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WATCH: KJ Jefferson closes gap on Missouri State before half with 38-yard touchdown pass

Chandler Vesselsby:Chandler Vessels•09/17/22•

ChandlerVessels

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Andy Altenburger/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

After Arkansas dug itself into an early hole Saturday against Missouri State, KJ Jefferson is doing his best to get them out of it. The Razorbacks at one point found themselves trailing 17-0 in the first half, but cut the deficit to 17-14 by halftime thanks to a late second quarter touchdown pass from Jefferson.

After connecting with Matt Landers on a 47-yard pass on the first play of the drive, the Arkansas quarterback found Jadon Haselwood for a 38-yard score on the very next play. The play was huge for momentum, as it prevented the Razorbacks from heading into halftime down two possessions.

KJ Jefferson finished the first half 9-of-15 passing for 237 yards and a touchdown in addition to nine yards rushing. Haselwood is currently the team’s second-leading receiver with three catches for 76 yards.

Arkansas fumbled on two of its first four drives, including once at the Missouri State 1-yard line. The Razorbacks failed to score until 8:25 remaining in the second quarter, when Raheim Sanders rushed for a three-yard touchdown.

Arkansas escapes Missouri State with back-to-back fourth quarter touchdowns

Even after the two touchdowns before halftime, it seemed Arkansas was heading for an upset Saturday against Missouri State. The Razorbacks found themselves trailing 27-17 with 12 minutes to go against Bobby Petrino and the Bears, and were in danger of dropping their first game of the year.

A little more than two minutes later, they had their first lead of the game.

Running back Raheim Sanders got things started with a 73-yard touchdown on a shovel pass from KJ Jefferson to cut the Missouri State lead to 27-24. After that, the Razorbacks defense came up with a stop to force a punt. That led to Bryce Stephens delivering the biggest play of the evening, breaking free for an 80-yard touchdown return to give Arkansas a 31-27 lead.

Arkansas never led through the first three quarters, but outscored the Bears 21-3 in the final stanza to a claim a 38-27 victory. Sanders ended the game with 22 carries for 167 yards rushing and a touchdown in addition to two catches for 75 yards and a touchdown. His 242 total yards for the game are a career-high.

After escaping Missouri State, Sam Pittman and the Razorbacks now turn their attention to a rivalry game against Texas A&M at 6 p.m. CT next Saturday in Arlington.