FAYETTEVILLE, Arkansas (Ticker) -- Forget the 0-2 start and Auburn is finally playing like the team that was expected to contend for a national championship.
Safety Junior Rosegreen recovered Matt Jones' fumble inside the 10-yard line with under seven minutes remaining as Auburn upset eighth-ranked Arkansas, 10-3, and continued its resurgence in a Southeastern Conference contest.
"Our defensive linemen played really well today and shut down the run and made our jobs even easier today," Rosegreen said. "They put a lot of pressure on the quarterback and didn't give him much time to throw."
The Tigers (4-2, 3-0 SEC West) used a dominating defensive effort to post their fourth straight victory and emerge as a legitimate contender in the SEC. They held the previously unbeaten Razorbacks to Chris Balseiro's 25-yard field goal late in the third quarter.
Auburn recorded its second straight win over a top-10 team, after upsetting then-seventh-ranked Tennessee, 28-21, last week. Since 2001, the Tigers are 5-0 when unranked and facing a top-10 team.
"What a day for us today," Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville said. "We had tremendous plays today as a team. It just wasn't the offense or the defense. They came together and everybody played up to their potential."
Carnell Williams' six-yard touchdown run with 29 seconds left in the first half held up, although the Razorbacks had their chances in the fourth quarter.
After John Vaughn's 34-yard field goal made it 10-3 with 9:58 left, Jones had an apparent 78-yard TD run called back due to a holding penalty on wide receiver George Wilson.
"George Wilson is the most reliable guy on our team and such a team player," Arkansas coach Houston Nutt said. "His downfield tackle was legal but I think the guy fell backwards and that's what threw them (officials) off."
"The receiver grabbed my ankle and twisted it hard," Rosegreen said. "There was no doubt it was a hold."
It was not the only costly mistake for Arkansas as a holding penalty also wiped out a 68-yard run by Cedric Cobbs in the third period.
Jones later kept the drive alive with a sneak on fourth down and appeared to give the Razorbacks (4-1, 2-1) a 1st-and-goal with a 13-yard run. But linebacker Travis Williams stripped the ball loose and Rosegreen pounced on the fumble at the 8.
"It doesn't matter in we're an underdog," Williams said. "We're just going to go out and play our game. We just have to get ready for next week."
Auburn was forced to punt from its end zone, giving Arkansas possession at the Tigers 48. The Razorbacks picked up one first down but their hopes ended when linebacker Donnay Young sacked Jones on 4th-and-8 with under two minutes remaining.
Auburn wore down Arkansas with old-fashioned power football as Williams rushed for 150 yards on 35 carries. Cobbs was held to 78 yards on 16 carries.
"If I have an opportunity, I am going to go after it as hard as I can," Williams said. "I was a shoe-string tackle or two away from breaking the big one for us."
Arkansas was in position to take the early lead, but Balseiro missed a 35-yard field goal with 2:43 left in the first period.
Early in the second period, Auburn marched from its 11-yard line to the 47 but the Tigers were forced to punt after Brandon Jacobs was stopped for a one-yard loss on 3rd-and-1.
Auburn got on the board after a personal foul gave the Tigers possession at the Arkansas 41 with 1:19 left in the half. Five plays later, Williams ran off right guard to make it 7-0.
On its first possession of the second half, Arkansas elected not to punt on 4th-and-3 from the Tigers 34, but Jones threw an incomplete pass.
Auburn returned the favor as a fake punt fooled no one. Up-man Jake Slaughter was stopped for no gain on 4th-and-2, giving Arkansas back the ball at the Auburn 42.
Jones' 23-yard pass to Wilson gave Arkansas a 1st-goal at the 7, but Wilson dropped a third-down pass in the end zone, forcing the Razorbacks to settle for a field goal.
"We sat back and waited for it to happen for us until the second half came around," Cobbs said. "They played with great intensity and beat us off the ball a few times. They were ready for the run."
Auburn answered with a 14-play, 62-yard drive that consumed nearly seven minutes before Vaughn connected on his 34-yard field goal.
On Arkansas' next possession, an interference penalty gave the Razorbacks a first down at the Tigers 21. But Jones fumbled on the next play after picking up the first down.
Jones completed 13-of-28 passes for 168 yards. Jason Campbell was 10-of-18 for 118 yards with an interception for Auburn.
