Fun story from myself, @RileyMcFerran and @DanielFair
(CLICK THE LINK FOR PICTURES IF YOU'RE A VISUAL LEARNER LIKE MYSELF)
Head coach Sam Pittman and the Arkansas Razorbacks learned what their 2024 SEC schedule will look like on Wednesday evening, and it's safe to say the Hogs are in store for another tough slate.
Four of the first five games of the season will be played away from Fayetteville. Arkansas will open the year against UAPB on Aug. 31 at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock and then it will hit the road for Stillwater, Oklahoma, for a game at Oklahoma State.
After playing the true home opener against UAB on Sept. 14, Arkansas will play at Auburn on Sept. 21 and then the Hogs will meet Texas A&M for the Southwest Classic at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
After getting past those first five games, the Razorbacks will play five of their last seven in Fayetteville. October will feature home games against Tennessee and LSU, plus a road trip to Mississippi State. Arkansas will host a pair of rivals in November with Ole Miss and Texas coming to town, and it will also host Louisiana Tech before closing the year at Missouri on Nov. 30.
The HawgBeat staff decided to give our individual thoughts regarding the Hogs' 2024 slate, including bold predictions, toughest back-to-back games, interesting notes, must-attend games and more.
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Sept. 7 at Oklahoma State
Sept. 14 vs. UAB
Sept. 21 at Auburn
Sept. 28 vs. Texas A&M (AT&T Stadium — Arlington, Texas)
Oct. 5 vs. Tennessee
Oct. 12 Bye week
Oct. 19 vs LSU
Oct. 26 at Mississippi State
Nov. 2 vs Ole Miss
Nov. 9 Bye week
Nov. 16 vs. Texas
Nov. 23 vs. Louisiana Tech
Nov. 30 at Missouri
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Next season will be pivotal for head coach Sam Pittman and he was dealt a really tough hand out of the gate. Arkansas will play just one of its first five games in Fayetteville. Road games at Oklahoma State and at Auburn by the third weekend in September is not ideal.
I like the home slate in October and November, but you just hope that they are in a better spot during those months next year than they were this fall. November home games against Ole Miss and Texas could end up being electric if all teams have a lot to play for.
~ Mason Choate, HawgBeat Publisher
Well, at least Arkansas isn't playing Alabama, am I right? Instead, the Hogs will open the 2024 season away from Fayetteville in four out of the first five games just a year after running through a four-game road gauntlet against SEC competition from Sept. 23 to Oct. 14. Not exactly a recipe for success.
Still, getting Tennessee, LSU, Ole Miss and Texas all at home does set up well to close the season out. But by that point it may be too little, too late.
~ Riley McFerran, HawgBeat Managing Editor
It’s nice not having Alabama or Georgia on the schedule, but this is still a tough slate. I like that Texas and Tennessee — arguably the two toughest games this year — come to Fayetteville and they both come after bye weeks.
The usual suspects of Auburn, Texas A&M, LSU, Missouri, Ole Miss and Mississippi State still appear on the schedule, and I think the Hogs could pull out two or three of those.
At this point, I think the Hogs need to win at least eight games to appease the fanbase. Getting bowl eligible is nice, but it shouldn’t be the goal.
~ Daniel Fair, Football Recruiting Analyst
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I'm going to go really bold and say ESPN's College Gameday comes to Fayetteville on Oct. 5 for Arkansas vs. Tennessee.
For this to happen, Arkansas would have to really start strong and be either 4-0 or 3-1 with likely back-to-back wins over Auburn and Texas A&M. On the other hand, Tennessee starts with Chattanooga and a neutral site game against NC State. The Vols will then get Kent State at home before a game at Oklahoma on Sept. 21.
Other notable games that day include Michigan at Washington, Auburn at Georgia and Missouri at Texas A&M.
~ Mason Choate, HawgBeat Publisher
Arkansas picks up huge early-season momentum with a road win against Oklahoma State before going 1-2 against Auburn, Texas A&M and Tennessee to head into the first bye week with a 4-2 (1-2 SEC) record.
The Hogs then beat an LSU team without Jayden Daniels at home before splitting the Mississippi schools. Now sitting at 6-3 (3-3 SEC) and with a second bye week to prepare, the Razorbacks pick up their third-straight win over the Texas Longhorns. With a big bowl game on its mind, Arkansas beats Louisiana Tech before dropping the season-finale to Missouri.
8-4 (4-4 SEC) may not seem bold, but it would be a pretty big turnaround after finishing with a 4-8 record in 2023.
~ Riley McFerran, HawgBeat Managing Editor
My bold take is the Hogs start the season 5-0 with Tennessee — who is also 5-0 — coming to town. As Mason said, College GameDay will be in town, it’ll be a night game and the Hogs roll over Josh Heupel and the Vols.
