Ranking The Importance of Arkansas Basketball's Confirmed Non-Conference Schedule

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Only four of Arkansas' non-conference matchups for the 2026-27 season are confirmed, but three of them are huge games that will put the Razorbacks on a national stage well before March. The rest of the Hogs' non-conference slate is yet to be confirmed.

Here are those four games ranked by importance.

4. Central Michigan | Dec. 22

No offense to the Chippewas, who went 10-21 last season under first-year head coach Andy Bronkema, but this is the afterthought of Arkansas' current non-conference slate. This should be a comfortable win for John Calipari's squad inside the friendly confines of Bud Walton Arena, but it could be a tricky game, given that it will be played only three days before Christmas and three days after Arkansas will have gone out west to play Arizona in Phoenix.

3. At North Carolina | Dec. 1

The next three games on this list could be labeled 1A, 1B and 1C. All of them will be closely followed by the national media and should be excellent tests for Arkansas ahead of SEC play.

Arkansas' games against Michigan State and Arizona aren't true road games, though they will be played in each school's home state where the crowd should be partial to the Razorbacks' opponents. Regardless, Arkansas' trip to Chapel Hill to play the Tarheels in the Dean Smith Center will be similar to Arkansas' road trip to Michigan State last year — an excellent litmus test on the road and a game that, if won, would be the top line on Arkansas' NCAA Tournament resume.

2. Michigan State | Nov. 26 (Detroit)

Nothing says Thanksgiving like football in Detroit — but the basketball game between the Spartans and Razorbacks on Thanksgiving evening will still draw plenty of eyeballs. It's a matchup of not only two solid teams, but two legendary head coaches in Calipari and Izzo. It's also a revenge game for Arkansas, which lost 69-66 in East Lansing last year. A road win over North Carolina may be better for the resume, but a victory on Thanksgiving with the eyes of the nation upon UA would do wonders for the Arkansas brand, which is why Calipari is so insistent on his team playing on Turkey Day.

1. Arizona | Dec. 19 (Phoenix)

Regardless of what other games end up on Arkansas' non-conference schedule, this is the one everyone has circled. Playing against a Final Four team at a neutral site is appointment television anyway, but Arkansas will have a chance to beat the team that knocked it out of the NCAA Tournament last season, just as it did to Texas Tech last year. Calipari should have no trouble getting his team ready to play in this game, which will be one of the best non-con games in all of college basketball.

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