Sarkisian: UT ‘got 2 rivals back’ in A&M, Ark

• Heather Dinich, ESPN Senior Citizen WriterMay 29, 2024, 07:41 PM ET

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  • College football press reporter
  • Joined ESPN.com in 2007
  • Graduate of Indiana University

DESTIN, Fla.– Texas won’t deal with Arkansas and Texas A&M until November, however the excitement surrounding the return of the storied competitions was already developing chatter this week at the SEC spring conferences, where Longhorns coach Steve Sarkisian made his first appearance as an inbound member of the league on Wednesday.Arkansas hosts Texas

on Nov. 16 as a conference competitor for the first time considering that 1991, when the Hogs beat the Horns 14-13 and both programs remained in the Southwest Conference.To end the season, Texas and Texas A&M will renew its heated rivalry in College Station on Nov. 30. The two have not played considering that 2011, after playing each year from 1915 to 2011, which was tied for the eighth-longest uninterrupted series at the time. In that 2011 match, Justin Tucker kicked a 40-yard basket to provide Texas a 27-25 win in College Station.Editor’s Picks 2 Associated” I have actually been part of some fantastic

competitions in college football, and I know there was so much talk about realignment and I understand adjustment looks various for every single school, but for us, we gained two competitors back,”Sarkisian stated.”We’re playing Arkansas again, which is terrific for Texas and Longhorn country. We get A&M back. The game with A&M, you’re discussing homes divided, you’re discussing decades of significant games and Thanksgiving weekend. To get that game back, we’re eagerly anticipating it, I’m sure A&M is, too. I have actually got a ton of regard for Coach [Mike] Elko.”Arkansas coach Sam Pittman said the state’s enthusiasm for the series with the Longhorns hasn’t dwindled despite the fact that the games have.”Our rival has been Texas when we didn’t play Texas,”Pittman stated.

“You can feel it in the state. We did have an opportunity to play Texas two or 3 seasons back, and it was a huge, big deal for the state of Arkansas. For us a minimum of it’s a terrific addition to bring an old rivalry back.”When asked what he’s looking forward to most about joining the SEC

, Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte addressed as if it were a no-brainer– the games.”For our old-timer people in Austin, Arkansas is a helluva game,”he stated. “Darrell Royal and Frank Broyles retired on the same day in DKR [Arena] In the 60s, President Nixon appearing. These are just historic games that are going to be awesome.”Del Conte reiterated his desire for the game versus the Aggies to remain on Thanksgiving weekend, where it had actually generally been played, frequently on the day after the vacation.” Possibly it’s Friday, “he said, “however as long as we’re playing? Strap it on.”Del Conte yielded it would be difficult to set it in stone without knowing if the SEC will ultimately switch to

a nine-game conference schedule.” For me at the University of Texas, I choose a nine-game schedule because we have a neutral website game [

against OU],” he said. “I ‘d like to have four home games, 4 away games then play the Red River game. However when you have 8 you have an imbalanced schedule. You have 3 one year, 4 the next.”