McFadden Jones and Kelly Named Hogwired.com Player of the Week

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Arkansas’ dynamic backfield duo of Darren McFadden and Felix Jones along with hard-hitting strong safety Randy Kelly were honored by the Razorbacks’ coaching staff as the Hogwired.com Players of the Week for their play in the regular season finale against No. 9 LSU. McFadden and Jones captured offensive and special teams’ honors, respectively. Kelly earned defensive player of the week recognition.

McFadden was nearly unstoppable last Friday racking up 222 total yards against the No. 1 ranked statistical defense in the nation. The sophomore rushed for 182 yards and two touchdowns, including a career-long 80-yard touchdown run. He also completed two passes for 33 yards with 28 yards coming on a strike to Robert Johnson. On McFadden’s 80-yard scamper, he set a new school record for rushing yards in a season breaking the mark of Madre Hill (1,387 in 1995). The Little Rock, Ark., native’s season totals stand at 1,485 yards and 14 touchdowns. Earlier this week, McFadden was named as the Southeastern Conference’s Co-Offensive Player of the Week along with Florida quarterback Chris Leak.

Jones was outstanding on offense and special teams. The Tulsa, Okla., product rushed for 137 yards and one touchdown against LSU. It was Jones’ fourth 100-yard rushing game of the season and the sophomore combined with McFadden to become the first two running backs this season to rush for more than 100 yards against the Tigers’ defense. Jones was honored primarily, however, for his contributions on special teams. He returned three kickoffs for 82 yards including a 62-yard kickoff return in the fourth quarter that set up a UA touchdown. Jones made another key play when he fielded a sky kick just moments before a host of LSU defenders arrived for a potential recovery.

Kelly has been Arkansas’ best run stopper in the secondary all season long. The junior racked up nine tackles against the Tigers. He was credited with five solo stops and a half-sack for -4 yards. Kelly was the leading tackler among Arkansas defensive backs in the top-10 battle with LSU. Kelly ranks third on the team with 84 tackles including five tackles for loss (-28) this season.

Following each game this season, Hogwired.com will recognize an offensive, defensive and special teams player of the week. Recipients are chosen by the UA football coaching staff.