Teammates supportive of their QB

FAYETTEVILLE — Tight end Trey Knox and tailback Raheim Sanders said Tuesday that quarterback KJ Jefferson’s leadership skills have kicked in since his key turnover in Saturday’s 23-21 loss to Texas A&M.

Jefferson lost a fumble on an ill-advised leap from the 3-yard line with Arkansas leading Texas A&M 14-7 late in the second quarter. The Aggies caught the loose ball in the air and eventually returned the fumble 97 yards for a touchdown to grab momentum.

“With that, I feel like he’s the type of guy he’ll get over things fast, just as in the game where he fumbled and I fumbled,” Sanders said, referencing their first-half turnovers in a 38-27 win over Missouri State the week before.

No. 20 University of Arkansas hosts No. 2 Alabama at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, trying to improve ball security after having four turnovers and no takeaways in the last two games.

“I mean, the football is a funny shaped ball and it rolls very weirdly sometimes and stuff happens,” the senior Knox said. “You just have to let it go.

“KJ does a really good job of letting things go and playing the next play. I mean, he wasn’t too down, he wasn’t too high. Just very even-keeled and you could tell by his performance, he knew he had to get it back and he had to put the team on his back and help us try to win the game last week.

“But he’s flushed it and he knows he didn’t play his best game on Saturday and he’s going out there this week to play his best game.”

Sanders, who lost a fumble at the 1-yard line against Missouri State, said Jefferson lifted him up.

“He actually helped me out with my fumble,” Sanders said. “After my fumble. I was down and I didn’t expect me to fumble close by the end zone, so he helped me out.

“So I feel like this week right here, he’s on one this week, just with practice and taking everything to the next level and making sure just not himself with ball security, but the running backs and everybody else on the offensive side of the ball.”