Jaxson Dart, Jordan Watkins set Ole Miss records, crush Arkansas to stay in College Football Playoff hunt

Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart and receiver Jordan Watkins each had record-setting games Saturday as the No. 19 Rebels laid a 63-31 beating on Arkansas in a must-win game for the program's College Football Playoff hopes. Dart set a new school record with 515 yards passing in a game, while Watkins set two single-game school records with 254 yards receiving and five touchdowns. 

Dart also became the first player in school history to pass for 500 or more yards and six touchdowns in the same game. His favorite target, Watkins, finished with eight receptions in just three quarters. Watkins became the first FBS player to make five touchdown grabs in the same game since Tennessee's Jalin Hyatt did it against Alabama in 2022.

Watkins' huge game came at a moment of need for the Rebels, who were playing without leading receiver Tre Harris. Three of Watkins' scoring grabs were on plays of 60 yards or longer, including two separated by just two minutes as Ole Miss took command with a 28-point second quarter. Watkins had just 295 yards receiving on 17 grabs entering the game and hadn't made a touchdown grab since Sept. 21.

The offensive explosion was reminiscent of Ole Miss' roaring start to the season against a light nonconference schedule in which it posted 600 or more yards in four straight games. But since the arrival of SEC play, the Rebels had struggled to find that gear. Entering Saturday's game, they'd yet to reach 500 yards in an SEC game.

But against Arkansas, Dart needed just three quarters to reach that total by himself as a passer.