The Texas Longhorns head to Fayetteville to take on the Arkansas Razorbacks Saturday. This is the first of three final regular season games for UT. If Texas wins out, they will go to the SEC Championship Game. The Hogs would love nothing more than to spoil Texas’ first season in the SEC.
Arkansas and Texas used to be rivals for about 70 years, but then the Razorbacks left the Southwest Conference for the SEC in the ’90’s and, except for a few games here and there, the rivalry has been dormant … at least on the Texas side of things. Arkansas fans still have a burning hatred for UT.
The atmosphere at Razorback Stadium will be electric and the Longhorns are going to have to deal with an extremely hostile crowd. But if they can handle the animosity, they should be able to pull through. The crowd will also be a good warmup for the Texas A&M game in a couple of weeks.
Jamie Gatlin’s Prediction:
After one of their best wins of the season, the Longhorns will be back in action on Saturday afternoon against Arkansas. So far this season, the Razorbacks have been up and down in conference play with a 3-3 record. This weekend, they have a daunting task ahead in stopping Quinn Ewers, who had five touchdown passes last week against Florida. They will also face Matthew Golden, who is coming off his second multi-TD effort of the season. This should be a game that the Longhorns offensive thrives and
puts points on the board in a hurry.
Final score: Texas 40, Arkansas 14
’s Prediction:
Texas is heavily favored over Arkansas in their first SEC matchup. The Longhorns come in ranked No. 3 and have been dominant this season, with an 85% chance of winning according to ESPN analytics. Quarterback Quinn Ewers is coming off a big game, looking like the star we expected at the start of the season after shaking off the rust from his injury. Arkansas has struggled recently, particularly after a tough loss to Ole Miss, and while they can still pass the ball well, they are outmatched in most areas. Texas has been 17.7 points better than opponents on the road, while Arkansas has underperformed at home.
Final score: Texas 36, Arkansas 18
Trey Luerssen’s Prediction:
If Texas can handle the atmosphere in Fayetteville, the Longhorns offense should have a very productive day against the Razorbacks. The real danger from the Hogs defense lies in the defensive line. Landon Jackson and Xavier Sorey, Jr. will cause the Texas offensive line some problems. But if Ewers gets time, he should shred a very mediocre Arkansas secondary.
Final score: Texas 42, Arkansas 17