Razorbacks report

Bielema: Ejection right call

Arkansas coach Bret Bielema talks with an official during a game against Ole Miss on Saturday, Oct. 15, 2016, in Fayetteville.
Arkansas coach Bret Bielema talks with an official during a game against Ole Miss on Saturday, Oct. 15, 2016, in Fayetteville.

FAYETTEVILLE -- Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema said Monday that upon further review of the targeting penalty that led to safety De'Andre Coley's second ejection of the season in Saturday's 34-30 victory over No. 12 Ole Miss, he is in agreement with the ruling.

"He did kind of do it a little bit different than he did in his last one, but it was still the right call," Bielema said.

Coley was ejected for targeting Ole Miss receiver Van Jefferson just after defensive back Henre Toliver came down with a one-handed interception on the fifth play of the second half. Coley leaned in with his shoulder and made contact mostly in Jefferson's upper chest before he fell back to the turf. Coley was ejected for a more egregious hit on Texas A&M's Speedy Noil on Sept. 24.

The 6-1, 214-pound junior will have to spend the first half of Saturday's game at No. 21 Auburn in the locker room, but he will be available for the second half.

"If he just comes at him and high screens in there, there's no call," Bielema said. "We're trying to curb our players' behavior and approach, and obviously we didn't get that point across. I as a head coach have to do that."

'Snippety' Dan

Bret Bielema, asked about calling timeout in the third quarter Saturday night with Arkansas facing third and goal from the Ole Miss 2, prodded reporters to ask offensive coordinator Dan Enos about the sequence that led to the timeout.

Enos, who follows Bielema to the interview room on Mondays at the Smith Football Center, was described by Bielema as being "very intense" and "a little snippety" on game day.

"If you want to see what I mean by getting snippy, ask him about it," Bielema said of the third-down timeout. "Like maybe we can get the personnel and the calls in there a little bit quicker."

Enos laughed and shook his head when asked about the "snippety" description.

"I think that was the time when one of our guys thought ... we were supposed to be in another formation," Enos said. "We had to explain to them that 'Just do what you've been told to do and we're in a formation for a certain reason.' I guess sometimes Coach is probably right.

"The adrenaline gets going, the competitiveness comes out, and obviously we're all there to try to do everything we can to win the game. I try to stay calm, but every once in a while your emotions get the best of you."

The timeout came in handy. Quarterback Austin Allen correctly read an option play on the next snap, pitching to Rawleigh Williams, who beat a defender in a one-on-one situation for a 2-yard scoring pass.

Different take

Arkansas modified its weekly schedule due to the two-day fall break on campus this week. The Razorbacks had Sunday off, then came in Monday for a brief film review of the victory over Ole Miss before turning toward Auburn.

Bret Bielema said the Razorbacks would also have a brief session on the field Monday, which is normally the team's mandatory off day.

Injury report

Arkansas tight end Jeremy Sprinkle, who was wearing a walking boot on his left foot Monday, is probable for the game at Auburn.

Auburn running back Kerryon Johnson, who was on crutches last week after turning his ankle at Mississippi State on Oct. 8, was at practice Sunday. Auburn coaches are optimistic Johnson will be available against Arkansas on Saturday.

Unbeaten foes

All four losses by No. 17 Arkansas (5-2, 1-2 SEC) and No. 21 Auburn (4-2, 2-1 SEC) have come against unbeaten teams currently ranked in the top 6. The Razorbacks' losses have been to No. 1 Alabama and current No. 6 Texas A&M. The Tigers also lost to Texas A&M and also to current No. 4 Clemson.

Half ranked

Bret Bielema will coach his 46th game at Arkansas on Saturday. Aubur will be his 23rd ranked opponent.

"I think to hear that number is ... one of those moments where you're like, 'Wow!' But when you're involved in it, you never think about it," Bielema said.

Williams wins

Arkansas tailback Rawleigh Williams was named SEC offensive player of the week after rushing for a career-high 180 yards in the Hogs' 34-30 victory over Ole Miss.

Williams' 180 rushing yards were the most for a Razorback in a conference game since Knile Davis ran for 187 yards in a 38-31, double overtime victory at Mississippi State in 2010.

Arkansas is the first team to have two SEC offensive player of the week honorees. Quarterback Austin Allen won the award for his performance in a 41-38, double overtime victory at TCU in Week 2.

Williams had three runs of 20-plus yards against the Rebels, including a 53-yard carry that set up Arkansas' second touchdown.

Top players

The Arkansas coaching staff named tailback Rawleigh Williams, defensive lineman Jeremiah Ledbetter and punter Toby Baker as their players of the week from Saturday's victory over No. 12 Ole Miss.

Williams' 180 rushing yards gave the sophomore the SEC rushing lead with 785 yards, a mark that ranks eighth in the nation. He leads the SEC with 22 runs of 10-plus yards and with 35 first-down carries.

Ledbetter had a critical 8-yard sack on Ole Miss' final possession among his five tackles.

Baker averaged 46.2 yards on five punts and put three inside the 20-yard line.

Kelly off mark

Ole Miss quarterback Chad Kelly, the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision leader in a statistic called deep adjusted completion percentage, as calculated by Pro Football Focus, had a rough outing in that department against Arkansas.

Kelly went 0 of 8 on passes traveling 20 or more yards, including an interception by Henre Toliver.

"It was a great team effort," Arkansas defensive coordinator Robb Smith said. "Our defense line up front. I thought our under-coverage did a really good job of taking away some lanes. I thought we were really aggressive and very good in our execution. On the back end, I thought our corners, when they were isolated, won the majority of the 50-50 balls."

Sports on 10/18/2016

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