Field Level Media
Sep 28, 2019
Kellen Mond threw two of his three touchdown passes to Quartney Davis as 23rd-ranked Texas A&M recorded a 31-27 victory over Arkansas on Saturday afternoon in Arlington, Texas.
Mond, who completed 23 of 35 passes for 251 yards, tossed 22- and 3-yard scoring strikes to Davis as well as a 9-yard touchdown to Ainias Smith as the Aggies (3-2 overall, 1-1 SEC West) won their eighth straight in the series.
Ben Hicks replaced former Texas A&M quarterback Nick Starkel and tossed a 13-yard touchdown pass to Mike Woods for the Razorbacks (2-3, 0-2), who have lost their last 13 SEC games and 17 of 18 overall.
Devwah Whaley's 11-yard touchdown run gave Arkansas a 24-21 lead early in the third, an advantage it preserved after Montaric Brown intercepted Mond in the end zone late in the quarter.
Mond, however, answered by lofting a 3-yard touchdown pass to Davis on his next drive to give Texas A&M a 28-24 lead with 12:21 remaining in the fourth quarter.
The teams traded field goals before the Razorbacks' late drive came to an end after Hicks' pass on fourth-and-5 caromed off the chest of tight end Cheyenne O'Grady.
Starkel, who transferred to Arkansas during the summer, injured his left arm in the second quarter while attempting to make the tackle on defensive lineman Justin Madubuike following his sixth interception in two games. Starkel was carted to the locker room soon after.
The Aggies were unable to take advantage of the momentum, however, as Mond's botched exchange with Isaiah Spiller resulted in linebacker De'Jon Harris scooping up a fumble and rumbling six yards for a score.
The Razorbacks seized a 17-14 lead with 1:55 remaining in the second quarter as Woods reeled in a back-shoulder throw from Hicks for a 13-yard touchdown.
The advantage was short-lived, however, as Davis made a spin move on linebacker Hayden Henry before bolting to the end zone to give Texas A&M a 21-17 lead with eight seconds left.
Mond connected with Smith on a 9-yard slant as Texas A&M opened the scoring late in the first quarter and boosted its lead to 14-3 after Spiller ventured off tackle and lunged for the goal line for a 4-yard touchdown.
--Field Level Media