Arkansas, fresh off its best regular season in 10 years, found its bowl destination on Sunday afternoon.
The Razorbacks will play Penn State in the Outback Bowl on January 1 at noon on ESPN2.
Arkansas finished the year 8-4, with three of its four losses coming to No. 7 Ole Miss, No. 3 Georgia and No. 1 Alabama. Penn State finished 7-5, starting 5-0 before four losses in five games derailed the Nittany Lions’ College Football Playoff hopes.
Even besides their record, the teams are tight. Penn State is the No. 14 team in ESPN’s Football Power Index, while Arkansas is No. 29. On the field, the Nittany Lions have the No. 7 scoring defense in FBS, allowing just 16.8 points per game.
The two teams have never met before. Arkansas has also never played in the Outback bowl. Penn State is making its third appearance in the bowl game, but its first since 2011.