % TD-Pa Yds-Pa LgPa Int Rat
N. Starkel 50 28 56.0 3 356 62 5 58.8

Rushing

SJSU Att Yds-Ru Avg LgRu TDRu
D. Packer 8 40 5.0 19 1
T. Nevens 6 34 5.7 23 0
Ark Att Yds-Ru Avg LgRu TDRu
R. Boyd 18 91 5.1 18 0
D. Whaley 12 32 2.7 16 0

Receiving

SJSU Rec Yds-Rc Avg LgRc TD-Rc
T. Walker 12 161 13.4 20 0
I. Holiness 4 64 16.0 32 1
Ark Rec Yds-Rc Avg LgRc TD-Rc
M. Woods II 4 115 28.8 62 1
T. Knox 8 83 10.4 19 1

Fumbles

Returning

Ark KR Avg KRTD LgKR PR Avg TD LgPR
D. Warren 2 21.5 0 23 0 0 0
C. Hayden 1 18.0 0 18 0 0 0

Punting

SJSU Punt Yds Avg LgPu
A. Galland 5 208 41.6 46
Ark Punt Yds Avg LgPu
S. Loy 3 123 41.0 50

Takeaways

SJSU Int Yds InTD
B. Brown II 2 32 0
N. Shelton 1 13 0
Ark Int Yds InTD
K. Curl 1 -7 0

Team Stats Comparison

SJSU Ark
Points For 31 24
Total Yards 503 487
Rushing Yards 101 131
Passing Yards 402 356
Passing Completions / Attempts 32/49 28/50
Turnovers 1 5
Interceptions Thrown 1 5
Fumbles - Lost 2/0 0/0
First Downs 27 26
Penalties - Yards 9/85 6/62
Time Of Possession 54:54 06:06
Third Down Conversions/Attempts 4/12 6/15
Fourth Down Conversions/Attempts 0/1 1/3
Punts - Average Yards 5/42 3/41

Scoring Summary

1st Quarter SJSU Ark
SJSU 02:16 TD JaQuan Blackwell 3 yd pass from Josh Love (Matt Mercurio kick) 7 0
Ark 13:53 TD Mike Woods 62 yd pass from Nick Starkel (Connor Limpert kick) 7 7
2nd Quarter SJSU Ark
SJSU 00:42 TD Nick Nash 15 yd run (Matt Mercurio kick) 14 7
SJSU 08:51 FG Matt Mercurio 47 yd FG 17 7
SJSU 13:54 TD Isaiah Holiness 26 yd pass from Josh Love (Matt Mercurio kick) 24 7
3rd Quarter SJSU Ark
Ark 09:59 FG Connor Limpert 48 yd FG 24 10
4th Quarter SJSU Ark
Ark 01:50 TD Tyson Morris 30 yd pass from Nick Starkel (Connor Limpert kick) 24 17
Ark 12:04 TD Trey Knox 8 yd pass from Nick Starkel (Connor Limpert kick) 24 24
SJSU 13:47 TD DeJon Packer 19 yd run (Matt Mercurio kick) 31 24

Game Information

Stadium: Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium, Fayetteville, Arkansas
Attendance: 56,058
Game Time:
Weather: