Arch Manning and a preseason-favorite Texas team welcome an Arkansas squad that's still digging out from its worst season in program history — this one has mismatch written all over it before a snap is played.
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Texas returning its Heisman-caliber quarterback against an Arkansas team still sorting out its QB1 is about as clean a moneyline read as this sport offers. The Razorbacks are rebuilding at the sport's most important position while Texas enters the year as a preseason No. 1 type of roster. Backing the Longhorns here is the obvious side, even without a price attached yet.
Arkansas
+Aggressive portal rebuild, No. 9 nationally in additions
−Finished 2-10 in 2025, worst win pct in school history
−No proven starting quarterback locked in
Texas
+Arch Manning returns as entrenched starter with Heisman buzz
+Landed No. 3 transfer class nationally, including Cam Coleman
−Preseason No. 1 hype with no 2025 CFP appearance to show
−Offensive line took some portal attrition
Start with the quarterbacks, because that's where this game is decided before kickoff. Arch Manning is back for year two as the guy in Austin after closing 2025 with 4 touchdown passes in a Citrus Bowl win over Michigan, and he enters this season with some of the best Heisman odds in the country. Arkansas, meanwhile, doesn't even have a settled starter yet. New head coach Ryan Silverfield brought AJ Hill with him from Memphis as a likely answer, but between Hill, a reclassified freshman, and a Division II transfer in the mix, the Razorbacks are working from a completely different tier of certainty at the sport's most important position.
The backdrop here is stark. Arkansas fired Sam Pittman in late September 2025 and finished that season 2-10, tied for the worst winning percentage in school history. Silverfield's answer was to go bargain-bin shopping in the portal — 41 additions, ninth-most nationally, headlined by receiver Jamari Hawkins following him over from Memphis and a wave of defensive back reinforcements. It's a real rebuild attempt, not a token one. Texas took the opposite approach, landing the No. 3 transfer class in the country and adding Auburn receiver Cam Coleman to an offense that already had Manning. Different problems, different budgets, different timelines.
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ARK Arkansas
TEX Texas
By the time this one kicks off on Friday, November 20, it'll likely carry very different stakes for each sideline. Texas could be jockeying for SEC and College Football Playoff positioning behind a team that opens as a preseason No. 1 contender. Arkansas, if the roster overhaul hasn't caught up to the record yet, could be playing for bowl eligibility or just pride. That gap in stakes matters as much as the talent gap.
Arkansas Razorbacks
Nov 13?vs South Carolina—
Nov 6?@ Auburn—
Oct 30?vs Missouri—
Oct 16?@ Vanderbilt—
Oct 9?vs Tennessee—
Oct 2?@ Texas A&M—
Sep 26?vs Tulsa—
Sep 19?vs Georgia—
Sep 12?@ Utah—
Sep 5?vs North Alabama—
Texas Longhorns
Nov 13?@ LSU—
Nov 6?@ Missouri—
Oct 30?vs Mississippi State—
Oct 16?vs Florida—
Oct 10?@ Oklahoma—
Sep 26?@ Tennessee—
Sep 19?vs UTSA—
Sep 12?vs Ohio State—
Sep 5?vs Texas State—
Recent form.
Last year's meeting between these two went to Texas 52-37, and this rivalry dates back to 1894 — it's only become an annual fixture again since Texas and Oklahoma joined the SEC. That history doesn't mean much for a program that's rebuilding from the studs up, though. Silverfield's defensive additions, including corner Jahiem Johnson and defensive lineman Hunter Osborne, need time to gel, and facing an offense with Manning and Coleman in November is a brutal proving ground for a defense still finding its footing.
Arkansas Razorbacks
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Texas Longhorns
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Injury report — info via ESPN.
For Texas, the pressure isn't about talent, it's about living up to the preseason billing for a second straight year without a Playoff appearance to show for 2025. Sarkisian's sixth season comes with real continuity — Manning, a loaded receiver room, a top-tier transfer class — but also some attrition up front that's worth watching as the schedule wears on. None of that changes the fact that this looks like one of the more lopsided games on either team's slate.
