KJ Jefferson passed to Rashod Dubinion for a 2-point conversion in the third overtime and Arkansas held off a furious second-half rally by Kansas for a 55-53 win the AutoZone Liberty Bowl on Wednesday night.
The Jayhawks had rallied from 25 points down in the second half to force overtime. In the third extra period, a failed 2-point conversion pass from Jason Bean to Lawrence Arnold ended a four-and-a-half hour marathon.
“We got lucky at the end, but we’re Liberty Bowl champs and I’m pretty excited,” Arkansas coach Sam Pittman said.
Arkansas (7-6) celebrated the win prematurely in the second overtime after stopping Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels just shy of the goal line on a 2-point conversion try. But a targeting call on Arkansas’ Quincey McAdoo gave the Jayhawks another try, and they converted.
Jefferson passed for 287 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 130 yards and two more scores to lead the Razorbacks.
Arkansas and Kansas met for the first time in 116 years, and the Razorbacks used an old-school rushing attack to prevail. Arkansas gained 394 of its 681 total yards on the ground. Rashod Dubinion added 112 yards for the Razorbacks.
Kansas (6-7) played in its first bowl game since 2008, but was unable to stop a late-season streak in which they lost seven of their last eight games. Daniels passed for 544 yards and five touchdowns. He set Liberty Bowl records for passing yards, touchdown passes, completions (37) and total TDs scored (6).
MILITARY BOWL
DUKE 30, UCF 13
ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Riley Leonard ran for two touchdowns and threw for 173 yards as Duke wrapped up an impressive first season under Mike Elko.
The Blue Devils (9-4) have won four consecutive bowl games, although this was their first appearance in one since 2018. Jordan Moore ran for a touchdown in the first quarter, and then Duke took control in the second.
UCF (9-5) lost three of its final four games this season. John Rhys Plumlee managed only 28 yards passing in the first half and 182 for the game.
Duke went winless in Atlantic Coast Conference play last year, but Elko turned the team around quickly, winning ACC coach of the year honors. The Blue Devils reached nine wins in a season for the seventh time and first since 2014.
HOLIDAY BOWL
NO. 15 OREGON 28, N. CAROLINA 27
Bo Nix threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Chase Cota on fourth down with 19 seconds left and Camden Lewis’ PAT bounced off the left upright and went through to give No. 15 Oregon a wild 28-27 victory against North Carolina in the Holiday Bowl on Wednesday night at Petco Park.
Cota caught the ball at about the 1 and got it across the goal line as he was being tackled by Don Chapman. The play was upheld on review. Lewis then banked in the PAT.
North Carolina (9-5) got the ball to the Oregon 42 with one second left before Drake Maye’s desperation heave into the end zone fell incomplete. Maye, the ACC Offensive Player of the Year, was 18 of 35 for 206 yards and three scores.
The Ducks finished 10-3 thanks to Nix, who threw a 6-yard TD pass to Troy Franklin with 6:58 to go to pull the Ducks to 24-21.
Nix was 23 of 30 for 205 yards and two touchdowns, with one interception. Oregon’s Bucky Irving had touchdown runs of 2 and 66 yards
TEXAS BOWL
TEXAS TECH 42, OLE MISS 25
HOUSTON — Tyler Shough threw for 242 yards and a touchdown and ran for two more scores as Texas Tech took advantage of three early turnovers to build a big lead and held on to beat Ole Miss.
Shough, who finished with a career-high 111 yards rushing, accounted for three TDs in the first two quarters to help the Red Raiders (8-5) to a 26-7 halftime lead.
Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart had 361 yards passing with two TD throws and a scoring run. But, he threw two of his three interceptions and lost a fumble in the first half to put the Rebels in a huge hole.
The victory gives Texas Tech its first eight-win season since 2013 and caps a successful debut for first-year coach Joey McGuire, who was given a new six-year, $26.6 million contract earlier Wednesday.
The loss continues a terrible stretch for Ole Miss (8-5), which dropped its final four games, and five of its last six, after opening the season 7-0.
The Rebels finished with 197 yards rushing, led by freshman Quinshon Judkins, who had 91. Judkins finishes the season with 1,567 yards rushing, which is the second-most by a freshman in SEC history behind Hershel Walker, who had 1,616.