FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) — Arkansas will take the field for the first time in the post-Bobby Petrino era when it hosts Jacksonville State on Saturday.
The No. 10 Razorbacks were 11-2 last season, but they enter the game with a new feel following Petrino's firing in April.
The opener will mark new coach John L. Smith's first game as a head coach since 2006 at Michigan State. Smith inherits a team that led the Southeastern Conference in total offense and scoring last season, one led by senior quarterback Tyler Wilson and junior running back Knile Davis.
Gamecocks coach Jack Crowe is very familiar with the Razorbacks, who he coached from 1990 until his ouster after the first game of the 1992 season, a loss to the Citadel.
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