Arkansas

OK, so the last time we saw Arkansas play for the UCFC, it was 2010 and the Razorbacks were at home, they were ranked number 10 in the country, and they were hosting Nick Saban and his defending national champions from Alabama.  The Tide came from behind to win 24-20 and it was a great, great game.

Now it is 2016 and Nick Saban is still the coach at Alabama, and Alabama are still the National Champions.  But all sorts of stuff has happened at Arkansas.

1.  In 2011, Arkansas went 11-2, won the Cotton Bowl for the first time since 1999, and finished as the number-5 team in the country.

2.  But in that off-season, Arkansas fired Coach Bobby Petrino -- who had gone 34-17 in four seasons at Arkansas -- for his part in an off-the-field scandal.  Petrino ended up back at Louisville, where he is building another powerhouse, although being fired from Arkansas probably cost him his best chance at a national title.

3.  Without Petrino, Arkansas's fortunes declined dramatically.  In 2012, their coach was John L. Smith.  He went 4-8.  In 2013, they brought in Bret Bielema from Wisconsin.  He started off by going 3-9 overall, and 0-8 in the S! E! C!

4.  But Bielema is building something at Arkansas.  In 2014, he went 2-6 in the SEC, but 7-6 overall, and beat Texas(!) 31 to 7 in something called the Texas Bowl.  In 2015, he went 5-3 in the SEC, and 8-5 overall.  The Razorbacks finished their season in Memphis, where they beat well-known UCFC contender Kansas State in the Liberty Bowl by the score of 45-23.

This year, however, Bielema is in a rebuilding mode, and no one knows exactly what to expect.  Phil Steele, who's as good at this stuff as anyone, said that Arkansas could go anywhere from 5-7 to 9-3, and he thought they'd be somewhere in the middle.

So far, the Razorbacks are not off to a very good start.  They won their first game at home against Louisiana Tech, but only by the score of 21-20, and only after scoring a late touchdown to pull out the win.  I think they will find that Texas Christian is more formidable than Louisiana Tech.