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Weather kills Arkansas’ shot at momentum with end to spring drills

The annual Red-White game always provides a chance to end spring practice with a lot of momentum headed into the summer. Arkansas didn’t get that, thanks to the weather.

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The buzz these days about Razorback football is, well, kinda low. There’s more excitement on the live cam at Razorback Stadium on the construction that anything else.

Blame it on the weather.

While spring games don’t usually reveal a whole lot about a team anymore, they do provide an event where fans can get a spring fix for their football enthusiasm.

When the weather forecasts (correctly, as it turned out) called for lots of rain and other nasty stuff on Saturday, you got the feeling it would end the spring with a thud.

In a spring that hasn’t had a lot of excitement, the coaches spent most of it putting in a new defense. You wondered when the coaches would figure out a 3-4 would be a better option for the talent level of players Arkansas gets than the 4-3.

Of course, now that has to translate into games on Saturday, but you get the idea it’s a better option from a scheme standpoint.

We’ve heard repeatedly from the players and coaches how well installing the new defense is going, which isn’t surprising, either. Tell me the last time you heard a coach or player talk about having a bad spring practice.

No, everything is great in the spring.

That will continue into the fall, although we may have a better idea of this team early in Week 2 against TCU. The Horned Frogs are being picked by some at the fringe of breaking into the Top 25.

But the game Bret Bielema just about HAS to win is Texas A&M in Week 4 after an early bye week following the TCU game.

For Arkansas to have any type of success this season, they have to figure out a way to beat the Aggies. There is a path for this team to be 5-0 going to Tuscaloosa in mid-October. A&M and TCU appear to be the only real tests.

After that, though, it’s going to be a grind with no weeks off (unless you count a practice game against Coastal Carolina to start November).

In a league where the Crimson Tide (of course), Auburn and LSU will be the favorites in the West. Mississippi State is being projected as a fringe Top 25 team and Ole Miss is looking to put an end to three straight losses when they had better personnel.

Assuming Hugh Freeze is still the coach by the time the two teams meet at the end of October, he’ll have the Rebels ready for the Hogs. He’s admitted being embarrassed over the losses.

But bigger than that, everyone is hung up on the NCAA issues, thinking that’s going to have an effect. It will, but not in 2017. Ole Miss redshirted half of the No. 5 recruiting class in the country in 2016. Don’t count that as a guaranteed win.

We didn’t really see anything in the spring that gives a clear picture of this team. Oh, we heard the usual about Bielema wanting to run the football (who doesn’t) and the defense will be better in the 3-4 (it should).

But we don’t know.

And with Rawleigh Williams’ status up in the air right now, we may not know for awhile.

It will be an interesting summer with speculation all over the map surrounding this team.

Hopefully, there will be some momentum gained from somewhere.

We didn’t get it with a big spring weekend.

Which can only be blamed on the weather.

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2024 Razorbacks Football

Thu, Aug 29vs UAPB (Little Rock)W, 70-0
Sat, Sep 7@ Oklahoma StateL, 31-39 2OT
Sat, Sep 14vs UABW, 37-27
Sat, Sep 21@ AuburnW, 24-14
Sat, Sep 28vs Texas A&M (Arl)L, 21-17
Sat, Oct 5vs TennesseeW, 19-14
Sat, Oct 19vs LSUL, 34-10
Sat, Oct 26@ Mississippi StateW, 58-25
Sat, Nov 2vs Ole MissL, 63-35
Sat, Nov 16vs Texas11:00 AM
Sat, Nov 23vs Louisiana TechTBD
ESPN+/SECN+
Sat, Nov 30@ MissouriTBD
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2024 High School Rankings

Following is the Arkansas Sports Media High School Football Poll including the Overall Top 10, the top five in Classes 7A, 6A, 5A, 4A, 3A and 2A, plus the top three in the 8-man division, as voted by a panel of sports media from around the state for the week ending August 24. Ranking is given with first-place votes received, records, total points and ranking from last week's poll:
OVERALLRecordPtsPrv
1.Bryant (18)8-02521
2.Conway (6)8-02302
3.Greenwood (2)8-02103
4.Little Rock Parkview7-11714
5.Bentonville5-31416
6.Benton7-11265
7.Fayetteville6-21008
8.Pulaski Academy6-2757
9.Rogers5-3459
10.Shiloh Christian6-24010
Others receiving votes: Marion 13, Valley View 9, Joe T Robinson 8, Mountain Home 4, Cabot 3, Elkins 3.
CLASS 7A
1.Bryant (20)8-01241
2.Conway (6)8-01052
3.Bentonville5-3753
4.Fayetteville6-2455
5.Pulaski Academy6-2354
Others receiving votes: Rogers 5.
CLASS 6A
1.Greenwood (26)8-01301
2.Benton7-11022
3.Shiloh Christian6-2713
4.Marion7-1524
5.Mountain Home7-131
Others receiving votes: Little Rock Catholic 4.
CLASS 5A
1.Little Rock Parkview (23)7-11271
2.Joe T Robinson7-1902
3.Valley View (3)8-0803
4.Hot Springs Lakeside7-1484
5.Farmington7-130
Others receiving votes: Camden Fairview 4, Maumelle 4, Morrilton 3, Greenbrier 2, Harding Academy 1.
CLASS 4A
1.Elkins (19)8-01161
2.Arkadelphia (5)6-2792
3.Little Rock Mills (1)8-0703
4.Warren6-2404
5.Malvern (1)8-0315
Others receiving votes: Dardanelle 22, Southside Batesville 11, Mena 8, Bauxite 7, DeWitt 4, Highland 2.
CLASS 3A
4.Bismarck (15)8-01054
5.Fordyce (4)8-0765
Prescott (3)7-1531t
1.Osceola (2)6-149
3.Mayflower (1)8-036
Others receiving votes: Booneville (1) 31, Rivercrest 19, Mansfield 14, Charleston 4, Rison 3.
CLASS 2A
1.Carlisle (21)8-01211
2.Conway Christian (4)8-01042
3.Des Arc7-1663
4.Bigelow (1)6-2455
5.Murfreesboro6-230
Others receiving votes: Marked Tree 10, Mineral Springs 6, Junction City 5, Cross County 1, Mount Ida 1, Poyen 1
8-MAN SANCTIONED
1.Strong-Huttig (25)5-0761
2.Midland (1)7-0502
3.Cedar Ridge7-1253
Others receiving votes: Rector 5.

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ESPN ARKANSAS 99.5 IN FAYETTEVILLE, 95.3 IN THE RIVER VALLEY, 96.3 IN HOT SPRINGS, 104.3 IN HARRISON-MOUNTAIN HOME.