Chip Brown (Texas insider) on SEC schedule

Brown wrote (would link here, but it’s to a competitor’s site, so can’t) that he’s hearing from his contacts inside the Texas athletic department the SEC will go to the 9 game conference schedule and that if that is the case, Texas’ 3 permanent foes will be Oklahoma, Texas A&M and Arkansas. He goes on to say that Oklahoma’s three permanent annual opponents would be Texas, Florida and Missouri, and Texas A&M’s three annual opponents would be Texas, LSU and Mississippi State.

He said Texas-OU will remain in the Cotton Bowl, but it’s unclear if Texas/Aggies will play on Thanksgiving weekend (as they used to do back in the SWC era), or if LSU/Aggies will remain on that weekend.

Take it for what it’s worth, but Brown usually is a pretty good source for UT information in matters like this.

No word in his article about Arkansas’ remaining permanent opponents.

If that is accurate, my long-standing prediction of Texas, Mizzou and OU would be wrong. Mizzou might (and I still think would) be one of the other teams, but OU’s dance card is filled and we’re not on it (according to Brown). That being the case, I’d guess the 3rd team would either be Ole Miss or LSU.

For us I think Texas is a given and I also think Missouri will be there because for years now they have been trying to force feed us into the “Border-line” rivalry, so I don’t see them giving up on that. That leaves one spot and I also think it will fall to either LSU or Ole Miss. I’d prefer LSU myself, just always liked saying… we don’t always beat a Number 1 team but when we do, it’s LSU. So since I prefer LSU, the football gods will most likely make it Ole Piss.

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I’d prefer Aggies over Ole Miss…more recruiting exposure

Doc, I’m prescribing some new reading glasses for you…lol.

If you look back on my OP, Brown said A&M would be playing Texas, LSU and MSU every year. So - we’d not be one of the Aggie’s annual dance partners…per his UT sources.

Another case of burying the lead. He does not predict anything but Texas will play Arkansas and leaves as a mystery our other two permanent sec opponents.

My preference would be for OU and Mizzou to renew their Big 8 bond. They go together. Would renew an old rivalry or at least an old series that goes way back, Mizzou game has done nothing for us, and has not inspired a rivalry.
It’s been a complete bust. Good riddance.

I hate Texas, and I hate having to play them again every year, was so glad when we ditched them for greener pastures. But I expected a return to the days when Hog fans avoided the rush and hated Texas early. We’ll probably beat them on average two times every 10 years.

A&M should be a permanent, but they think they’re too good for us. And hopefully a break will end the 11 year curse.

Ole Miss is probably going to be one, and that is an old rivalry with lots of history, maybe not much hate but there is history.

My prediction, Texas, Ole Miss and LSU, Mississippi State, or South Carolina (our old permanent before we got stuck with the invading team from the Big 8).

No, I hate em but it’s a case of wanting to hold the enemy close.

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I need em! Or clean the ones I’m using. Went back and read your OP. Missed the part about Aggies 3 games. This will be interesting

No. Just no. We’ve beaten them five of the last seven. The mystique is gone. So are the Texass refs.

Chip is very well connected in Fallopian land, so I don’t doubt his info. And his prediction for ATM matches what Jimbo blurted out last July.

https://thespun.com/college-football/look-jimbo-fisher-appears-to-break-some-sec-schedule-news

By the way, Wiz, I don’t think Chip is considered a competitor any more. When HI was part of Scout, yeah, but it hasn’t been for years. Now Trey Biddy and Andrew Hutchinson, they’re competitors.

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I hope our 3rd team is an SEC team with which we have some history…Ole Miss or LSU, preferably the Rebs.

If you grew up in Eastern Arkansas,…believe me…there is plenty of hate for ole miss…:slightly_smiling_face:

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My Uncle Bill hated the Rebnecks. He never forgot he game at WMS in 1958 (I think) with the controversy over a FG. He was there and until he passed he could get fired up over the Rebnecks and the officials that he said screwed us.

Your Uncle Bill was right. Allen Green’s field goal was about a yard wide, not close. I was 10 years old, and I am still mad about this. The whiskey bottles and the seat cushions flew like crazy. The fans were irate.

The article I found was on the 247 Texas site, the same family of boards as Biddy. It was one of 3 or 4 Texas related items he discussed in a column, so I just lifted the parts relevant to Arkansas and posted them here rather than link the 247 article.

The Texas AD has stated publicly that they would like us as one of their permanent games repeatedly.

If I were HY (and harkening back to how Frank thought regarding the season ticket base), I would want Texas to anchor the home schedule every other year, and then either A&M, LSU, OU, on the home schedule the other years.

What I am pretty sure will happen is that we do get Texas and Missouri. The other “annual” opponent could be one of several. I would imagine it will be someone on this side of the conference geographically but who knows.

True, but Biddy is a competitor because he covers the Hogs, not because he’s on 247.

Probably what will happen. It will probably be a 2-1 split on the three rivals; one year we have two of them at home, the next two on the road. Then the rotating teams will be 3 and 3 every year.

It’s quite possible we don’t get A&M, LSU or OU, though. Nobody’s going to get all of what they want in this deal. Even Bama. I read something the other day that Auburn-Florida was a big deal in the pre-expansion SEC; they were separated in the division split and may not be reunited in 3-6-6.

Anyway, getting back to us, if we get Texas, Misery and the Flopnecks, I would guess we’d get Texas at home one year and Misery and OM the next. But we’re also gonna play OU, A&M and LSU two out of four years and it’s quite possible one of those is on our home schedule almost every year.

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Don’t I remember awhile back that discussions on the “3 permanent opponents” included this thought? The SEC would look at “haves and have nots” with the idea that the haves permanent opponents would include 2 haves and one have not, while the have nots would have 2 have not teams and one have?

Is that no longer a part of these discussions?

Hypothetical schedule to illustrate. I’m assuming that we’d play, say, LSU two years apart, but they might go home and home for one group in consecutive years and then switch to the other group.

Permanent rivals: Texas, Misery, OM
Even number years: LSU, Poultry, Georgia, OU, Auburn, Kentucky
Odd number years: A&M, Moo U, Tennessee, Bama, Vandy, Florida

So 2024 might be @ Texas, Misery, OM, LSU, @ Poultry, Georgia, @ OU, Auburn, @ Kentucky. So you have LSU and Georgia at home.
2025: Texas, @ Misery, @ OM, A&M, @ Tennessee, Moo U, @ Bama, Vandy, @ Florida. Texas and A&M at home.
2026: @ Texas, Misery, OM, @ LSU, Poultry, @ Georgia, OU, @ Auburn, Kentucky. OU at home.
2027: Texas, @ Misery, @ OM, @ A&M, Tennessee, @ Moo U, Bama, @ Vandy, Florida. Texas and Bama at home.

I don’t think you have any trouble selling those tickets.

Couple of things with that. One, haves and have nots change quickly. Tennessee was thought to be a have not. Now they’re a have. Auburn is going in the other direction. Second, this is a 48-piece jigsaw puzzle (3 rivals for 16 teams) and you have to make all the pieces fit, and haves/have-nots may not fit.

What I did try to do in the hypothetical schedule is divide the rotating teams so that you get three haves and three have nots per year. But that may not fit either.