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Razorbacks Add Final Non-Con Opponent To 2027 Football Schedule

Runnin' Bulldogs will be first of three straight non-conferenge games to open '27 for Hogs
Samuel Stubbs|
Jul 23, 2026; Tampa, FL, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks head coach Ryan Silverfield speaks to the press during SEC Football Kickoff Media Day at the Tampa Marriott. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
Jul 23, 2026; Tampa, FL, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks head coach Ryan Silverfield speaks to the press during SEC Football Kickoff Media Day at the Tampa Marriott. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

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Arkansas Razorbacks

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Arkansas will begin its 2027 football season in a rebranded CommunityAmerica Razorback Stadium against a team it has never played before.

Per a report from Matt Jones of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Arkansas will play Gardner-Webb on Aug. 28, 2027, in Fayetteville in what will be the first meeting between the two programs. Gardner-Webb plays in the FCS and is a member of the Ohio Valley Conference.

The report sets up Arkansas' 2027 non-conference slate as the first three games of the season for the Razorbacks, with Gardner-Webb coming to Fayetteville on Aug. 28, Arkansas traveling to Tulsa to play the Golden Hurricane on Sept. 4 and Oklahoma State paying a visit to Razorback Stadium on Sept. 11.

Arkansas will play Kentucky, Ole Miss, Texas and Alabama in Fayetteville next season and LSU, Florida, Oklahoma, Missouri and Mississippi State on the road in SEC play, giving UA six games in Fayetteville and six on the road.

Arkansas plays Tulsa at home this season on Sept. 19 and traveled to Oklahoma State back in September 2024, losing 39-31 in double-overtime.

Jones reported that the Aug. 28, 2027, game between Arkansas and Gardner-Webb will be the earliest in the year that Arkansas has ever played a football game.

Gardner-Webb's football program is relatively young, with the Runnin' Bulldogs fielding their first squad in 1970. The team moved up to Division I in 2000 and is entering its first season as an OVC member after the merger between the OVC and the Big South Conference ended.

Gardner-Webb is 281-322-2 all-time and won the 2022 Big South championship along with the 2023 OVC-Big South title. The Bulldogs went 7-5 last season and open their 2026 campaign against Austin Peay on Aug. 27.

The last Power Four school Gardner-Webb played was Georgia Tech on Sept. 6, 2025, with the Yellow Jackets taking a comfortable 59-12 win. The Runnin' Jackets' only game against another SEC squad happened in 2007, with Gardner-Webb losing 31-15 to Mississippi State.

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Samuel Stubbs
SAMUEL STUBBS

Sam Stubbs is a student at the University of Arkansas pursuing a degree in journalism. He has worked at the UA’s student newspaper, the Arkansas Traveler, since October 2025, becoming the assistant sports editor in December 2025. When he's not writing about the Razorbacks, Sam can be found covering NASCAR for Yardbarker and is a member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA), winning an award for race coverage from the association in February 2025. He's previously worked for Heavy, Field Level Media, Frontstretch and FanSided.

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