Razorbacks Need More Than Half from UAPB in Season Opener

With big road game following week against ranked Oklahoma State, Arkansas might want more than it got in previous game

Arkansas Razorbacks coach Sam Pittman talks with official during win over UAPB at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock, Ark., on Oct. 23, 2021. / Ted McClenning-Hogs on SI Images

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The last time Arkansas faced Arkansas-Pine Bluff on a football field, the game was literally nearly over at halftime. Both coaches agreed to invoke the mercy rule for the second half and the clock didn't stop much.

This time Sam Pittman would probably like to have a little more test. Getting a mercy-rule second half when they line up Aug. 29 in Little Rock at War Memorial Stadium might be the worst thing they need facing Oklahoma State the following week.

While there will be some first-game wrinkles (there always is for everybody), just keep in mind when new offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino was the head man in charge in 2008, his first game of the year was a cause for some squirming in a 28-24 win over Western Illinois.

Oh, don't take that to mean the Golden Lions really have a shot at winning. Not even their most loyal fans are showing up expecting that.

Pittman and the Razorback staff want to see how their players match up against somebody in a different color jersey. They have a ranked opponent coming up in just over a week on the road.

That will be the game to set the tone for September, not some warm-up scrimmage in Little Rock. At least it better not be.

If the game isn't all but over at halftime, there will be howling, but the Hogs would probably get far more out of a challenge at least a couple of series into the third quarter. Nothing is likely going to be easy over in Stillwater against the Cowboys.

OSU has what should be a competitive game against defending FCS national champion South Dakota State in Week 1. Don't dismiss that because they have a team that is the biggest deal in a state without an FBS program.

They have really good players. UAPB, on the other hand, has to deal with several other schools like UCA and all those other programs grabbing players head coach Alonza Hampton would like to have.

Hey, it's a jungle getting players at that level, too. The process is just different than the Razorbacks.

It's pretty much a guarantee, though, the coaches want tape of how their guys stack up against other teams. They don't get that in practice, which is the biggest issue with the likely depth problem Pittman has to deal with. Maybe it will be worth the trip.

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• Shift in scholarship numbers offer new reality for Hogs

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