The Razorbacks have historically stayed away from playing instate opponents. Until 2021, Arkansas went on a 77-year drought playing the Natural State team, which ended when the Hogs played the University of Arkansas Pine Bluff. Now, the Golden Lions will meet Arkansas in War Memorial Stadium for the second time in three years.
The last time the two programs met, the game wasn't much of a competition. Arkansas scored 45 points in the first half and held UAPB to only three points. The Hogs pulled their starters for the second half and failed to score another point.
The game on Friday might turn out the same way, even with a new offense on the field. Here, we'll discuss some true and false statements about the matchup.
Arkansas football True or False: UAPB
True: Arkansas's starters won't play past halftime
With all due respect, there's a serious talent deficiency between Arkansas and UAPB. The last time the two met, Arkansas scored 45 in the first half. Of course, the Razorbacks had future first-round draft pick Treylon Burks on the team, so it might not be as dominating of a performance, but nevertheless, Arkansas should jump out quickly.
On the other side of the ball, Arkansas should outmatch the Lions in the trenches. The defensive line is one of the best positions on the team and should wreak havoc all day. The secondary will also eat. Don't be surprised if they have multiple interceptions on Thursday.
False: Arkansas has trouble adjusting to the new system on offense
If we're being honest, the offense's spring game performance was slightly surprising. Yes, you can't put too much into it because the starters are playing the backups, the QBs aren't live, yada yada yada. However, there is one thing you can take from it.
The offense flowed extremely well. In the 2023 spring game, Dan Enos' offense did well, but it looked messy and unorganized. With Bobby Petrino's offense, the game was smooth. You can expect it to look like that on Thursday in at least the first half.