Teams' Belt Records

Previous Belt Meetings:       None

The 25^th ranked, 8-4 Arkansas Razorbacks with interim coach Reggie Herring defended the title against the 7^th ranked, 11-2 Missouri Tigers of coach Gary Pinkel in the Cotton Bowl.  The game marked the first time in Belt history that an interim coach was giving the task of defending The Belt & the Tigers were ready to take full advantage of the Razorbacks' leadership change.  Missouri dominated in every aspect of the game with RB Tony Temple rushing for 281 yards with 4 touchdowns as the Tigers claimed the title with a 38-7 win.  Arkansas seemed to be ready to defend their championship on the opening drive as they moved to the Missouri 18-yard line before PK Alex Tejada missed a 35-yard field goal attempt wide right.  The teams traded punts before the Tigers drove 73 yards in 6 plays to take the lead.  Temple carried the final 22 yards, breaking a tackle over left guard giving Missouri a 7-0 lead.  The Tigers second score came late in the 2^nd quarter as Temple capped a 6-play, 82-yard drive with a 4-yard touchdown run for a 14-0 lead.  The Razorbacks had another chance to put points on the board late in the quarter but Tejada's 37-yard field goal attempt was wide left.  Missouri showed how serious they were about maintaining the dominance when they recovered an on-side kick to open the 2^nd half.  The highlight of the 48-yard drive was a 19-yard run by Temple before he scored on the 4^th play of the drive from 4 yards out for a 21-0 lead.  Midway through the quarter, Arkansas got a break when Temple's fumble was recovered by the Razorbacks' DT Marcus Shavers at the Arkansas 21-yard line.  Four plays later, Arkansas' QB Casey Dick tried to throw RB Peyton Hillis in the flat but Missouri's LB Sean Witherspoon tipped the pass.  Tigers' S William Moore stepped into the passing lane, made the interception & raced 26 yards for another score.  The Razorbacks averted the shutout on their next drive as All-American RB Darren McFadden accounted for 39 of the 71 yards on the 10-play drive.  McFadden finished the drive with a 3-yard touchdown run but Arkansas still trailed 28-7 starting the 4^th quarter.  Early in the final quarter, Missouri's LB Connell Davis recovered a fumbled punt by the Razorbacks' CB Jerell Norton at the Arkansas 11-yard line.  The Tigers could not drive for a touchdown but PK Jeff Wolfert connected on a 32-yard field goal attempt for a 31-7 lead.  The final points came on a 40-yard touchdown run by Temple.  Missouri's All-Big 12 QB Chase Daniel finished with 136 yards passing with an interception in a game that was dominated by the Tigers' rushing attack.  Dick finished with 197 yards passing with an interception while McFadden added 105 yards rushing with his touchdown.  Arkansas finished the season 8-5 while Missouri finished 12-2, ranked 4^th nationally.  Arkansas would play for The Belt again in 2009.