What Football Games Will Arkansas Fans Truly Care About in 2024?

Ranking all 12 games on the Razorback schedule in terms of how much the Hogs' fan base will care

Author:
Kent Smith
Publish date:
Dec 1, 2023 4:19 AM EST

In this story:

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – With renewed interest in Razorback football all the sudden with Bobby Petrino returning to Arkansas to run the offense, it seemed worth the effort to take a peek at next year's schedule to see if there are any games that will generate similar energy around the program.

What follows is a ranking of the full 2024 schedule by how much fans will likely care about the game itself. One of the biggest criteria that went into the choices was whether Arkansas fans would still care even if the Razorbacks were winless. And, yes, there are at least a few games on this rather unique schedule that fit that category.

Conference expansion and the willingness of the league to kick the can down the road on deciding what format the SEC will use to create schedules going forward had made for what is the most fan friendly schedule perhaps ever. The most jarring realization that things had changed was looking to see if the Alabama game had been given an official date yet only to remember there won't be an Alabama game.

So, without further ado, let's dive into what fans have waiting for them nine months from now.

#12UAPB Golden Lions

It's sad to see Alonzo Hampton's Golden Lions ranked this low as in-state teams should generate a little buzz, but between the game being at War Memorial Stadium which may or may not have concessions and water on what will be another hot August day and UAPB having no history of being even remotely competitive against Arkansas, there's little interest.

There will be the mildest of intrigue as fans will want to see how Bobby Petrino's offense will look, but even that won't hold much weight. After all, how much did they learn about what to expect from the Dan Enos offense when Western Carolina came to play in the Little Rock Zoo parking lot?

#11Louisiana Tech

There was a time when this game might have ranked a little higher. The Bulldogs have had solid teams in the past, but the program is down right now. There will be the mildest of interest if defensive lineman Kelvie Rose sticks around. He played in Ruston prior to coming to Arkansas. This is the out of conference game that always gets throw in late November, so who knows if fans will still be paying attention at that point.

#10
UAB Blazers

UAB is a lower level AAC school. However, it will be earlier in the season right after the Oklahoma State game, so fans will still be watching the team no matter what at this point and will be looking to see if areas they have identified as weaknesses can be improved before Arkansas heads to Arlington two weeks later. It's also possible this might be the home opener in Fayetteville.

#9Missouri Tigers

If this game gets moved to the SEC opener where it should be, then it will be moved to No. 8, but everyone knows the league loves forcing this fake rivalry on Arkansas fans, so it will likely remain at the end of the season where it gets forgotten about each season.

While this game seems to mean the world to Missouri fans, no amount of Eli Drinkwitz pretending he smokes cigars can make this game move the needle in Arkansas. Now, when it comes time to play basketball, there's a legitimate rivalry. That's the game that deserves a trophy.

Tigers' fans will argue Razorback fans should consider them a rival because Mizzou has won a lot lately, but in the 90s, SMU beat Arkansas a few times too. Still, while it got under fans skin more than the Tigers do, the Hogs didn't consider a WAC team their rival.

Instead, when Houston Nutt arrived, he chose to address the SMU issue. He made it a point to put the nuisance that was SMU in its rightful place so the program could focus on more pressing matters, and that's exactly where things stand with Missouri. Arkansas fans want someone to go ahead and deal with the nuisance, so focus can fully return to football programs Razorback fans care about.

#8Mississippi State Bulldogs

If KJ Jefferson ends up leaving to be quarterback in Starkville in Jeff Lebby's first season, this game will move up a spot to No. 7. That's not because there will be any widespread ill-will toward Jefferson. It will simply be out of intrigue.

Now, if Lebby lands Jefferson and brings his brother-in-law, Kendal Briles, to be his offensive coordinator, then this game jumps up two spots. That's because at that point, there will be a certain level of mild disdain involved.

#7
Auburn Tigers

Hugh Freeze. Walker White. Did I mention Hugh Freeze. That's all that needs to be said here. If Bobby Petrino somehow hangs 75 on Auburn, Arkansas fans will be OK if he goes for one last score in kneel down time. The Tigers themselves don't draw a lot of ire, but Freeze could show up coaching Delta State and fans would want to see him beaten soundly

#6Tennessee Volunteers

This used to be a nice little rivalry. From wanting to take down all those great quarterbacks back when Tennessee was legitimately good at football, the Stoerner fumble and redemption, the six overtime game, the upset in Knoxville with an interim coach, stealing elite recruits out of Warren, this game once held the highest of intrigue. Old habits die hard, so it's tough not to imagine Arkansas fans having genuine interest in playing the Vols once again,

#5
Texas A&M Aggies

Arkansas fans always care about this game because as this game goes, the season typically goes. If the Razorbacks can put together a good showing one final time down in Arlington, it could signal great things to come, which is all Hog fans really want to know.

#4
Ole Miss Rebels

Win the non-conference and take out the Mississippi schools and bowl games usually take care of themselves. The one game on the schedule where Arkansas always has the best chance to pick up a win against a ranked team tends to be Ole Miss. Whether it's Hugh Freeze or Lane Kiffin, the Razorbacks have always found a way to steal wins against the Rebels when they're at their best.

#3
Oklahoma State Cowboys

This is the first big game of the season and it's on the road in Stillwater, which creates its own intrigue. For those who have never been, simply imagine if one day Mississippi State got picked up and dropped into the middle of Monticello, Osceola or Booneville and then some rich guy made the football stadium nicer.

It should be a great game. It just won't be much of a trip for those who go in person. Stillwater is close to nothing, including major roads, has few hotels and few restaurants. Outside of the football stadium itself, there's not much there of note other than Eskimo Joe's.

Still, all that is made up by getting to interact once again with the Oklahoma State fans. Perhaps no group in America integrates with Razorback fans better and creates a more enjoyable challenge throughout games than Cowboys fans. It should be a fun game with a ranked opponent that is only 180 miles away. Plus, Arkansas fans will be locked in as it will be the first true test of the Petrino offense and also a chance to see how improved Travis Williams' defense is in Year 2.

#2LSU Tigers

Arkansas and LSU always seems to be a great game no matter what the teams are ranked, nor where it is played. Hopefully, this game will be back on the final weekend of the season where it belongs, but that's doubtful.

Still, it will be a huge game for Arkansas fans. Strange things happen to LSU when the Tigers come to Fayetteville. Pittman was able to squeeze out a win in 2021 and rode it to a successful season. He narrowly missed upsets the last two seasons. A win here would be a massive momentum swing for a program in need of momentum and Razorback fans will be by the television to see it. Whether they're in the stadium will be up to Sam Pittman.

#1Texas Longhorns

Finally, Arkansas fans have a legitimate reason to care about the Texas Longhorns. The current generation of fans have been brainwashed by their grandparents into thinking they should care about a Texas team Arkansas rarely played, but now that changes. The Longhorns are actually on the schedule, in a game that matters, and for the first time in the football conscious part of the lives of the students who will be attending Arkansas when it happens, Texas isn't a doormat in football.

Even when the Longhorns were terrible at football, Arkansas fans stormed the field because the 50+ crowd had convinced them it was still the 1960s. Looking back on that 2021 game, it's embarrassing to know Razorback fans jumped the walls over beating a 5-7 team, but that's the energy created when the eldest group among the fan base loses its mind and it trickles its way down to the other generations.