First Projection of Razorbacks' Schedule Doesn't Boost Optimism for Season

Top half of season might end up being best situation to get enough wins to survive brutal end for Pittman's team

Oklahoma State Cowboys running back Ollie Gordon II (0) runs against Texas A&M in the Texas Bowl in December last year. / Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — It may not take Arkansas that long this season to get to the first pivotal game. You might want to check the second game of the year on the road at Oklahoma State. It could show a lot either way.

Don't expect much beyond a glorified scrimmage keeping score and having a band and crowd in the opener against UAPB down in Little Rock. Moving it to Thursday in August will beat a little heat and also give an extra couple of days to get ready for what could set up the entire rest of the season.

The Cowboys are ranked No. 17 in ESPN's updated "way-too-early" rankings for the coming season. Nobody is giving the Razorbacks a lot of hope through a spring that raised more questions to a team loaded with them after the end of last year. A win will provide hope. A loss might not be a killer and a big one would have everyone asking when basketball starts.

It might be the best hope for something really good happening i the first half of the season. A Week 3 game against UAB is already marked as a win on everybody's projection list, but that might be overlooking a team that has competed well against the big boys. Even that early in the season might not be an easy pushover game for a team with a new offensive coordinator and as many new faces on the roster as the Hogs have.

The last three games of that first half of the season are a road trip to Auburn, then the final trip to Arlington against Texas A&M and a home game against a Tennessee that's ranked 16th in that ESPN early projection to the season.

The Hogs are 3-7 the last decade against the Tigers and that includes that whole messed-up year in 2020. Using that year for much other than some records probably should include an asterisk. As comical as Auburn's last decade has been with now their third head coach, Arkansas can match it by getting their third coach in that 2020 season. It's better than they've done against the Aggies, though.

The Razorbacks are just 1-9 against A&M over the last decade. While none of those games has a thing to do with this year if nothing else it shows a decided edge for the Aggies. Throw Auburn in there with the Aggies in those first six games and Arkansas is 4-16 over the last decade. Tennessee will wrap that up, but the Vols are also expected to keep their momentum going.

That's two teams in the preseason Top 25 and it's the easy half of the schedule. Coming out of that at 3-3 keeps hopes alive while being 2-4 is going to make it difficult to even qualify for another trip to the noted December day trip to Memphis for the Liberty Bowl.

Starting off with LSU isn't exactly the greatest way to start the last half of the schedule that right now shows one game in the "likely" category for a win (Louisiana Tech). The Tigers along with Ole Miss, Texas and Missouri are in the Top 10 preseason.

For a program needing positive things, about the only way they'll provide that is with a few upsets. Of course, historically, the Razorbacks have always done better when little was expected before the season. They are better coming from nowhere instead of leading from the front.

But that's about all anybody epected a big football season has to hang their hats on along with hope. Neither one are really a plan you want to put a lot of money down to back it up. The odds say the start of John Calipari's first basketball season will make headlines.

HOGS FEED:

• Despite best efforts, Van Horn wasn't risking future at A&M in finale

• Aggies run-rule Arkansas ending regular season on a sour note

• Arkansas Tailback Considered One Of Best Returnees In SEC

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