After the bye, Arkansas gets revenge on LSU, lose to both Mississippi schools, then come out of the bye week with a clunker against Texas. They have a get-right game against Lousiana Tech before taking yet another loss to Missouri.
After a 4-8 season last year, it’s hard to scoff at 8-4.
~ Daniel Fair, Football Recruiting Analyst
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I'll take the back-to-back of Mississippi State and Ole Miss. The Hogs will travel to Starkville on Oct. 26 to face the Bulldogs a week after playing LSU. Mississippi State will be led by first-year head coach Jeff Lebby and former Arkansas offensive line coach Cody Kennedy will be on the opposing sideline in the same role for the Bulldogs.
Looking back to Pittman's first year in 2020, it was a win at Mississippi State that ended a 20-game losing streak in SEC play. If he can get a win over the Bulldogs and then come home and best Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss, the Hogs will really be rolling into a bye week to get healthy for a Nov. 16 showdown with Texas.
Maybe this won't be the toughest stretch as far as opponent talent, but going 2-0 in this stretch could really generate momentum late in the season no matter how the start of the year went.
~ Mason Choate, HawgBeat Publisher
This one is tough, but I think it comes down to Auburn-Texas A&M. The two-game stretch features games away from home against a Tigers team that blew out Arkansas 48-10 and an Aggies team that beat the Hogs 34-22 in 2023. The Aggies will have a new head coach in Mike Elko, but he went 9-4 in his first season at Duke.
~ Riley McFerran, HawgBeat Managing Editor
The toughest back-to-back for me is Texas and Louisiana Tech. Not because Louisiana Tech is great, but because by that point in the year, the outcome of the season could hang in the balance.
Depending on how the season goes, Arkansas could already be bowl eligible by the time Texas comes to town. If they upset the Longhorns (and I think Texas will be favored) they might let their guard down against the Bulldogs.
If they lose to Texas, and are already out of bowl contention, it’s going to be hard to get motivated to play Louisiana Tech. There’s also the possibility of looking ahead to Missouri that could spell disaster for Arkansas.
~ Daniel Fair, Football Recruiting Analyst
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Roundtable: HawgBeat's thoughts on Arkansas' 2024 SEC schedule
The HawgBeat staff provides thoughts, bold predictions, notes and more on Arkansas' 2024 football schedule.
arkansas.rivals.com
(CLICK THE LINK FOR PICTURES IF YOU'RE A VISUAL LEARNER LIKE MYSELF)
Head coach Sam Pittman and the Arkansas Razorbacks learned what their 2024 SEC schedule will look like on Wednesday evening, and it's safe to say the Hogs are in store for another tough slate.
Four of the first five games of the season will be played away from Fayetteville. Arkansas will open the year against UAPB on Aug. 31 at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock and then it will hit the road for Stillwater, Oklahoma, for a game at Oklahoma State.
After playing the true home opener against UAB on Sept. 14, Arkansas will play at Auburn on Sept. 21 and then the Hogs will meet Texas A&M for the Southwest Classic at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
After getting past those first five games, the Razorbacks will play five of their last seven in Fayetteville. October will feature home games against Tennessee and LSU, plus a road trip to Mississippi State. Arkansas will host a pair of rivals in November with Ole Miss and Texas coming to town, and it will also host Louisiana Tech before closing the year at Missouri on Nov. 30.
The HawgBeat staff decided to give our individual thoughts regarding the Hogs' 2024 slate, including bold predictions, toughest back-to-back games, interesting notes, must-attend games and more.
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Arkansas' 2024 Football Schedule
Aug. 31 vs. UAPB (Little Rock)Sept. 7 at Oklahoma State
Sept. 14 vs. UAB
Sept. 21 at Auburn
Sept. 28 vs. Texas A&M (AT&T Stadium — Arlington, Texas)
Oct. 5 vs. Tennessee
Oct. 12 Bye week
Oct. 19 vs LSU
Oct. 26 at Mississippi State
Nov. 2 vs Ole Miss
Nov. 9 Bye week
Nov. 16 vs. Texas
Nov. 23 vs. Louisiana Tech
Nov. 30 at Missouri
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Brief general thoughts
Next season will be pivotal for head coach Sam Pittman and he was dealt a really tough hand out of the gate. Arkansas will play just one of its first five games in Fayetteville. Road games at Oklahoma State and at Auburn by the third weekend in September is not ideal.
I like the home slate in October and November, but you just hope that they are in a better spot during those months next year than they were this fall. November home games against Ole Miss and Texas could end up being electric if all teams have a lot to play for.
