Can Razorbacks Stabilize for a Change as SEC, Big Ten Still Separating

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — When Lincoln Riley started talking about the gap forming between the Big Ten, SEC and other college football programs he wasn’t revealing anything people didn't already understand.

He just said the quiet part out loud. The truth of the matter is there is a short window for the Arkansas Razorbacks to get better.

2-10 isn't acceptable anymore and as TV and media contracts come rushing in to hit the 2030 window, Arkansas football faces the harsh reality of being left behind.

As popular evangelist David Miller used to say, "Now, put that in your pipe and smoke it."

As Riley recently shared in an interview with On3, the SEC and Big Ten have separated themselves from the rest of the pack in every single way possible.

NIL is handled differently. Recruiting rankings are dominated by the two conferences.

There hasn't been a championship winning team outside of the Big Two since Clemson did so twice in 2016 and 2018. Both of those were won by the Tigers prior to the landscape of the sport changing in 2021.

Arkansas Razorbacks quarterback KJ Jackson on the field against the Texas A&M Aggies at Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville, Ark. | Ted McClenning-allHOGS Images

There is no theory to be had in this conversation. There is also no branding that can change the reality in what can be described as the New World Order of College Football. Things are changing and those uncomfortable with it will be left in the ditch for a long, painful death.

“I think it’s pretty clear that the Big Ten and the SEC have separated themselves,” Riley said during a Wednesday interview. “I think everybody in college football understands that. That’s just the reality of where the situation is, in terms of the schedules. I know everybody wants to sit there and debate those two conferences, but the reality is, both conferences are fantastic. Both conferences, you play elite-level teams very, very often.

“The strengths of schedules are very different, and I think that’s honestly made rankings and Playoff rankings that much more difficult. The discrepancy in schedules right now has never been higher in football than where it is now. You’re asking humans to do a very difficult job, given how we currently rank teams. I think guys know now that if you come to USC and play in the Big Ten, you’re gonna play one of the best schedules in the country. You’re gonna play marquee teams on the road and certainly here in LA at The Coliseum. Your strength of schedule is not going to be questioned.”

He’s right about the separation that is occurring across the country, but the question to be asked is where does Arkansas exactly fit into what's rapidly changing?

Obviously, the Razorbacks are already in the room among the best teams in the country, but aren't quite on the same playing field with the majority of the SEC.

There has been a sense of movement from Arkansas' side of things in recent months, but it hasn't been because of anything athletics director Hunter Yurachek is doing.

Whether it's the actual board of trustees' proposal of moving money around to keep the football program afloat or providing resources for new coach Ryan Silverfield to be successful, things appear to be moving in the right direction.

New Arkansas Razorbacks coach coach Ryan Silverfield calls the hogs during a timeout in the first half against the Kentucky Wildcats at Bud Walton Arena. | Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

When a team resides inside the heavyweight division, it better be ready to get punched in the mouth repeatedly. Not just one or two weeks out of the season, but taking blows each and every down against all 15 opponents in the SEC.

Saturdays for the Razorbacks aren’t spent measuring against mid-level competition in hopes of cracking into the College Football Playoff discussion. No, they have to go out and fight for the right to play in the SEC, but haven't shown up for these big league fights on a consistent basis in quite a while now.

That's why getting things turned around quickly under Silverfield is important for the immediate future of this program. It's either get it done now or be left behind.

The Razorbacks play in a league Riley himself acknowledges himself as an elite conference that plays the hardest schedules week after week. That reality carries weight and for Arkansas, that means its share of television windows, recruiting battles and access to the postseason are at stake.

With an investment overhaul that can surely change the infrastructure up and down the Razorbacks roster, it means the margin for error is thinner than it ever has been. Winning is the ultimate cure for what's been a decaying product for many years now.

While raising the SEC banner doesn’t guarantee footing in an uncertain college football landscape, being part of the conference guarantees exposure each and every week.

That up-and-down nature over the previous decade in Fayetteville hasn't kept the Razorbacks from opportunities either. There have points that Arkansas had the opportunity to win more often, but couldn't turn the corner under Bret Bielema or Sam Pittman.

Arkansas isn't a place where coaches careers come to die. That was never the case until recently. All this program needs is someone to win and then sustain that success continually like Frank Broyles, Lou Holtz, Ken Hatfield, and Houston Nutt were able to do.

Arkansas Razorbacks coach Sam Pittman on the sidelines in a game against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville, Ark. | Nilsen Roman-allHOGS Images

Perhaps that is exactly what Silverfield can do at Arkansas now. He was able to do the same thing at Memphis, which made him an attractive candidate to do the same thing with the Razorbacks.

The Arkansas athletics department has done things a bit backwards since the institution of NIL, and the transfer portal. Playing from behind on a consistent basis can wear anyone out which means accepting what's going on financially and structurally across the college football landscape is necessary for the future of this program.

In a world where championships dreams, postseason hopes and recruiting run wild it's time Arkansas joins the SEC by using the same universal measuring stick for success before the opportunity to do so passes by.

Arkansas has spent years reacting later to changes than dictating its future with no boundaries.

It's athletic department would rather adapt in different ways than surrender to the new normal.

Since Silverfield took over, Arkansas has shown signs of recalibrating their philosophy, particularly through aggressive transfer portal activity aimed at stabilizing roster depth. That approach signals engagement with the current landscape rather than the old status quo.

While one good transfer class won't erase the gap between Arkansas and the rest of the SEC, it at least shows there's a little bit of fight left in those Hogs.

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