Without Marshall, KJ Jackson Made Big Play After Big Play To Beat Vanderbilt

NASHVILLE — Arkansas QB KJ Jackson was short his most reliable, and arguably his only reliable receiver for most of Saturday's game against Vanderbilt.

Chris Marshall, who had only one reception for 28 yards in Arkansas' 31-21 road victory over Vanderbilt, did not play in the second half and was instead in street clothes on the sideline.

But Jackson, who has struggled to consistently find receivers other than Marshall this season and was largely ineffective in crunch time against No. 14 Tennessee last week, stepped up and led the Razorbacks to their first SEC victory in nearly two calendar years, putting together the best performance of his collegiate career in the process.

At the forefront were a pair of clutch throws.

The first was a 32-yard pass to Antonio Jordan, who was Arkansas' leading receiver on the evening with five receptions for 74 yards. The Warren, Ark., native caught a beautifully thrown go ball from Jackson that got UA down to the three-yard-line of Vanderbilt, with Cam Settles punching the ball into the end zone to give Arkansas a 28-21 lead on the next play.

"That go ball he caught on the sideline, probably a little bit underthrown," Jackson said. "I'm so happy for this guy, finally got a chance to show everybody what we already know."

After Miguel Mitchell picked off Jared Curtis to get Arkansas the football back, the Razorbacks faced a third and 10 from their own 31 with under three minutes to play. The conservative, somewhat understandable call would've been to run the ball and force Vanderbilt to use another timeout.

Instead, head coach Ryan Silverfield and offensive coordinator Tim Cramsey trusted Jackson and put both the ball and the game in his hands. He delivered, tossing a 31-yard bomb to Memphis transfer Jamari Hawkins that effectively put the game on ice. Max Gilbert nailed a 39-yard field goal to cap the drive and give Arkansas a 10-point lead in the game's waning moments.

"Hawk, he made a heck of a catch," Jackson said. "We got playmakers. Try to get those guys the ball and give them an opportunity to showcase what they can do."

"I thought at that point, getting the first down ultimately gives you the chance to close out the game," Silverfield said. "I think if he didn't catch it, probably PI, some contact there. For him to go up and make it, it was huge."

Silverfield said he doesn't yet know the extent of Marshall's injury, but even if he is out or limited moving forward, Jordan and Hawkins both showed they can make plays, and Jackson showed that even without his No. 1 target, he's capable of commanding the Arkansas offense.

Jackson also ran 11 times on the night for 58 yards and a touchdown that gave UA a 21-14 lead early in the third quarter. He was not sacked a single time on the night.

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