Saturday afternoon’s game between Texas A&M and Arkansas was billed as a battle between two coaches (Kevin Sumlin and Bret Bielema) desperate for a win to ease the pressure on them, and it didn’t disappoint.

It was a sloppy game that featured questionable calls by both coaches, but also some great individual plays from players on both sides.

Since it was an Arkansas-Texas A&M game, though, you knew the score was going to be close and the game was going to hinge on a few crazy plays.

The two teams more than lived up to that on Saturday at AT&T Stadium in Dallas, quickly turning the game into a shootout in the second half.

The game turned into the Christian Kirk show late in the fourth quarter and in overtime, though, as the Aggies held on for an exciting 50-43 overtime victory.

Here are some quick takeaways from Saturday’s big SEC West showdown:

The Cole Kelley show

The first half of Saturday’s game was dominated by Arkansas’s massive backup quarterback threw for a touchdown and ran for a couple of first downs while picking up 18 yards on three carries.

For some reason, as Texas A&M climbed back into the game in the second half, the Razorbacks stopped using Kelley, which can be pointed to as the spot in the game where the Hogs’ offense started faltering.

He eventually made it back into the game late in the third quarter, but he wasn’t used in the same way he was in the first half.

Austin Allen needs to get rid of the ball

The Arkansas quarterback needs to adjust to the fact that his offensive line isn’t as good as it once was. He’s taking too many sacks that he has no business taking because he’s holding onto the ball too long.

Unless Allen suddenly becomes Aaron Rodgers, he needs to get rid of the ball sooner or else he’s going to get hurt.

When he has time, he’s great, as a pair of long throws late in the game proved, but when he doesn’t have time, he needs to check it down sooner.

The refs blew it

The referees took four points off the board for the Aggies, missing a call on a long run by QB Kellen Mond. The play was whistled dead when it appeared Mond stepped out of bounds at the 10-yard line, but he actually was still well in the field of play.

The mistake prompted the SEC office to release a statement at halftime about why the play was not reviewable:

Yes, the Aggies need to be able to shake that off and punch it back in the end zone instead of having to settle for a field goal, but the referees also need to make the right calls in key situations like that.

Sumlin vs. Bielema

As both coaches try to hang onto their jobs for next year, neither one had a particularly good showing on Saturday.

Though the Aggies eventually won, it wasn’t because of Sumlin. Though he’ll earn a bit of a reprise from those calling for his job, he shouldn’t get too comfortable.

Meanwhile, the seat just got a whole lot hotter under Bielema.

Too many deep throws

When you have a true freshman quarterback like Mond, you want to do what you can to put him in manageable situations.

However, the Aggies did not do that on Saturday, calling a lot of deep throws (which Mond usually missed) on first downs.

By running with one of the team’s star running backs (or even Mond himself), the Aggies could have put themselves in much better second- and third-down situations.

Another wild one!

When Arkansas and Texas A&M meet up, you can guarantee it’s going to be a classic. Saturday’s game lived up to that, with both teams lighting up the scoreboard in the second half.

Naturally, regulation ended in a 43-43 tie and the two teams went into overtime for the third time in their last four years.

Christian Kirk is a monster

Kirk showed a ton of heart on Saturday, refusing to let his team lose. A long touchdown catch in the first half, a kickoff return in the second half and a shorter touchdown catch in overtime gave some nice balance to his day.

His OT score proved to be the game-winner, too, as Armani Watts picked off an Austin Allen pass on the next possession to seal a Texas A&M win.