Ryan Mallett left a mark on Alabama fans, all 6-foot-6-inches of his frame and a flamethrower arm that played equalizer at the highest level of college football, especially one Saturday in September 2010 the Tide know all too well.
Bama escaped Fayetteville with a 24-20 win that appeared near-impossible in the second half when Arkansas had a 20-7 lead on the defending national champions in the third quarter.
Still on top of the college football world heading into the 2010 season, undefeated Alabama strolled into Fayetteville the top-ranked team in the land, but the No. 10 Razorbacks were not intimidated by all that talent. Just a year prior, Bama smacked the Hogs 35-7 in Bryant-Denny Stadium, so fans undoubtedly felt confident Sept. 26. It was just another box they would check on their way to back-to-back titles. Not so.
Led by the towering quarterback from Batesville, Arkansas, who died tragically this week after drowning in Florida, Bobby Petrino’s squad scored less than one minute into the game when Mallett found Ronnie Wingo Jr. on a 43-yard catch and run.
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Bama answered quickly, with reigning Heisman winner Mark Ingram rumbling for a 54-yard touchdown run to tie it.
The teams would trade haymakers, but the one-touchdown underdog Hogs took a 10-point lead into halftime behind a quarterback sneak for a touchdown by Mallett.
Stagnant on offense for most of the third period, Bama cut the Hogs’ lead to six with a screen pass to backup running back Trent Richardson who housed it.
The Tide scored 10 unanswered points in the final period, and Dre Kirkpatrick had a timely interception with 1:48 left, giving Mallett his third (after two to INT machine Robert Lester) and ultimately helping Bama escape with the hard-fought win.
Despite the three turnovers, Mallett threw for 357 yards and the opening touchdown to rouse the sold-out crowd of 72,000, while also sneaking in for another score to extend their lead. Arkansas finished the regular season 10-2 before losing to Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl. Mallet finished seventh in Heisman voting that year.
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Expectations were high for the 2010 Crimson Tide team, returning stars on both sides of the ball like reigning Heisman-winner Mark Ingram, starting quarterback Greg McElroy, defensive back Dre Kirkpatrick and many others who would play on Sundays. But injuries to key players lingered to create inconsistency, ultimately leading to the three regular season losses.
Mallett, who transferred to Arkansas from Michigan, played an enormous role in building Arkansas (under Petrino) into a national contender who could challenge elite teams like Alabama. (They whipped the same South Carolina team that beat Alabama, partially thanks to Mallett’s 303 passing yards).
Drafted in the third round by the New England Patriots, Mallett played seven seasons in the NFL for the Patriots, Houston Texans and Baltimore Ravens (starting in eight games).
Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Mallett’s death this week. He was 35. He had been head football coach at White Hall (Ark.) High School since 2022. DeltaPlexNews.com was first to report his death, which took place off the coast of Destin and was later confirmed by several other media outlets. Officials have said extreme heat could have played a role in Mallett’s death, as opposed to the conditions of the surf, the tides or the currents.
Gone far too soon, Mallett will be remembered as a winner in Fayetteville and a player who had an impact at the next level. His loss prompted former New England teammate Tom Brady to post on Instagram, “We lost a great man. Thank you for everything Ryan.”
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Alabama fans will remember him as the quarterback who led Arkansas to a once-unlikely top-10 ranking when the SEC took over college football and a guy who struck fear into the hearts only to leave them ecstatic about stealing a win from his rising Razorbacks.
Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett (15) removes his helmet after Arkansas’ 24-20 loss to Alabama in an NCAA college football game in Fayetteville, Ark., Saturday, Sept. 25, 2010. (AP Photo/Beth Hall)ASSOCIATED PRESS
A motorist on Interstate 630 in Little Rock struck and killed a pedestrian Saturday morning after the man ran into traffic, according to a preliminary report from Arkansas State Police.
The pedestrian, who wasn’t identified in the report, crossed three lanes of traffic near the Chester Street exit around 10:02 a.m. and was attempting to cross the median wall when he darted back into one of the lanes and was struck by a westbound 2021 Nissan Sentra, the report states.
No other injuries were reported, and a trooper investigating the incident reported that the weather was clear and the road was dry at the time.
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Grant Lancaster
Grant Lancaster covers crime, policing and breaking news for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. A Little Rock native, his articles focus primarily on crime and law enforcement efforts in Pulaski County, although he reports on other parts of the state as well.
FAYETTEVILLE — The stage was not too bright for University of Arkansas softball pitcher Payton Burnham in her first NCAA Tournament start.
The freshman right-hander got the start in the Razorbacks’ first game of the Fayetteville Regional on Friday, and she made the most of it in a 10-0, five-inning victory over Saint Louis at Bogle Park.
Burnham pitched the 17th no-hitter in program history, and the first by a Razorback in the NCAA Tournament.
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She became the third Arkansas pitcher to accomplish the feat this season, joining Robyn Herron (Feb. 16 vs. Louisiana-Monroe) and Reis Beuerlein (April 18 vs. Colorado State).
“I’m really proud of P for a no-hitter,” Arkansas coach Courtney Deifel said. “It’s really exciting as a freshman to come (into) your first postseason game in Bogle and just really trust your stuff and trust your defense.”
