Arkansas will head to Chapel Hill this December for one of the more recognizable matchups on its non-conference slate.
The Hogs are set to take on the North Carolina Tar Heels in the Dean Smith Center on Dec. 1 as part of the 2026 SEC/ACC Challenge, according to CBS Sports college basketball insider Jon Rothstein, who broke the full slate of matchups Thursday night.
NEWS: Matchups for the 2026 ACC/SEC Challenge are set, per sources.
Ark @ UNC
AU @ Clem
Duke @ UF
BC @ UGA
Wake @ LSU
Pitt @ Mizz
SU @ OU
OleMiss @ VT
SC@NCSt
FSU @ Tenn
Texas @ Lville
Bama @ Miami
UK @ UVA
GT @ MissSt
Stanford @ A&M
Vandy @ NDhttps://t.co/CH4tXkiAal— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) June 5, 2026
It’s a road trip with a clear historical edge. The Tar Heels hold an 8-3 all-time record against Arkansas and have won five straight meetings between the two programs.
The most recent came in November 2023 at the Battle 4 Atlantis, where North Carolina pulled away for an 87-72 win in the third-place game.
The Razorbacks haven’t beaten the Tar Heels since a Final Four showdown in the 1995 NCAA Tournament, when Arkansas knocked off North Carolina 75-68 to punch its ticket to a second straight national championship game.
That win remains one of the more memorable moments in program history.
This will be the 12th all-time meeting between these two schools and, notably, the first to take place at either team’s home court.
The only game ever played in the state of Arkansas came way back in 1984, when the Hogs hosted the No. 1-ranked Tar Heels — and a young Michael Jordan — at the Pine Bluff Convention Center.
Charles Balentine’s last-second baseline runner with four seconds left gave Arkansas a 65-64 upset.
It’ll also be just the second time the Razorbacks have played away from Fayetteville in the SEC/ACC Challenge.
Arkansas enters this year’s matchup with a perfect 3-0 record in the event and hasn’t dropped a game since the challenge launched. Next season marks the fourth edition of the SEC/ACC Challenge overall.
John Calipari’s Hogs beat Miami 76-73 on the road in his first season at the helm, then topped Duke 80-75 in 2023 and handled Louisville 89-80 last year, all wins that helped build the program’s unblemished Challenge record.
The North Carolina game rounds out what’s shaping up to be a demanding non-conference stretch for Arkansas in the 2026-27 season.
Earlier this week, it was reported that the Razorbacks will travel to Phoenix on Dec. 19 to face Arizona in a rematch of this past season’s Sweet 16 meeting.
That game is set for Mortgage Matchup Center as part of the Naismith Hall of Fame Series and is the first in a multi-year agreement that includes a home-and-home over each of the following two seasons, with an option for a fourth game in 2029-30.
Arkansas is also headed to Detroit on Thanksgiving to face Michigan State, the second meeting in a three-game series after the Hogs fell to the Spartans 69-66 in Breslin Center last season.
Calipari has confirmed that Michigan State will eventually make the trip to Bud Walton Arena at a date yet to be determined.
Three marquee non-conference dates now locked in for the Hogs with games against North Carolina, Arizona and Michigan State. The non-conference portion of the schedule is already stacking up as one of the tougher slates in the country heading into next season.
