Fifth-year head coach Sam Pittman saw success with Arkansas the last time he took the Razorbacks on the road for the first game of the team's recent home-and-home series with a non-conference opponent.
The headline to this story may be deceiving, as Arkansas hasn't played its opponent this Saturday, Oklahoma State, since 1980. But the Razorbacks did take part in a home-and-home series' with BYU — a team now in the Big 12 conference with the Cowboys — and the first matchup in Provo, Utah, was a pretty dominant win for the Razorbacks.
Fresh off three straight losses back in the 2022 season, the Razorbacks were in desperate need for a win at BYU on Oct. 15, 2022. Powered by 367 passing yards and five touchdowns from quarterback KJ Jefferson, the Razorbacks picked up a 52-35 win over the Cougars in a hostile environment at LaVell Edwards Stadium.
BYU returned the favor last season by earning a 38-31 win over the Razorbacks in the friendly confines of Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville. According to Pittman, it might be a little easier to get the team motivated when going on the road, which they will do Saturday at No. 17 Oklahoma State.
"A lot of times you get your team on the road, you get them together, it’s just y’all versus everybody," Pittman said. "That feeling, at times, if you have a real close team can make you play a little bit better. You don’t have the distractions of as many tickets and all that kind of stuff. I don’t really know the answer to that. I think we’ll be ready to play Oklahoma State. I know they will (be ready for) us, but I think it’s going to be a really, really good game."
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Based on Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy's comments Monday about the Razorbacks, the Cowboys are well aware that last season's 4-8 campaign could've been much different for the Hogs. Gundy, who has been the Cowboys' head coach since 2005, pointed out Arkansas' five one-score losses last year in his Monday press conference.
"I don't know what their record was last year, but it looked like to me they could have won eight games pretty easy in obviously a very difficult conference," Gundy said. "They played against good teams and lost single-digit points late in the fourth quarter. So, this team that we're playing Saturday, regardless of what anybody in the country may think, will be as talented as anybody we play all year, in my opinion."
ALSO READ: What Oklahoma State HC Mike Gundy said about Arkansas
As for Pittman and the Razorbacks, it's safe to say they had the ability to look ahead to this Week 2 matchup all offseason. After pummeling in-state foe Arkansas-Pine Bluff by a score of 70-0 to open the season Thursday, Pittman began his Monday preview of Oklahoma State by rattling off maybe more individual players for the opponent than he has in a press conference.
"They have 17 to 18 returning starters, played really well Saturday (against South Dakota State)," Pittman said. "Offensively, they have a ton of skill, really good at the skill spots, starting with the quarterback (Alan) Bowman. Then Ollie Gordon is certainly as good as any running back in the country. It starts with Brennan Presley. They love to get the ball to him. He’s a fantastic returner as well.
"And then I like the (De'Zhaun) Stribling kid they got out of Washington State. He’s done a really good job at wideout, and they already had Owens. Then they have their entire offensive line coming back who’s really playing well together. So you know they went to the Big 12 championship game last year and look to be headed north on that as well this year."
MORE: What Sam Pittman said about Oklahoma State
The Head Hog continued to go in detail on the Cowboys' defense and special teams, as well, and he even talked about how he was able to tune in live to Oklahoma State's 44-20 win over reigning FCS national champs South Dakota State on Saturday.
"Watching games live, they came out and they went fast pace early," Pittman said. "You don’t necessarily, as you’re watching cut-ups, get that feel. So we certainly have to be ready for their fast-paced offense. They don’t run it all the time, but we have to be ready for that. He opened the game with it, Coach Gundy did, last week. So yeah, I think there are benefits (to watching live).
"Certainly you can hear calls and different things you can’t hear on cut-ups, but I think you just get a live feel of it watching it… Like you said, you don’t get a lot of that. Now sometimes you do, maybe on the plane coming back or the bus coming back, maybe if your opponent is playing later than you did, but not very often do you get to just sit down and watch a game. As I’m watching, I go, ‘Man, they’ve got a really good team.’"
ESPN analytics give Arkansas a 44.1% chance to beat Oklahoma State on Saturday, and BetSaracen currently has the Razorbacks as a 7.5-point underdog.
Saturday's matchup, which will be broadcast on ABC, is slated for an 11 a.m. CT kickoff at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Oklahoma. The Cowboys are set to return the home-and-home favor with a matchup in Fayetteville during the 2027 season.
