Hogs left without partner for Texas Bowl,
FAYETTEVILLE — A football season that began with hopes of a completed schedule in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic ended abruptly for the University of Arkansas on Tuesday.
The Razorbacks came back from a short Christmas break ready to push toward Houston and a matchup with former Southwest Conference rival TCU in the Texas Bowl on Thursday. Apparently the Horned Frogs did not.
TCU officials determined Tuesday their roster issues were too pressing to allow for the bowl game to be played. The bowl was called off about 1:45 p.m.
“Over the last 24 hours, between a combination of COVID-19 related issues, injuries and other circumstances, we have fallen below the established Big 12 Conference threshold for student- athlete availability that we have abided by all season,” TCU athletic director Jeremiah Donati said in a statement. “As such, we very regrettably will not be able to participate in Thursday night’s Mercari Texas Bowl against Arkansas.”
The Razorbacks, who had no positive COVID-19 results from testing Saturday and Monday, practiced on Tuesday morning and were getting packed up at the Smith Football Center ready to load buses for the airport when they were alerted by TCU officials to delay their departure.
Shortly thereafter, about 11:30 a.m., the UA announced the team’s send-off event scheduled for about 12: 45 p. m. was canceled due to an abundance of caution. According to sources with knowledge of the planned event, attendance at the sendoff was expected to be robust.
All the plans would be for nought shortly thereafter.
First-year coach Sam Pittman and athletic director Hunter Yurachek were frustrated with the cancellation.
“We are very disappointed not to get the opportunity to compete again as a team,” Pittman said in a UA news release. “We were excited and wanted to go play TCU in the Texas Bowl, but we certainly understand the issues in the TCU program.
“We had no positive tests from yesterday and were ready to go to Houston this afternoon with a healthy team. Our team and our student-athletes have sacrificed a lot over the last several months, including over the holidays, so this is a tough way to end our season. I’m so proud of our team for fighting and handling themselves through adversity all year.”
Yurachek also issued a statement, saying in part, “In what has been one of the most unusual seasons in college football history, our student-athletes made incredible sacrifices and earned the opportunity to safely compete in 10 games during the 2020 football season.
“That is a tremendous credit to them and the efforts of Coach Sam Pittman, his staff, our medical team and the leadership of Commissioner Greg Sankey and the Southeastern Conference. We look forward to taking the field again for the 2021 season.”
The Razorbacks ( 3-7) had been primed to play in their first bowl game since 2016.
After taking three days off for Christmas break, the Razorbacks returned to campus Saturday for another round of COVID-19 testing and three more practices before leaving for Houston.
Pittman and freshman safety Jalen Catalon indicated Monday the team was eager for its postseason appearance.
Asked about how serious the Razorbacks were taking the bowl, Catalon said Pittman “can tell that we want to play because we all came back with negative tests and stuff like that. So he knows we’re excited to play TCU.”
Pittman, asked for his thoughts Monday about three SEC teams backing out of bowl games, said he was confident the Razorbacks would be in a position to play.
“If we can stay negative — like we did on our last test — then we should have as full a team as we’ve had since the first game,” Pittman said. “So you might say a little prayer. I don’t know if the Lord’s got time for a negative COVID test, but if He does, we sure could use it.”
The Razorbacks and Horned Frogs, once longtime combatants in the old Southwest Conference, had played twice since Arkansas left the league in 1992. The teams split a pair of games in 2016 and 2017, with Arkansas prevailing 41- 38 in two overtimes in Fort Worth, and the Horned Frogs scoring a 28-7 victory at Reynolds Razorback Stadium the following season.
Donati’s announcement went on to say, “Our entire football program, from our student-athletes to coaches and staff, is incredibly saddened, disappointed and heartbroken. While we have experienced these issues all season, the past 24 hours have been too much to overcome on such short notice for Thursday’s game.
“I am very proud of our student-athletes and coaches for how they finished the season with victories in five of our last six games. We were playing our best football and are excited about the momentum we have going into the 2021 season. We appreciate the commitment, dedication and perseverance of our student- athletes, coaches and everyone in our football program this season.”
The Razorbacks managed eight bowl practices, which Pittman said had been productive for younger players.
Tickets for the game, which had been scheduled for 7 p.m. on New Year’s Eve at NRG Stadium, will be refunded and processed by the outlet through which the tickets were purchased, bowl officials said.