FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas released its 2013 football schedule on Thursday after the Southeastern Conference released a conference only schedule, which includes eight SEC games and four nonconference games for league members.
As part of the schedule, Arkansas will continue playing South Carolina as its cross-divisional opponent in addition to playing Alabama in mid-October. The Razorbacks will not play Missouri, which had previously been reported as a future cross-division rival beginning in 2013.
Home SEC games for Arkansas include Texas A&M, South Carolina, Auburn and Mississippi State (Little Rock), while road conference games will include Florida, Alabama, Ole Miss and LSU. The game against Texas A&M will be the last between the schools before they move back to Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas for the first of an 11-year contract in 2014.
Arkansas is scheduled to close the regular season with a game at LSU, marking the 22nd consecutive season the two teams will meet Thanksgiving weekend. Reports this year have indicated LSU officials would like to add Texas A&M as its opponent for that weekend in the future, though UA athletics director Jeff Long has publicly stated he is not aware of any negotiations pertaining to a change.
Whether the game between the Razorbacks and Tigers will once again be played on a Friday likely won't be determined until next spring.
In addition to its conference foes, Arkansas will face Louisiana-Lafayette (Aug. 31) and Southern Miss (Sept. 14) in Fayetteville, and Samford in Little Rock on Sept. 7. The Razorbacks will play at Rutgers on Sept. 21 by virtue of a two-year, home-and-home contract.
The Razorbacks will have two open weeks in 2013 for the first time since 2008.
2013 Arkansas Football Schedule
Aug. 31 - Louisiana-Lafayette (Fayetteville)
Sept. 7 - Samford (Little Rock)
Sept. 14 - Southern Miss (Fayetteville)
Sept. 21 - Rutgers (Piscataway, N.J.)
Sept. 28 - Texas A&M (Fayetteville)
Oct. 5 - Florida (Gainesville, Fla.)
Oct. 12 - South Carolina (Fayetteville)
Oct. 19 - Alabama (Tuscaloosa, Ala.)
Oct. 26 - Bye Week
Nov. 2 - Auburn (Fayetteville)
Nov. 9 - Ole Miss (Oxford, Miss.)
Nov. 16 - Bye Week
Nov. 23 - Mississippi State (Little Rock)
Nov. 30 - LSU (Baton Rouge, La.)