COLLEGE FOOTBALL IN ARKANSAS: Rex Nelson’s predictions for week 1

Apr 03, 2024

Another college football season is upon us.

The Razorbacks will help War Memorial Stadium celebrate its 75th anniversary with what should be an easy victory over Western Carolina. The Hogs have been surprised before by lesser teams on Labor Day weekend (some of us remember when The Citadel ruined Jack Crowe's day on Sept. 5, 1992), but this shouldn't be one of those occasions.

For the other nine NCAA Division I and Division II football programs in the state, this is Oklahoma Week. All nine play Oklahoma schools, believe it or not. Seven of those nine games are in Oklahoma.

Here are the picks for Week 1:

Arkansas 49, Western Carolina 19 -- The game has been moved to a noon kickoff Saturday in an attempt to avoid the hottest of the afternoon temperatures. Hot weather, of course, plays to Arkansas' advantage due to its superior depth. Sam Pittman will be back in Fayetteville in plenty of time to celebrate with a box of Popeyes chicken and, as he would say, "an ol' cold beer."

Oklahoma 47, Arkansas State 15 -- The Red Wolves are the early ESPN game with an 11 a.m. kickoff Saturday, but the visitors from Jonesboro will only stay in it for a half. Butch Jones' team will be better this year, but we'll have to wait until Sun Belt Conference play begins to figure out just how much better.

Oklahoma State 41,UCA 20 -- The Bears also will be better this year, but it won't show in this game against a Big 12 opponent. Just make sure the check doesn't bounce and get back to Conway as quickly as possible. This one kicks off at 6 p.m. Saturday.

Tulsa 38, UAPB 9 -- And, yes, the Golden Lions also will be better this year, but we'll have to wait until the SWAC season to figure out how much better. This is a Thursday night game.

Ouachita 37, Southwestern Oklahoma 18 -- The Tigers went 11-0 in the regular season last year and are 51-4 in the past five regular seasons. They make the long trip to Weatherford, Okla., to take on a team that was 4-7 last season and 0-11 the year before. Southwestern's head coach left after just one season, and the Bulldogs are playing under an interim coach this year.

Harding 50, Southern Nazarene 14 -- This shouldn't be much of a challenge for the Bisons even though they're on the road Thursday. Harding was 9-2 last season, and Southern Nazarene was 5-6.

Henderson 39, East Central Oklahoma 22 -- The Reddies are home in Arkadelphia on Thursday night against an East Central team that finished 9-3 in 2022. The Reddies were 8-3 but have more returning talent than the visitors from Ada.

Southern Arkansas 24, Southeastern Oklahoma 21 -- This might be the best game of the week in the Great American Conference, where all games are conference games and there are no open dates. SAU returns 20 starters off a 5-6 team. Southeastern was 6-6 last year and recruited well in the talent rich Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. We'll give the Muleriders a slight advantage on Thursday since they're home in Magnolia.

Arkansas Tech 27, Oklahoma Baptist 26 -- The Wonder Boys were 5-6 last year. Oklahoma Baptist was just 1-10, but Tech has struggled in recent seasons on the road. We'll go with the Wonder Boys to pull this one out in Shawnee, but the victory won't come without some drama.

UAM 32, Northwestern Oklahoma 31 -- The Boll Weevils were 3-8 in 2022, and Northwestern was 1-10. Just as we did with Arkansas Tech, we'll go with the Arkansas team even though the game is in Oklahoma on Thursday night.

Copyright © 2023, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Inc.

All rights reserved.

This document may not be reprinted without the express written permission of Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Inc.

Material from the Associated Press is Copyright © 2023, Associated Press and may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio and/or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium. Neither these AP materials nor any portion thereof may be stored in a computer except for personal and noncommercial use. The AP will not be held liable for any delays, inaccuracies, errors or omissions therefrom or in the transmission or delivery of all or any part thereof or for any damages arising from any of the foregoing. All rights reserved.