LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Mississippi's Bo Wallace and Bryson Rose liked winning a Southeastern Conference game so much that they decided to do it again.
Rose kicked a 31-yard field goal as time expired to give the Rebels a 30-27 victory over Arkansas on Saturday. The win is the second straight in the Southeastern Conference for Ole Miss (5-3, 2-2), which snapped a 16-game league losing streak in its last game against Auburn.
Rose's field goal was his third of the game, including a career-best 53-yarder that put Ole Miss up 27-20 early in the fourth quarter.
The Razorbacks (3-5, 2-3) tied the game at 27-27 with 2:09 remaining on a 4-yard touchdown run by Dennis Johnson, who finished with a career-high 161 yards.
However, Wallace — who finished with 278 yards passing — directed Ole Miss on an eight-play, 61-yard drive that set up Rose's game-winning field goal.
The win gave Ole Miss its first back-to-back SEC wins since late in the 2009 season, which is also the last time the school reached a bowl game. The Rebels, who were a combined 1-15 in the conference the last two seasons, are now one win away from bowl eligibility in coach Hugh Freeze's first season.
Ole Miss trailed 10-0 early before rallying to take a 21-17 halftime lead after Jeff Scott's 1-yard touchdown run with 20 seconds remaining in the half. The score capped a 10-play, 75-yard drive that took just 1:01 off the clock.
Wallace accounted for 316 yards of total offense for the Rebels. The sophomore, who ran for, passed for and caught a touchdown two weeks ago against Auburn, finished 29 of 37 passing — including a 4-yard touchdown pass to Vince Sanders in the first half.
On the game-winning drive, Wallace accounted for 38 yards — 35 passing and 13 rushing. He was 3 of 4 passing on the drive, including a 14-yard completion to Scott on a third-and-9 to keep the drive moving. Wallace's final play was a 13-yard run through the heart of the Arkansas defense to set up Rose's game-winning kick.
The Razorbacks had won two straight entering the game, and they nearly overcame a blocked punt that led to an Ole Miss touchdown and a pair of interceptions by quarterback Tyler Wilson. Arkansas outgained the Rebels 464-355 in total yardage, and Wilson finished 24 of 43 passing for 297 yards, but it couldn't stop Ole Miss when it needed to the most.
Johnson nearly single-handily helped the Razorbacks tie the game late in the fourth quarter. After Wilson opened the drive with a 9-yard completion to Cobi Hamilton — who finished with 12 catches for 146 yards — Johnson gained 41 yards on his next two carries.
The senior then bowled his way into the end zone from 5 yards out on his third straight carry, capping a four-play, 55-yard drive.
Arkansas left 2:09 on the clock, however, which proved exactly the right amount of time for the resurgent Rebels.
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