Three reasons why Hogs football should win big next season

How many Razorbacks football fans are excited about next season? My sense is not many.

There's been a regime change, yes, and that usually fosters hope but Arkansas didn't hire Lane Kiffin, lure Nick Saban out of retirement, or bring back Knute Rockne from the grave.

Still, the Hogs' new coach, Ryan Silverfield, brings a winning tradition and renewed enthusiasm to the program.

Before most of you frown and grouse that the Hogs will never win consistently or at a high enough level to challenge the elite programs, keep reading and watch this short clip.

Here are three amazing examples why Arkansas can make the jump in a single season and challenge for, or reach, the College Football Playoff.

Example One: Texas Tech Red Raiders

Just 49 weeks ago, Arkansas whipped Texas Tech, 39-26, in the Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Tenn. It was Arkansas that seemed poised for a big season in 2025.

Taylen Green in the 2024 Liberty Bowl:
-341 yards passing, 2 TDs
-81 yards rushing, 1 TD
-Arkansas bowl record 422 yards of offense

He's poised for a big 2025. 2 more weeks! pic.twitter.com/ixbcebKBAA
— WarMachine2013 (@WarMachine2013) August 16, 2025

But Arkansas sank to the depths of college football while Texas Tech rose from the ashes of its defeat at the hands of the Hogs to earn a berth in the College Football Playoff.

Even more amazing is that the Red Raiders are the No. 4 seed in the CFP. How good is Texas Tech?

The Red Raiders are 12-1.
They beat 12 teams by 20-plus points.
They trounced BYU in the Big 12 title game.

To me, Tech aced the eye test in their Saturday showdown with BYU, scoring the game's final 34 points in 34-7 rout.

It was Texas Tech's second win this season over BYU, a team that would've made the CFP if they'd won Saturday in the Big 12 Championship Game.

The Red Raiders are only the third team ever to beat 12 teams in a season by 20-plus points, joining the 2013 Florida State Seminoles and the 2018 Alabama Crimson Tide.

Texas Tech didn't reach the heights of college football by hiring some Hall of Fame college coach like Urban Meyer. Nope they chose Baylor five-year assistant coach Joey McGuire, who'd been a highly successful high school coach for more than 15 years in Texas.

Texas Tech Red Raiders coach Joey McGuire celebrates with the Big 12 Championship trophy after Saturday's 34-7 victory over the BYU Cougars at AT&T Stadium. | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

McGuire was 23-16 in his first three years as the head man in Lubbock, Texas before hitting the jackpot this season. His last two losses are to Arizona this season and Arkansas on Dec. 27, 2024 in the Liberty Bowl.

What's the main ingredient for Texas Tech's success? Recruiting those high schools in Texas and winning the transfer portal battle. That's how teams can rebuild immediately.

Example Two: Indiana Hoosiers

How bad is Indiana football? Historically bad. They've suffered the second most losses in the history of major college football.

Before hiring a little-known coach who'd led two tiny schools and one mid-major for 15 years, Indiana had endured 26 losing seasons in the previous 29 years.

They were 9-27 in the three seasons before hiring Curt Cignetti. Now they're the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff in Cignetti's second season leading the Hoosiers.

Indiana Hoosiers coach Curt Cignetti led the downtrodden program to the College Football Playoffs in his first and second seasons with IU. | Grace Hollars/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

They're 13-0 and beat mighty Ohio State on Saturday to win their first outright conference championship since 1945 and first since 1967 when they shared a title.

This year, the Hoosiers are hands down the the sentimental choice to win the national championship. It also seems to be their destiny as they ended a hard-to-believe 30-game losing streak to Ohio State.

Equally incredible is how fast Cignetti achieved the turnaround at a school that had no idea how to be successful.

In his first year at Indiana, his team was 11-2 and reached the CFP as the No. 9 seed, losing 27-17 on the road to No. 3 Notre Dame, which reached the championship game.

If Cignetti can do it, why not Silverfield?

Example Three: Vanderbilt Commodores

Vandy has historically been the doormat of the SEC. Only the occasionally equally inept Kentucky Wildcats could keep Vanderbilt out of the cellar.

Part of Vandy's problem is its reputation as the Harvard of the SEC, the good academic school that attracts more Fulbright scholars than 4-star recruits, let alone a 5-star.

For you old-timers, think of the Rice Owls in the defunct Southwest Conference, where Arkansas played before jumping to the even more difficult but more lucrative SEC.

Rice and Vandy, two of a kind, first in players on the All-Academic team but regularly overmatched on Saturdays in the fall.

Until, that is, this season. Vanderbilt is 10-2 overall and an impressive 6-2 in the SEC.

More impressive is the Commodores were in the College Football Playoff discussion. They're No. 14 in today's final ranking.

That made them the "fourth team out" when it came to being included in the tournament. The four teams closest to being included were Notre Dame, BYU, Texas and Vandy.

This was a two-year turnaround for the Commodores, even though Clark Lea is in his fifth year as Vandy's coach. Here's his record for five seasons, excluding the upcoming bowl game:

2021: 2-10, 0-8 (SEC)
2022: 5-7, 2-6
2023: 2-10, 0-8
2024: 7-6, 3-5
2025: 10-2, 6-2

So, after a three-year mark of 9-27 (same as Indiana before Cignetti's arrival) and 2-22 in the SEC, it took Vanderbilt just two seasons to turn into a CFP contender.

Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia (2) and coach Clark Lea embrace after the team’s win against Tennessee at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn., on Nov. 29. | Mark Zaleski / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Why, Silverfield is asking, can't the Hogs do the same?

Why Razorbacks fans should believe

It's important to remember Arkansas beat Texas Tech to end last season. So, how did 2025 produce one of the most disappointing seasons in Hogs' history?

If you've forgotten the ugly bottom-line details on what could've been a winning season behind senior quarterback Taylen Green, who led the nation in total offense through 10 games, here they are:

Coach Sam Pittman was fired.
Arkansas finished 2-10.
The Hogs lost their last 10.
They were 0-8 in the SEC.

So, how in the name of Frank Broyles or Darren McFadden could Arkansas possibly turn into a winning program in the fall of 2026? Two reasons, I'll argue.

First one is old news but speaks to the fact that many talented players suit up in Arkansas' locker room. The Hogs lost six games this season by a total of 17 points. They dropped seven by a combined 26 points.

Good teams win those games but the closeness of so many losses suggests the Razorbacks can quickly return to winning ways. Maybe Silverfield can make the difference.

Silverfield believes he can and the coach boasts a history of winning. He's 50-25 in five seasons guiding the Memphis Tigers, including that 32-31 win over Arkansas a few months back.

In his last three seasons, Silverfield's record with the Tigers is a sparkling 29-9. He's also 4-0 in bowl games.

For the Hogs, he'll be a fresh face in the locker room, a new voice in meetings, full of confidence anxious to prove himself.

What he's also shown is a talent for winning recruits on signing day and through the transfer portal, which is how Cignetti, McGuire and Lea found almost instant success the last two years.

Yes, I'm a "glass is half full" guy but I say Silverfield is the answer, the guy who'll lead the Hogs to glory next fall and keep fans excited all the way through next December.

If you don't believe, I refer you again to those unheralded coaches who guided Indiana, Texas Tech and Vanderbilt to their best seasons in school history. Anything is possible.