HawgBeat – By the Numbers: 12 days until Arkansas football

The Arkansas Razorbacks will take the field for the 2023 college football season in 12 days when Western Carolina visits War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock on Saturday, September 2 for a 3 p.m. CT kickoff.

Here at HawgBeat, we will count down the days until head coach Sam Pittman and his team run through the “A” for the first time.

With 12 days remaining, we will take a look at a current player, former player, some interesting scores, highlights and other miscellaneous things in Razorback history tied to the number 12.

One of only two players in Arkansas program history to have his jersey number retired alongside Brandon Burlsworth, Scott rushed for a then-school record 1,463 yards during his career. In 1948, he averaged 7.0 yards per carry while gaining 670 yards on 95 attempts.

Scott earned his nickname from his hometown of Smackover, Arkansas. The All-American also participated and won a silver medal in hurdles at the Olympic Games in August of 1948. He was the first Razorback to ever win an Olympic medal.

A lot of things happened in 1945, but did you know Arkansas played a team called the Barksdale Field Sky Raiders? The United States Army Air Force’s representative team was part of the Independent League and played their games at the Louisiana State Fair Grounds in Shreveport, Louisiana.

This was Arkansas’ first game of the season, and the close score is indicative of what ended up being a lousy 3-7 overall season.

Oh, what could’ve been. Coming off a 2014 season in which Arkansas won four out of their last six games — including a 31-7 drubbing against Texas in the Texas Bowl — the Bret Bielema-led Razorbacks were red-hot going into 2015.

But Toledo didn’t care. After a smooth-sailing 48-13 victory over UTEP in the season opener, Arkansas dropped its game in War Memorial Stadium against the Rockets, 16-12.

Toledo quarterback Phillip Ely completed 21 passes for 237 yards and a touchdown against the Razorback secondary. Brandon Allen — who went on to throw 30 touchdowns during the season — didn’t throw a single one versus Toledo.

The Razorbacks and Cougars have played a total of 16 times since 1952, with 12 of those going Arkansas’ way. The first ever matchup was held in Fayetteville but resulted in a loss to Houston, 17-7. The most recent game between the two programs was in 1991, when Arkansas won 29-17.

Arkansas’ largest margin of victory came in 1982, when it defeated Houston 38-3. The Razorbacks longest win streak versus the Cougars was eight games from 1982-89.

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