Arkansas advanced to play Oklahoma State (34-18) in winners bracket matchup scheduled for noon Saturday. The Cowgirls erased a four-run deficit to defeat Indiana 11-6 in Friday’s first game.
“When you get out here, no matter if it’s your first one or your 10th one, you have a little bit of nerves,” Deifel said. “There’s excitement, and for them to just stay really present and do what they do — it was great to see them so comfortable in that moment.”
Burnham (14-2) accomplished her no-hitter in 66 pitches, throwing 41 for strikes. She struck out 6 with 1 walk and 1 hit batter while inducing 6 groundouts and 3 fly outs.
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It was Burnham’s second consecutive standout performance in front of a home crowd at Bogle Park, also getting a shutout May 3 in the regular-season finale against LSU.
Her performance Friday came in front of an announced crowd of 3,038.
“My defense behind me, they played perfect,” Burnham said. “It wouldn’t have happened without them, but I was just trusting my stuff through the zone, trusting in my defense and then our offense, just putting the pressure on and keeping the pressure on.”
The Razorbacks gave their pitcher immediate run support when they batted through the lineup in a five-run bottom of the first.
Reagan Johnson led off with a single down the third-base line, then stole second base on the second pitch of Bri Ellis’ at-bat. Ellis and Courtney Day both walked in four pitches to load the bases with one out for Kailey Wyckoff, who delivered with an RBI single to right field
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It was the onset of a big game for the Texas Tech transfer.
In her first NCAA Tournament game, the junior was 3 for 3 with a career-high 5 RBI. The lefty hitter had a pair of singles and a double.
“Being in postseason for the first time, I kind of got a little bit in my feels,” Wyckoff said. “I kind of had to set that aside, because it’s not about me. But going into it, I just knew that I had to stick to my plan and it just kind of worked out for me.”
It was the second consecutive game for Wyckoff to record three hits, tying her season-high.
“She’s just been on fire lately,” Deifel said. “She is an elite hitter.”
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Ella McDowell walked with the bases loaded to tack on another run before Kennedy Miller kept the big inning going with a two-run single up the middle. Atalyia Rijo drew a walk to load the bases for nine-hole hitter Karlie Davison, who singled to left field to stretch the lead to 5-0.
It began a rough outing for Saint Louis starting pitcher Taylor Hochman, who gave up 10 runs in her 3 1/3-inning start. Hochman (16-8) allowed 7 hits and 7 walks against the 25 batters she faced.
“Kudos to Arkansas,” Saint Louis Coach Christy Connoyer said. “They can swing the bat … very disciplined team. Courtney, she runs a really nice program. S, hats off to Arkansas for their discipline and their plate approach.”
Wyckoff extended the lead to 6-0 in the bottom of the second with a sharply hit RBI single up the middle to score Raigan Kramer, who led off the inning with a single.
After a scoreless third, the Razorbacks poured it on again in the fourth.
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Wyckoff delivered the game’s only multi-base hit with a bases-clearing double to left-center field. It scored Kramer, Ellis and Day, who reached due to walks and an error. Rijo set the game’s final score with an RBI single up the middle.
“I think we were all just seeing the ball really well today,” Wyckoff said.
Burnham enacted a run rule in the fifth inning, ending the game with a strikeout of Allie Marietta. She was the third Billiken who struck out looking, as Burnham mixed her speeds and kept them guessing.
“She moved the ball well,” Saint Louis catcher Abby Mallo said. “She changed speeds, changed planes. We saw a lot of rise balls and a lot of changeups. It kept batters off balance.”
Burnham, whose family is moving to Arkansas, said her mother Kendall was in the stands to watch her big performance. The former Kendall Richards was a star at Texas A&M, where she set the program’s single-season batting average record of .454 in 1996.
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“You could tell right away (Burnham) has some intangibles that you just can’t coach,” said Deifel, recalling recruiting the pitcher. “She wants the ball. She’s fearless. She’s competitive.”
Left-hander Isabel Royle pitched the final two outs for the Billikens and gave up one hit.
Arkansas won a home regional opener in run-rule fashion for the fourth time in five years. Each of those have been shutouts.
“I’m just really proud of the team with the way they came out in our first game here,” Deifel said “I thought that P and our defense set a really good tone in the first inning. Our offense carried that momentum, and I thought they just did an incredible job of taking what they gave us and then also being ready when the ball showed up. I just thought it was a complete effort.”
The Tennessee Volunteers rallied to defeat the Arkansas Razorbacks in game one.
The Tennessee Volunteers have a tough final conference series this weekend as they traveled out to Arkansas to take on the Razorbacks, and they got the weekend started on the right foot. The Volunteers used a late inning rally to secure the win over Arkansas in game one.
Heading into the fourth inning, Tennessee was trailing 2-1. Singles from Manny Marin and Gavin Kilen helped plate three runs in the fourth inning to send the Volunteers out in front. Dalton Bargo and Dean Curley then launched home runs in the seventh inning to extend their lead, making the score 7-3. Then the Razorbacks started rallying back.
A single from Aloy plated two runs across and then a fielder’s choice allowed another to score, making it 7-6 heading into the ninth inning. Cannon Peebles then launched a two-run shot in the top of the ninth and Gavin Kilen knocked in another run off of a single and a throwing error to extend their lead and eventually secure the win.
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Game two is set for 7:30 PM on Friday and will be streamed on SEC Network+ for those who want to watch it.
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