Well, ready or not, football is back as another season arrives.
Tonight gets things started as UAPB and Arkansas will play at 6:30 p.m. at Little Rock’s War Memorial Stadium. The game will be televised on ESPNU and the radio broadcast will be available locally as well as on SiriusXM at channels 138 and 190.
This is the second time Arkansas and UAPB have faced each other, and the Hogs are the overwhelming favorite to win.
That won’t be said that many times this season, so savor while you can Arkansas fans. As for the Hogs, Sam Pittman returns for his fifth season and has a 23-25 record overall. There’s not a day that goes by where there isn’t an email from some Bet something website touting which coach is most likely to be fired first. It should again come as no surprise that Pittman usually tops the list.
Arkansas coach Sam Pittman last season int he opener against Western Carolina. (Jaison Sterling photo)
The vibes, such as they are, seem to be that Pittman is in his last season, but just doesn’t know it yet.
If that’s the case, Pittman will be missed. A surprisingly high level of truth-telling. There’s lots of coaches out there, who would lie to your face and Pittman doesn’t seem that way. The other is he’s happy to take the heat. Lots of other coaches are happy to throw players under the bus and Pittman hasn’t done that and he’s also settled in and taken some tough questions.
Last season, at Jerry World, he extended the post-game press conference to let the assembled media ask what they wanted. And that was after an exceedingly tough loss, which is how things have typically gone in the Arkansas-Texas A&M series.
That shows some traits that aren’t typical in coaches.
Anyway, that’s just Day 1 of a big Labor Day weekend.
Friday night, you’ve got high school football kicking off for Week 0 games and the astoundingly huge Salt Bowl, the annual rivalry game between Bryant and Benton, will be at War Memorial Stadium. It won’t be a sellout but it will be the biggest crowd to watch a high school game in Arkansas this season as more than 30,000 people are expected to attend.
Then, on Saturday, there’s a high slate of national games and locally, UCA travels to Arkansas State for a night game in Jonesboro. While there’s nothing wrong with the game being there. It seems like a real missed opportunity to have a football weekend at War Memorial with the Bears and Red Wolves in Little Rock.
It would have been a tremendous three-game slate. Two out of three ain’t bad but, still, it would have been a much better showcase and given UCA-ASU a statewide platform that now won’t be available.
Sunday, more football. Monday, the holiday, more football.
Good time to have a comfortable couch with a remote in one hand and something to drink in the other.
Click here for where every game will be broadcast.
SEC schedule
SATURDAY
Clemson vs. Georgia at Atlanta, 11 a.m. • ABC
Virginia Tech at Vanderbilt, 11 a.m. • ESPN
Chattanooga (8-5) at Tennessee, 11:45 a.m. • SEC Network
Miami at Florida, 2:30 p.m.• ABC
Colorado State at Texas, 2:30 p.m. • ESPN
Old Dominion at South Carolina, 3:15 p.m. • SEC Network
Football arrives, finally
Football arrives, finally
Football arrives, finally
Are you ready for some football?
Well, ready or not, football is back as another season arrives.
Tonight gets things started as UAPB and Arkansas will play at 6:30 p.m. at Little Rock’s War Memorial Stadium. The game will be televised on ESPNU and the radio broadcast will be available locally as well as on SiriusXM at channels 138 and 190.
This is the second time Arkansas and UAPB have faced each other, and the Hogs are the overwhelming favorite to win.
That won’t be said that many times this season, so savor while you can Arkansas fans. As for the Hogs, Sam Pittman returns for his fifth season and has a 23-25 record overall. There’s not a day that goes by where there isn’t an email from some Bet something website touting which coach is most likely to be fired first. It should again come as no surprise that Pittman usually tops the list.
The vibes, such as they are, seem to be that Pittman is in his last season, but just doesn’t know it yet.
If that’s the case, Pittman will be missed. A surprisingly high level of truth-telling. There’s lots of coaches out there, who would lie to your face and Pittman doesn’t seem that way. The other is he’s happy to take the heat. Lots of other coaches are happy to throw players under the bus and Pittman hasn’t done that and he’s also settled in and taken some tough questions.
Last season, at Jerry World, he extended the post-game press conference to let the assembled media ask what they wanted. And that was after an exceedingly tough loss, which is how things have typically gone in the Arkansas-Texas A&M series.
That shows some traits that aren’t typical in coaches.
Anyway, that’s just Day 1 of a big Labor Day weekend.
Friday night, you’ve got high school football kicking off for Week 0 games and the astoundingly huge Salt Bowl, the annual rivalry game between Bryant and Benton, will be at War Memorial Stadium. It won’t be a sellout but it will be the biggest crowd to watch a high school game in Arkansas this season as more than 30,000 people are expected to attend.
Then, on Saturday, there’s a high slate of national games and locally, UCA travels to Arkansas State for a night game in Jonesboro. While there’s nothing wrong with the game being there. It seems like a real missed opportunity to have a football weekend at War Memorial with the Bears and Red Wolves in Little Rock.
It would have been a tremendous three-game slate. Two out of three ain’t bad but, still, it would have been a much better showcase and given UCA-ASU a statewide platform that now won’t be available.
Sunday, more football. Monday, the holiday, more football.
Good time to have a comfortable couch with a remote in one hand and something to drink in the other.
Click here for where every game will be broadcast.
SEC schedule
SATURDAY
Clemson vs. Georgia at Atlanta, 11 a.m. • ABC
Virginia Tech at Vanderbilt, 11 a.m. • ESPN
Chattanooga (8-5) at Tennessee, 11:45 a.m. • SEC Network
Miami at Florida, 2:30 p.m.• ABC
Colorado State at Texas, 2:30 p.m. • ESPN
Old Dominion at South Carolina, 3:15 p.m. • SEC Network
Eastern Kentucky at Mississippi State, 5 p.m. • SEC+ / ESPN+
Western Kentucky at Alabama, 6 p.m. • ESPN
Furman at Ole Miss, 6 p.m. • SEC+ / ESPN+
Notre Dame at Texas A&M, 6:30 p.m. • ABC
Alabama A&M at Auburn, 6:30 p.m. • SEC+ / ESPN+
Southern Miss at Kentucky, 6:45 p.m. • SEC Network
SUNDAY
LSU vs. Southern Cal at Las Vegas, 6:30 p.m. • ABC