Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Neutral-Site Game Not Favored by All
When the inaugural Southwest Classic happened in 2009, it seemed like everyone thought it was a grand idea.
Former Southwest Conference foes Arkansas and Texas A&M were both flourishing football programs and both fan bases embraced the idea of playing a nonconference game at the palatial Dallas Cowboys’ AT&T Stadium.
The contest at Jerry World, dubbed that for former Razorback player and Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, was viewed as a chance to play in a big-time NFL setting.
Razorback brass also welcomed the idea of playing in Arlington with thoughts of Arkansas getting back to having a Texas recruiting pipeline that had been so vital to its program history.
But a couple of issues have popped up that changed the dynamic of the event.
Texas A&M joined the SEC in 2012 and about that same time former Razorback coach Bret Bielema all but ignored recruiting the talentfertile Lone Star State.
The Razorbacks won the first three Southwest Classic games all with coach Bobby Petrino at the helm before the series had home-and-home on-campus games with Texas A&M winning both in 2013 and 2014. The Southwest Classic then resumed in Arlington in 2014 and the Aggies haven’t lost since although they still trail the Razorbacks 41-31-3 in the all-time series between the two schools.
Texas A&M athletic director Ross Bjork, the former Ole Miss AD, leaves no doubt what he wants to happen when the current contract ends in 2024.
“Here’s how I should view it: We should have every SEC home game on our campus from here on out,” Bjork told the Dallas Morning News. “How we do that after the contract is over is still yet to be determined. I think we should have four SEC home games every single year on our campus.”
Razorback fans have been howling on radio, message board and social media about this year’s Fayetteville schedule, which features three nonconference games and only two SEC games against Auburn and Mississippi State.
Arkansas is the home team in this year’s Southwest Classic and its game with Missouri is being played in Little Rock’s War Memorial Stadium, which will host a Razorback game once every two years.
Coming off an embarrassing loss to San Jose State, Arkansas coach Chad Morris was not really in a mood to talk about the series staying in Arlington.
“Well, first of all we’ve got a great fan base in the Dallas area,” Morris said. “It’s a huge part of our recruiting footprint, but that is for a whole other discussion and a whole other day. My only focus right now is getting this football team ready to go down to Dallas this week and play this Saturday. All that other stuff can be for down the road discussion.”
Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher made his thoughts clear on the series at his Monday news conference.
“I love playing here at Kyle Field,” Fisher said.”I think it’s a great thing to have a game at AT&T Stadium; I am not against it. It’s good for recruiting; easier for a lot of recruits to get there. It is also good to get practice in a neutral-site venue. It’s good for your program.”
Texas A&M put $450 million into its renovation of Kyle Field, and Bjork believes all SEC home games should be played in College Station.
“I just believe those games are so valuable to have on your campus,” Bjork said. “When you take one of those opportunities and move it to a neutral site, it changes the dynamics of what you’re trying to do to fill your stadium, to keep your fans happy, to keep the value of season tickets at the highest quality possible.”