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MEMPHIS -- University of Arkansas fans were upset over a couple of critical calls by the American Conference officiating crew following the Razorbacks' 32-31 loss at Memphis on Saturday.
Specifically, a defensive pass interference call against cornerback Julian Neal on a 38-yard touchdown pass from Brendon Lewis to Cortez Braham Jr. with 31 seconds left in the second quarter came under criticism all around.
Neal came up from the play immediately signaling offensive pass interference and ESPN analyst Jesse Palmer agreed on the broadcast.
"Wow," Palmer said after the infraction was announced. "It looked like Cortez Braham extended the arms and made contact first on Julian Neal. I thought that was OPI."
ESPN rules expert Matt Austin said he "100% agreed" with Palmer's assessment as play-by-play announcer Joe Tessitore brought him in to explain.
"The offense actually made contact first before the defense ever got there by extending his arms," Austin said. "I think they should have put this on the offense."
Arkansas fans were also upset at a holding flag thrown against receiver O'Mega Blake by the American Conference officiating crew during a 35-yard run by Taylen Green to the Memphis 8 in the fourth quarter. Replays showed Memphis defensive back Jaidyn Denis grabbing Blake on an in-cutting pass route at the Memphis 37 before Dennis released to chase Green on the sideline. Blake's right hand grabbed at Dennis as he ran past.
"Take a look at O'Mega Blake here ... he kind of gets swarmed and bear hugged by the defender there and then just a little tug at that last second," Palmer said of the play.
Arkansas Coach Sam Pittman was asked specifically about those two calls.
"I mean, I appreciate the comment and all that, but to be honest with you, if we ... as bad as we played at times on offense, defense, if we just hang on to the ball there, we win and it's not as big a deal," Pittman said. "But I appreciate the comment."
Arkansas drew seven flags for 55 yards in penalties, with the pass interference call on Neal obviously not accepted, while Memphis had four infractions for 20 yards.
Ball's calls
Arkansas defensive captain Cam Ball, asked about the Razorbacks' shoddy tackling against Memphis, commented on both the 11-yard gain by backup quarterback Arrington Maiden on a third-and-8 to clinch the win and the overall tackling.
"On that specific play when he came in, we thought we had him bottled up," Ball said. "We held him for a minute, but he just kept moving, and we should've put him on the ground, but he just kept going. We got too lackadaisical on that specific play.
"Tackling in general, I just feel like as a whole we try to be too aggressive. Not setting down, and breaking down, and we don't have to be overly aggressive on our tackles. So we just have to go back to our fundamentals and our coaching."
Ball said the Razorbacks in no way underestimated Memphis' offensive talent or quarterback Brendon Lewis.
"They have a great quarterback that was a true dual threat," Ball said. "He did things with his feet and his arm. And they have a nice, a great, not a nice ... running back room as well. So just, we should have just really did what we were supposed to do. That was on us. "
4 for 4
Arkansas tailback Mike Washington Jr., whose 1-yard touchdown plunge gave the Razorbacks a 28-10 lead, has scored a touchdown in all four games, the only player on the roster who has done that.
Wide receiver O'Mega Blake caught touchdown passes in each of the first three games and quarterback Taylen Green has accounted for at least one score in every game.
Washington, who finished with 70 rushing yards on 15 carries and 2 receptions for 14 yards, appeared distraught while leaving the field after his lost fumble at the Memphis 7 late in the game.
"Mike feels terrible and, you know, I hate it for him because he's been such a great player for us," Coach Sam Pittman said. "He still is. He just happened to ... they jarred the ball loose from him."
Memphis safety Chris Bracy knocked the ball free as Washington reached first-down distance at the Memphis 7 with 1:18 to play.
Green gave support to Washington during his postgame remarks.
"That whole drive, it was feeding Mike, and just the things that he has done, not just throughout the game, but just throughout these four weeks has been amazing," Green said. "So definitely proud of him."
Washington had six carries for 56 yards and a 10-yard reception to account for 66 all-purpose yards on the Hogs' final possession.
Rohan rules
Tight end Rohan Jones notched his first career 100-yard receiving game with 2 catches for 102 yards, including a 62-yard score on the third snap of the game when he lined up as a fullback.
The scoring play, on which Jones released uncovered, was the longest for an Arkansas tight end since Cheyenne O'Grady's 62-yard touchdown in a 55-34 win over Colorado State on Sept. 14, 2019.
Jones also had a 5-yard touchdown run to become the first Arkansas tight end with a rushing touchdown since Austin Cantrell's 5-yard score in a 39-38 win over Coastal Carolina on Nov. 4, 2017.
Zone groan
No. 22 Notre Dame has been struggling to put pressure on the quarterback in zone coverage through its first three games, according to media that covers the team.
Notre Dame (1-2), which is heading into Fayetteville on Saturday, allowed 23 first-half points to Purdue in Saturdays' 56-30 win over the Boilermakers.
Coach Marcus Freeman said Notre Dame needs to do a better job of "marrying up" its coverage with its pressures under defensive coordinator Chris Ash, who held the same position at Arkansas in 2013.
"(If) we're going to play with seven guys in coverage, then four guys are going to have to get some type of pressure on the quarterback, but we've also got to understand, 'OK, we might have to cover a little bit longer.' "
Speaking of a specific drive in the first half, Freeman said, "I don't think there's anything that we could ... we tried cover 1, cover 2, cover 3, cover 4. What happens is you start to panic. 'OK, this coverage ins't working. Let's try this. This isn't working. Let's try this.'
"Then you're doing nothing. You're doing nothing. ... They're going to make some plays. You've got to trust, hey, this is our game plan, this is what we can do, and execute."
Extra points
Arkansas has scored at least 28 points in the first half of all four games, the first time the Razorbacks have done that since at least 1992, their first year in the SEC.
Arkansas has scored a touchdown on its opening drive in three out of four games in 2025, the first such occurrence during Sam Pittman's six seasons.
Arkansas safety Miguel Mitchell's second-quarter interception was his second as a Razorback and the third of his career.
Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green surpassed the 1,000-yard passing mark in Game 4, the first Arkansas player to hit that mark since Brandon Allen in 2015.
Offensive captain Fernando Carmona Jr. started his 41st consecutive game dating to his redshirt freshman season at San Jose State in 2022.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEKOFFENSETE Rohan JonesJones, a first-year transfer from Montana State, made the most of his 3 touches with 107 yards and 2 touchdowns. Jones notched touchdowns on a 62-yard catch and a 5-yard run.DEFENSEDE Quincy Rhodes Jr.The junior from North Little Rock totaled 6 tackles, all of them solo stops, 4 tackles for 24 yards in losses and 2 sacks for 19 yards. His sacks went for 9 and 10 yards.