AUBURN, Alabama — Ja’Quinden Jackson ran for two touchdowns, including the decisive one with 3:38 left, and Arkansas took advantage of five Auburn turnovers to win the teams’ Southeastern Conference opener 24-14 on Saturday.
Taylen Green threw for 151 yards and a touchdown and ran for 80 yards for the Razorbacks (3-1). He was intercepted twice but also provided a series of drive-saving runs and passes. Payton Thorne came off the bench and threw two touchdown passes to KeAndre Lambert-Smith in the second half for the Tigers (2-2).
Arkansas: It’s been a good start to the SEC season for the Razorbacks and coach Sam Pittman, who went 1-7 in league play last season. TJ Metcalf had two interceptions and a touchdown-saving forced fumble for Arkansas.
Auburn: Hank Brown’s three interceptions in the first half show the Tigers may not have a good answer at quarterback. Thorne, who was benched after four interceptions in a loss to California, started in the second half and was also caught once on a deflected pass. His 67-yard pass to Lambert-Smith in the fourth quarter cut the score to 17-14.
Green converted a third-and-19 pass with a scramble and a 58-yard touchdown pass to Isaiah Sategna with 2:03 left in the third quarter. Sategna leapt over a defender, snatched the ball and secured a 14-7 lead.
The Razorbacks converted 9 of 19 third-down attempts and 2 of 4 fourth-down attempts. Bobby Petrino’s offense led the nation in third-down conversion rate.
Auburn hosts No. 15 Oklahoma and Arkansas plays No. 25 Texas A&M in Arlington, Texas.
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