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KJ Jackson Finally Looked Like Arkansas' Bona Fide QB1 Vs Tulsa

QB1 was far from perfect but took big strides vs Golden Hurricane
Samuel Stubbs|
Arkansas quarterback KJ Jackson celebrates after scoring a touchdown in the first half against Texas.
Arkansas quarterback KJ Jackson celebrates after scoring a touchdown in the first half against Texas. | Nilsen Roman, Hogs On SI Images

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Arkansas Razorbacks

FAYETTEVILLE — KJ Jackson put together the best performance of his collegiate career on Saturday against Tulsa, throwing for 309 yards and a touchdown and running for two more scores in Arkansas' 34-6 win over the Golden Hurricane.

The redshirt sophomore was far from perfect. He threw a bad interception in the third quarter on a pass that floated harmlessly into the arms of Dedaunte Scott and was sacked multiple times on plays where he held onto the football for far too long.

But there were also a few beautiful throws from Jackson, including several to his top target in Chris Marshall. Marshall had nine receptions for 195 yards and a touchdown on Saturday, scoring his first TD as a Razorback on a slant pass from Jackson. For the most part, Jackson picked apart a defense that held Oklahoma State and star QB Drew Mestemaker to only 10 points in Week 1.

Big plays for Arkansas' offense that didn't involve Marshall were few and far between, but Jackson spent the rest of the night making mostly smart decisions with the football and taking what the defense gave him. He also had two touchdown runs and showed off the speed he flashed against Texas last year.

The confidence of the coaching staff in Jackson was evident based on the fact that, unlike in last week's game against Georgia, the Razorbacks did not put AJ Hill in the game until the final drive when both teams began emptying their benches.

"We thought he gave us the best option to be our starting quarterback," Silverfield said of Jackson. "We have great faith in him and we’re going to rely heavily on him... But I thought KJ did some really nice things today. The first thing I’ll tell you is he’s got to continue to take care of the football. But pretty darn good decision making. Obviously he was a weapon [with his feet.]

"We’re going to have to continue to find ways for him to have success doing that. But I think tonight, regardless of the drops and all those things, you throw for over 300 yards as a quarterback. I still call him a young quarterback. I think that’s going to give him confidence moving forward, and pleased with his performance."

"I'm comfortable," Jackson said. "I feel like I've been comfortable. You know, I made some mistakes... just growing pains. So, we'll go out here, we just finished game four. We got a long season ahead, and keep striving for it, and keep getting better every day."

Jackson will make his first road start against Texas A&M (2-2) next week in College Station and will likely need to one-up his performance from Saturday night if Arkansas is going to have a chance to win the game.

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Samuel Stubbs
SAMUEL STUBBS

Sam Stubbs is a student at the University of Arkansas pursuing a degree in journalism. He has worked at the UA’s student newspaper, the Arkansas Traveler, since October 2025, becoming the assistant sports editor in December 2025. When he's not writing about the Razorbacks, Sam can be found covering NASCAR for Yardbarker and is a member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA), winning an award for race coverage from the association in February 2025. He's previously worked for Heavy, Field Level Media, Frontstretch and FanSided.

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