November 3, 2001: Arkansas Outlasts Ole Miss 58-56 in a Then-Record Seven Overtimes

On the night of November 3, 2001, at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, Mississippi, Arkansas and Ole Miss kicked off a little after 6 p.m. Nobody in the crowd of 47,464 guessed they'd still be there after 10:20.

Regulation was a tight one. Arkansas led 17-10 late in the fourth quarter until Ole Miss quarterback Eli Manning, in his first season as a starter, found Jason Armstead for a touchdown to tie it at 17. Then the overtimes began, and kept coming.

Both teams scored in the first overtime. Neither scored in the second. From the third overtime on, they traded touchdowns, missing two-point tries that could have ended it. In the sixth, both converted. In the seventh, Arkansas fullback Mark Pierce ran in from 2 yards out and Matt Jones hit Decori Birmingham for the two-pointer, making it 58-50. Manning answered with his third touchdown pass of the night to Armstead. With one more two-point play, Ole Miss could force an eighth overtime.

Arkansas linebacker Jermaine Petty slammed the door, stopping tight end Doug Zeigler two yards short of the goal line. Final: Arkansas 58, Ole Miss 56, after 4 hours and 14 minutes.

The teams combined for 144 points, 80 of them in overtime, and nearly 1,000 yards of offense. It set an NCAA record at the time for the longest game ever played, and it was the Razorbacks' first win in Oxford. Freshman Matt Jones led the Hogs, accounting for 116 of their 157 overtime yards.

Sam's Take: Seven overtimes! I've had shorter hibernations. By the fifth OT the concession stand must have been down to its last bag of beer nuts. Hats off, helmets on, to both teams. Woo Pig Sooie, and a big Hotty Toddy too!