No.13 Arkansas Hammers Louisiana-Monroe

Monday, 30 October 2006

No.13 Arkansas Hammers Louisiana-Monroe Arkansas running backs Darren McFadden and Felix Jones combined their rushing efforts by torching Louisiana-Monroe for 270 yards to lead the Razorback to a 44-10 non-conference win in front of over 55,000 at Little Rock’s War Memorial Stadium.

Jones gained 141 yards on just nine carries, and his seven-yard touchdown run in the first quarter tied the game at 7-7.

McFadden rushed for 129 yards on 18 carries and to add insult to injury to Louisiana-Monroe, he even passed for one touchdown in a nine-yard toss to tight end Wes Murphy. His nine-yard pass to Murphy put the Razorbacks up, 23-7, just before halftime.

"Our passing game wasn't going that well, so it was good to be able to run the ball consistently," McFadden said. "It was fun to throw a touchdown. It brought back a lot of memories from high school. We don't need to celebrate this victory too long because going to South Carolina next week will be real tough."

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McFadden added a 18-yard TD run early in the third period to open the lead to 30-7.

"Our defense played well after the first drive," said Razorbacks coach Houston Nutt, who won his 100th career game. "We kept them out of the end zone, but we still have to improve. We played good enough, but we realize there are still things we have to improve on. We were keyed up and the central Arkansas fans kept us keyed up. We really appreciated them tonight."

The two sophomore running backs led a rushing attack that churned out 331 yards on the ground. It was the third time they both have rushed for 100 yards in the same game.

"Darren McFadden is really talented," Nutt said. "I love the way he runs. He runs with authority and power. It's nice to have that threat. We are fortunate to have two caliber backs."

True freshman quarterback Mitch Mustain completed just 7-of-18 passes for 71 yards and two interceptions, but he did throw two touchdowns.

"Our timing was a little off early on and that is something we have to continue to work on," Mustain said. "We will have to make some small corrections for South Carolina next week. It was nice to throw some different routes and I thought we executed fairly well."

"We have been winning on the ground," Nutt said. "We have to improve in the air. The true freshmen all around the nation are struggling. Ours will learn from their mistakes and improve."

The Razorbacks (7-1) have won seven straight games for the first time since 1998, when they opened the season with eight consecutive victories.

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