~ Mason Choate, HawgBeat Publisher
Well, at least Arkansas isn't playing Alabama, am I right? Instead, the Hogs will open the 2024 season away from Fayetteville in four out of the first five games just a year after running through a four-game road gauntlet against SEC competition from Sept. 23 to Oct. 14. Not exactly a recipe for success.
Still, getting Tennessee, LSU, Ole Miss and Texas all at home does set up well to close the season out. But by that point it may be too little, too late.
~ Riley McFerran, HawgBeat Managing Editor
It’s nice not having Alabama or Georgia on the schedule, but this is still a tough slate. I like that Texas and Tennessee — arguably the two toughest games this year — come to Fayetteville and they both come after bye weeks.
The usual suspects of Auburn, Texas A&M, LSU, Missouri, Ole Miss and Mississippi State still appear on the schedule, and I think the Hogs could pull out two or three of those.
At this point, I think the Hogs need to win at least eight games to appease the fanbase. Getting bowl eligible is nice, but it shouldn’t be the goal.
~ Daniel Fair, Football Recruiting Analyst
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Bold predictions
I'm going to go really bold and say ESPN's College Gameday comes to Fayetteville on Oct. 5 for Arkansas vs. Tennessee.
For this to happen, Arkansas would have to really start strong and be either 4-0 or 3-1 with likely back-to-back wins over Auburn and Texas A&M. On the other hand, Tennessee starts with Chattanooga and a neutral site game against NC State. The Vols will then get Kent State at home before a game at Oklahoma on Sept. 21.
Other notable games that day include Michigan at Washington, Auburn at Georgia and Missouri at Texas A&M.
~ Mason Choate, HawgBeat Publisher
Arkansas picks up huge early-season momentum with a road win against Oklahoma State before going 1-2 against Auburn, Texas A&M and Tennessee to head into the first bye week with a 4-2 (1-2 SEC) record.
The Hogs then beat an LSU team without Jayden Daniels at home before splitting the Mississippi schools. Now sitting at 6-3 (3-3 SEC) and with a second bye week to prepare, the Razorbacks pick up their third-straight win over the Texas Longhorns. With a big bowl game on its mind, Arkansas beats Louisiana Tech before dropping the season-finale to Missouri.
8-4 (4-4 SEC) may not seem bold, but it would be a pretty big turnaround after finishing with a 4-8 record in 2023.
~ Riley McFerran, HawgBeat Managing Editor
My bold take is the Hogs start the season 5-0 with Tennessee — who is also 5-0 — coming to town. As Mason said, College GameDay will be in town, it’ll be a night game and the Hogs roll over Josh Heupel and the Vols.
After the bye, Arkansas gets revenge on LSU, lose to both Mississippi schools, then come out of the bye week with a clunker against Texas. They have a get-right game against Lousiana Tech before taking yet another loss to Missouri.
After a 4-8 season last year, it’s hard to scoff at 8-4.
~ Daniel Fair, Football Recruiting Analyst
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Toughest back-to-back?
I'll take the back-to-back of Mississippi State and Ole Miss. The Hogs will travel to Starkville on Oct. 26 to face the Bulldogs a week after playing LSU. Mississippi State will be led by first-year head coach Jeff Lebby and former Arkansas offensive line coach Cody Kennedy will be on the opposing sideline in the same role for the Bulldogs.
Looking back to Pittman's first year in 2020, it was a win at Mississippi State that ended a 20-game losing streak in SEC play. If he can get a win over the Bulldogs and then come home and best Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss, the Hogs will really be rolling into a bye week to get healthy for a Nov. 16 showdown with Texas.
Maybe this won't be the toughest stretch as far as opponent talent, but going 2-0 in this stretch could really generate momentum late in the season no matter how the start of the year went.
~ Mason Choate, HawgBeat Publisher
This one is tough, but I think it comes down to Auburn-Texas A&M. The two-game stretch features games away from home against a Tigers team that blew out Arkansas 48-10 and an Aggies team that beat the Hogs 34-22 in 2023. The Aggies will have a new head coach in Mike Elko, but he went 9-4 in his first season at Duke.
~ Riley McFerran, HawgBeat Managing Editor
The toughest back-to-back for me is Texas and Louisiana Tech. Not because Louisiana Tech is great, but because by that point in the year, the outcome of the season could hang in the balance.
Depending on how the season goes, Arkansas could already be bowl eligible by the time Texas comes to town. If they upset the Longhorns (and I think Texas will be favored) they might let their guard down against the Bulldogs.
If they lose to Texas, and are already out of bowl contention, it’s going to be hard to get motivated to play Louisiana Tech. There’s also the possibility of looking ahead to Missouri that could spell disaster for Arkansas.
~ Daniel Fair, Football Recruiting Analyst
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