Todd Berry has said all offseason that unlike past years, it’s time for ULM to take the next step forward and compete with the nation’s best.

The Warhawks did that and more on Saturday night in Little Rock.

Kolton Browning’s 16-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-one silenced the crowd at War Memorial Stadium as ULM shocked No 8. Arkansas 34-31 in overtime. Browning passed for 412 yards and ran for 69 more, scoring 4 touchdowns along the way as the Warhawks (1-0) stormed back from a 21-point deficit to beat the Razorbacks (1-1).

“My first game [at ULM] was against Arkansas in 2010 and I wanted to finish what I started,” said Browning, who was named ESPN’s National Player of the Week. “This win puts us on the map.”

The monumental victory is ULM’s first against a ranked team since joining the FBS in 1994 and fourth all-time against a Southeastern Conference opponent. The win is also the first for a Sun Belt Conference school against a team ranked in the top 10.

Trailing 28-7 in the third quarter, the Warhawks produced the final three touchdowns of regulation to send the game into overtime. The ULM defense bent but it didn’t break, holding Arkansas to under 400 yards of total offense and knocking All-SEC quarterback Tyler Wilson out of the game.

The Hog defense had no answer for the Warhawks offensively, allowing them to convert several key 4th downs, including a 23 yard touchdown pass from Browning to wide receiver Brent Leonard on fourth-and-10 that sent the game to overtime.

“Those are things we work on in practice,” Berry said. “When we go for it on fourth down, our guys aren’t shocked. They expect it.”

Overall, ULM rolled up 550 yards of total offense on the Razorbacks. Leonard, the game’s leading receiver, finished with 11 catches for 112 yards and a touchdown. After Centarius Donald left the game with an injury, Jyruss Edwards carried the load at running back with 15 rushes for 36 yards and a touchdown.

Berry is proud of his team’s effort, but the veteran coach understands that for ULM to maintain their momentum they must continue to play well.

“The only way that this becomes real is if we play well again next week,” Berry said. “We have our work cut out for us and we look forward to a very difficult game at Auburn.”

Kickoff for ULM-Auburn is set for Saturday at 11:21 AM from Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Ala. The game will be broadcast live on the SEC Network.