Arkansas to Play Missouri Series at War Memorial Stadium

An official announcement is expected to be made soon, but multiple local outlets are saying that the contract to play football games is being extended.

Update: The official announcement is here.

What we know is that the plan is to have the series against Missouri played at War Memorial Stadium. That lines up with both the current contract ending this upcoming season, and with the years Arkansas plays Mizzou at home. In the years that Arkansas travels to Columbia, the Spring Game will be in Little Rock.

We do not know yet how long this iteration of the contract will last. (Update: the official announcement says a six year deal through 2024) Or if the games will continue to be moved to the Friday after Thanksgiving, although it’s a safe bet the weekend will be the same.

This deal is an attempt to give some sort of compromise to both sides of the GSD. Little Rock gets a conference game every other year, which for them is better than being shutout all together. Fayetteville gets all the home games, and the team doesn’t have to travel two hours for a home game, every other year.

The major issue this creates is that the odd years is the year Arkansas’ game against Texas A&M counts as a home game. That means there will be just two SEC Games in Fayetteville. In 2019 Razorback Stadium will see Portland State, Colorado State, San Jose State, Western Kentucky, Auburn, and Mississippi State. Not exactly the schedule that fans will be breaking down the door for.

So while this is meant to be seen as a compromise for both sides, there are still some very real issues in the new deal. Ones that will continue to be debated because apparently this stadium debate will outlive us all.