4th-Ranked Auburn Tigers Dominate Arkansas Razorbacks, 38-20
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October 16, 2004
Stanley McClover |
AUBURN, Ala. (AP) -- Jason Campbell passed for a career-high 297 yards and three touchdowns to lead No. 4 Auburn to a 38-20 rout of Arkansas on Saturday.
With Campbell completing 17 of 19 passes -- all in the first three quarters -- the Tigers (7-0, 4-0 Southeastern Conference) won their ninth straight game and lived up to their highest ranking in 10 years.
Auburn scored on its first five possessions for a 30-0 lead against a team that had given the Tigers fits in recent years. Twice in the past three meetings, an unranked Razorback team blew Auburn out.
The Razorbacks (3-3, 1-2) never got a whiff of a similar upset this time, and all but fell out of contention in the SEC West. Against a swarming defense, they couldn't muster any consistent offense and quarterback Matt Jones spent much of the game under pressure.
It was still the most points anybody had scored against Auburn this year.
Ronnie Brown rushed for 101 yards for the Tigers, while Carnell Williams gained 71. Both ran for short touchdowns.
But it was Campbell who continued to drive the offense, making Arkansas pay dearly for loading up against the run and setting an Auburn record for completion percentage in a game. His best in his first 33 starts was 270 yards against Alabama last year, and he topped that in the third quarter before the offense went to the run to protect its lead.
The Razorbacks got a late touchdown set up by an interception against backup quarterback Brandon Cox.
The Tigers had said all week they wouldn't let Jones beat them, running or passing. The league's total offense leader was contained on the ground, except for a 54-yard burst in the first half that briefly made him the SEC's top career rushing quarterback.
He got sacked for a 9-yard loss on the next drive, pushing him back into a tie with John Bond of Mississippi State at 2,280 yards.
Jones was 12-of-27 passing for 189 yards with two TDs and was held to no yards on his other three carries.
The Tigers outgained Arkansas 522-337.
Campbell was nearly perfect in the first half, going 11-of-12 for 210 yards and two long touchdowns. He hit Devin Aromashodu for a 67-yard score after a reverse and pitchback on the game's third play and hit Courtney Taylor for a 30-yard score later in the first quarter.
Aromashodu had four catches for a career-high 102 yards.
Jones threw nine consecutive incompletions after starting out 4-for-4, but then threatened to bring Arkansas back into the game. He hit Chris Baker for a 19-yard touchdown late in the half to make it 30-7 and found Steven Harris for a 61-yarder on the opening drive of the third quarter.
John Vaughn missed an extra point for Auburn, ending the team's SEC record streak of 209 makes.