ARLINGTON, Texas -- The Tex Hogs, as Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema likes to call his players from Texas, have a chance to go 2-0 in their home state this season.
Arkansas is playing Texas A&M today in AT&T Stadium, two weeks after winning at Texas Tech 49-28.
"For all the Texas kids, this is really big," said D.J. Dean, a sophomore cornerback and punt returner from Newton, Texas. "We're always telling everybody, 'We're from Texas, and Texas football is better than any other state.'
"It's always good to go back home."
Dean is among 19 Razorbacks from Texas and one of seven on the depth chart along with junior running back Jonathan Williams (Allen), junior tight end Alex Voelzke (Longview), sophomore defensive linemen Taiwan Johnson (Manvel) and Deatrich Wise (Carlton), senior cornerback Tevin Mitchel (Mansfield) and senior place-kicker John Henson (Carroll).
"I think those guys are real excited," defensive coordinator Robb Smith said. "It showed this week in practice. There was a little bit of extra energy, a little extra zip running around. It especially came from those guys."
The Razorbacks would love for Williams to duplicate his game at Texas Tech, where he rushed 22 times for 145 yards and a career-high 4 touchdowns.
" He had a chip on his shoulder," freshman center Frank Ragnow said. "You could tell he was excited and wanted to prove something. This week I'm excited for him to show what he's got."
Williams didn't want to make any prediction about today's game.
"I don't really like to jinx myself," he said. "But we'll see what happens."
Bielema, who came to Arkansas from Wisconsin after the 2012 season, said he wants to get more Texans to sign with the Razorbacks, who have 11 scholarship players from the state. That's why he has four assistants who recruit Texas: defensive backs coach Clay Jennings, receivers coach Michael Smith, running backs coach Joel Thomas and defensive line coach Rory Segrest.
"When I first got here, I'm like, 'OK, we're close to Texas. Let's go recruit Texas,' " Bielema said. "Well, it's not as easy as that. You've got to have ties, you've got to have connections, you've got to have research.
"I think the hiring of Clay Jennings gives me a lot of street credit."
Jennings came to Arkansas from TCU in February. He's a native of Waco, Texas, and has coached at Baylor, Houston and North Texas, where he played.
"We've got to treat Texas like it's home for us," Jennings said. "Getting another win in the state of Texas this season would be huge. We've got to go in there and show we can get the job done."
Williams said he wasn't offered scholarships by any of the major conference teams in Texas, which is added incentive.
"I love playing teams from Texas," he said.
Williams said while he's happy playing at Arkansas, he likes the idea of making coaches at the Texas schools question why they didn't offer him a scholarship.
"That's what I'm trying to leave them thinking," he said.
Johnson, a starting nose guard who leads the Razorbacks with five tackles for 33 lost yards, said he wasn't offered scholarships by Texas A&M or Texas Tech but that he can't let the game become personal.
"I just want to play focused and play Arkansas football," Johnson said. "I'm glad I'm here. That's the No. 1 thing."
When out-of-state players go to their home areas to play, they usually are able to get extra tickets from teammates who aren't from there.
But playing at AT&T Stadium, built by Dallas Cowboys Jerry Jones to be the NFL's showcase venue, is different. The Razorbacks from Texas said they've had trouble getting tickets beyond the four issued to each player.
"A lot of people from all over the country want to come to Jerry's World," Williams said. "So all those guys from Florida that I thought I was going to be able to get their tickets, it didn't happen that way."
Dean said he's had a lot of family members and friends buy tickets.
"I'm going to have a pretty big cheering section," Dean said. "I'm just excited to go back home and get to put on a show."
Sports on 09/27/2014