"Lot Of Excitement!" Arkansas HC Sam Pittman Looking Forward To Southwest Classic

The 81st edition of the rivalry game between Arkansas and Texas A&M will be held inside AT&T Stadium for what is most likely the final time.

Sep 14, 2024; Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks head coach Sam Pittman reacts after a play in the first quarter against the UAB Blazers at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images / Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

If it weren't for the Longhorns or the LSU Tigers, there is no doubt that the biggest SEC rivals for the Texas A&M Aggies would be the Arkansas Razorbacks.

The Aggies and Razorbacks have met 80 times in the "Southwest Classic" that dates all the way back to 1903, where the Aggies won the first meeting 6-0.

Arkansas currently leads the all-time series 42-35-3, but the Aggies have won 11 of the last 12 contests.

Since then, the two teams met sporadically until 1934, when the game became an annual event and the rivalry we all know today. This occurred until 1991 when the Razorbacks left the Southwest Conference to join the Southeast Conference.

The rivalry remained dormant until 2009, when the two teams squared off again in a renewal of the classic, this time inside what was then known as Cowboys Stadium. The game has been played annually ever since, especially after Texas A&M joined the Southeastern Conference in 2012, and since 2014, the game has been held at AT&T Stadium.

However, recently in the past year, there have been talks of the rivalry returning to College Station and Fayetteville, meaning that this year is most likely the last time the two teams will face off at "Jerry World," of course, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones being an Arkansas alumnus himself.

Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman spoke in a press conference about his players' optimism of playing inside the stadium, even though the scoreboard hasn't gone in the Pigs' favor much in recent years.

"It hasn't been a great series for us, but there is excitement in recruiting about the game," Pittman said. "There's excitement for the players, you know we have a lot of Texas kids and (they look forward to) going back to Dallas and playing in the stadium."

The 81st edition of the "Southwest Classic" is going down on Saturday at 2:30 p.m.