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FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. -- After one of its worst defensive games in school history, Arkansas had one of its best Saturday afternoon. The Razorbacks shut down Florida's running game and held the 11th-ranked Gators without an offensive touchdown in a 31-10 victory at Reynolds Razorback Stadium.
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Arkansas (6-3, 2-3 Southeastern Conference) gave up 632 yards, including 543 yards on the ground in a 56-3 loss at Auburn two weeks ago. After a bye week, the Razorbacks' defense rebounded in a big way.
Arkansas held Florida to 241 total yards, including 12 yards on the ground. The Gators were held to 0.9 yards per carry Saturday night. The Razorbacks gave up 9.5 yards per carry against Auburn.
It was Florida's first loss in Fayetteville and Arkansas' first in the 11-game series since the 1982 Bluebonnet Bowl.
"Our defensive psyche was fragile after the Auburn game, but they did some really good things today," Arkansas coach Bret Bielema said.
The SEC East-leading Gators (6-2, 4-2) had a defensive score in the first quarter and a field goal late, but couldn't get anything consistently going offensively. The Razorbacks forced Florida to punt on seven possessions and Arkansas ran 24 more plays.
It was the Gators' first game against an SEC West opponent this season and proved how big of a gap there is between the two divisions, according to Florida coach Jim McElwain.
"It's pretty big," McElwain said of West's advantage. "The East is a long way away."
Florida sophomore quarterback Luke Del Rio was 19 of 37 for 229 yards and two interceptions, including one in the first series which gave the Razorbacks an early lead and the game's momentum.
"The pick-six was big early," Bielema said. "We wanted to swing first and be aggressive. We wanted to bring the fight to them early, and we couldn't have started any better defensively."
Arkansas's offense was efficient, putting together a series of long, time-consuming drives to control the game's tempo against a heralded Florida defense which came into the game ranked in the top-10 nationally in all four major defensive categories.
Junior quarterback Austin Allen, who Bielema admitted after the game wasn't 100 percent after injuring a knee in the Auburn game, was 15 of 26 for 243 yards. Arkansas had 223 yards rushing, including 148 yards on 26 carries from sophomore running back Rawleigh Williams III.
A 41-yard scoring run from Williams - his second score of the day - pushed the Razorbacks ahead 31-10 with 5:40 left in the game.
That score was Arkansas' only touchdown of the second half. Senior kicker Adam McFain added a 36-yard field goal, giving Arkansas a 24-7 lead with 7:20 left in the game.
Florida's only score of the second half came with 6:46 left in the fourth quarter on a 49-yard field goal from sophomore Eddy Pineiro.
"They dominated the line of scrimmage," McElwain said of the Razorbacks, "which is something we talked about all week that we needed to do. I thought they had some good angle block schemes on our guys. It took away our inside guys and made a difference.
"We'll choose how we came back and how we work. I still like our football team. I like our guys."
Arkansas, which is known as a team that plays well in November under Bielema, is now bowl eligible for the third consecutive season going into its final home game next week against LSU. The Razorbacks wrap up on the road at Mississippi State and Missouri.
"Our defense played inspired tonight and our offense, especially our running game, did the things we asked them to do," Bielema said.
Arkansas outgained Florida 257-104 in total offense in the first half, including a 116-19 advantage in rushing yards, and had scoring drives of 91 and 87 yards.
Leading 14-7 after one quarter, Arkansas's defense forced two punts and had an interception in the second quarter. The Razorbacks' offense, meanwhile, used a 10-play drive just before halftime to push their lead to 21-7.
That drive started at the Arkansas 13, including 15- and 31-yard completions from Allen to senior tight end Jeremy Sprinkle. It was completed when Allen connected with senior receiver Drew Morgan in the back of the end-zone for a 7-yard score on third-and-goal with 16 seconds left in the half.
Arkansas had 42 offensive plays in the first half. Florida had 22.
Each defense had a score in a first quarter which Arkansas dominated statistically as it jumped out to a 14-0 lead.
The Razorbacks took their first lead when Del Rio's first pass was broken up by Arkansas junior free safety Josh Liddell and sophomore safety Santos Ramirez intercepted and ran 24 yards for touchdown with 12:20 left in the first quarter.
Arkansas' ground game went to work on its ensuing drive. The Razorbacks drove 91 yards in eight plays and scored on a 6-yard run from Williams with 5:56 left in the first quarter. The score was set up by a 43-yard screen pass from Allen to Whaley.
Florida's offense continued to struggle getting anything going and the Razorbacks regained possession just more than two minutes later.
But on the Razorbacks' second play, Florida junior Duke Dawson intercepted Allen and returned it 37 yards for a touchdown with 2:44 left in the quarter, pulling the Gators within 14-7.
NOTES: Arkansas sophomore LG Hjalte Froholdt injured his right ankle and was taken to the locker room with 10:48 left in the first half. ... Florida junior C Cameron Dillard was injured and taken in the locker room with 11:42 left in the first half. He didn't return. ... Arkansas sophomore Johnny Gibson, a walk-on, made his first start at right guard. ... Arkansas has 12 players on its roster from the state of Florida. The Gators don't have anyone on their roster from the state of Arkansas.
