SEC Reset Gives Conference Chance to Right a Decade Long Wrong

Arkansas will most likely keep ending the season against the Tigers, but which Tigers?

Author:
Kent Smith
Updated:
Feb 13, 2023 1:19 AM EST
Original:
Feb 11, 2023

In this story:

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Finally, after a decade of wrongdoing, the Southeastern Conference can fix a terrible misstep.

While people in their late 60s and early 70s are losing their minds over being able to be at best the fourth most meaningful team in the lives of the Texas Longhorns at best, the rest of fan base, with the weakest of memories of the Southwest Conference days if any, are bouncing off the walls at the prospect of being able to get Missouri out of that last weekend slot in November.

Cartoon showing Arkansas Razorback tries to return a Missouri Tiger for the LSU Tiger he ordered at the Rivalries R Us store. — Addison Faith / allHogs.com

No more hearing announcers pretend that there's something between Missouri and Arkansas, much less that laughable and blasphemous fake Battle Line Rivalry. The Tigers could beat Arkansas for the next 20 years and cost the Razorbacks a national championship and there still would be no way to make this a thing.

While these two have a certain hint of hateful chemistry on the basketball court, it just does not extend to the gridiron in any way.

It's hard to get worked up about a team that always shocks you when it pops up on the schedule as a conference game.

"Oh, you startled me Missouri. I forgot you were an SEC football team. I could have swore you were a basketball only school."

Because of this, the best thing about Texas and Oklahoma coming to the SEC has nothing to do with either of them. This may not be what Longhorns fans want to hear, but the best thing about Texas coming has to do with the Longhorns' big brother, Texas A&M.

When the Aggies joined the league back in 2012, they were appropriately matched with fellow Big 12 jumper Missouri. However, for some reason that hasn't been made clear, A&M got to ditch Mizzou for a more desirable football-based Tiger even though they had the viable story line.

However, with Texas now in the league, there's little doubt the Longhorns will insist on playing the Aggies to end the season. After all, since Texas A&M left the Big 12, Texas has slowly faded on the Island of Relevancy in the world of college football.

The Longhorns need the Aggies way more than Texas A&M needs them. Unfortunately for those down in College Station, the SEC has already proven that it wants Texas for its money more than it wants to keep the Aggies happy, so even if it's against their will, Texas A&M is almost certainly losing its end of season spot with the Tigers.

With LSU looking for someone to close the year with once again, that gives Arkansas the chance to give its fans a game that won't continue to lose out to Thanksgiving leftovers in terms of interest.

When Arkansas used to play LSU to end the season there was always a big game feel. No matter how good or bad one team was, something was on the line besides a superficial trophy and more often than not, the games were amazing.

It was Good Friday ratings gold.

But if the Battle for the Golden Boot is restored to its rightful place, where does that put Missouri?

The most logical thing would be to bring back "The Battle for Basketball" – sorry, "The Border War" – between Kansas and Missouri.

The people of the Show Me State have to understand, they're a third wheel Tiger who is a western team pawned off onto the SEC East where they remained out of sight, out of mind for the other half of the conference.

There's no reason for Missouri to feel disrespectful toward Kansas. They should long to have a team feel anything about playing them and the Jayhawks apparently feel something.

Of course, there's the "Karma Bowl" option. Oklahoma could get paired with them as a renewal of old Big 8/12 partners.

The Sooners and Tigers have played each other nearly 100 times over the span of 120 years. That's history.

Plus, it would be a bit of well-deserved karma for skating on Oklahoma State. That was some Texas Longhorns level dirty right there, so a few decades of ending the season with Missouri is the least the Sooners can do in repentance for what they did to the Cowboys.

Most likely Arkansas will get stuck in a pod with Texas A&M, Texas and Oklahoma while Missouri ends up with Kentucky, Tennessee and Vanderbilt. If so, it at least makes geographic sense.

However, if somehow Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas get podded up and Missouri insists on pretending there's a rivalry between the schools, then at least rename the game "The Battle for Branson" and the citizens of the losing state have to abandon Silver Dollar City for 48 hours following the game.

Then maybe the people of Arkansas will at least care about the football team playing Missouri.