Two key pieces of information regarding Arkansas’ 2012 football schedule were released by the university on Friday.
First up is the long-rumored return of the LSU game to Fayetteville for the first time since 1992. That’s right, the Hogs will face the Tigers at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium on Nov. 23 instead of playing at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock. As a replacement, fans in central Arkansas will see the Razorbacks face Ole Miss on Oct. 27.
“Playing the LSU game at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium directly benefits our program in a number of ways including most importantly providing an additional 20,000 Razorback fans an opportunity to cheer on our team and in this great rivalry game,” said athletics director Jeff Long. “By re-arranging the rotation and playing the regular season finale in Fayetteville, it will also prevent our team from a competitive disadvantage of traveling three straight weekends in the most crucial part of the season. Playing on campus will also allow our football program the recruiting advantage of hosting prospects for a game that has traditionally carried conference and national implications.”
Secondly, the unconfirmed home-and-home non-conference series with Rutgers was made official. The two-year series will begin with the Razorbacks playing the Scarlet Knights on Sept. 22 in Fayetteville. The Hogs will then travel to Piscataway, N.J. on Sept. 21, 2013. The series will mark the first time Arkansas and Rutgers have met on the football field.
“We are pleased to add a quality non-conference opponent like Rutgers to our 2012 football schedule,” said Long. “The additions of Texas A&M and Missouri and the delay in the release of the conference schedule posed some specific scheduling challenges for the 2012 season. We know that many other events around the state are contingent on the Razorback football schedule and we appreciate the patience of our fans as we worked through this process. In the end, we believe we have put together a competitive 2012 schedule for our nationally ranked football program and some exciting games for Razorback fans.”
The only detail left to fully complete the 2012 schedule is the location of the Texas A&M game.
2012 Arkansas Razorbacks Football Schedule
Sept. 1 – Jacksonville State (Fayetteville)
Sept. 8 – Louisiana Monroe (Little Rock)
Sept. 15 – Alabama (Fayetteville)
Sept. 22 – Rutgers (Fayetteville)
Sept. 29 – at Texas A&M
Oct. 6 – at Auburn
Oct. 13 – Kentucky (Fayetteville)
Oct. 20 – bye week
Oct. 27 – Ole Miss (Little Rock)
Nov. 3 – Tulsa (Fayetteville)
Nov. 10 – at South Carolina
Nov. 17 – at Mississippi State
Nov. 23 – LSU (Fayetteville)
