The record was 5-3 last week, making the Southern Fried season record 14-3.

I’ve now seen four college games in two weeks. That’s a pace I won’t be able to keep up.

On Thursday night, I was in Omaha as Ouachita stunned the University of Nebraska at Omaha, a team that had been ranked No. 12 nationally in Division II coming into the season.

On Saturday night, I was in the sauna known as War Memorial Stadium as the Razorbacks took care of business against Louisiana-Monroe.

It’s a sign of just how far the Arkansas program has come under Bobby Petrino that people were complaining about a 31-7 victory. You might remember that two years ago against Louisiana-Monroe, the Hogs had to score late to take the lead and then hold their breath as the Warhawks missed a last-second field goal attempt. Still, there are questions about the Arkansas offensive line going into the game at Georgia. The line didn’t give Ryan Mallett much protection Saturday night. And you have to wonder about a ground game that only managed 99 yards against a Sun Belt Conference team.

One of the three games I predicted incorrectly last week was the Arkansas State game. I was sorely disappointed in the Red Wolves’ defense as Louisiana-Lafayette built a 31-7 lead. Arkansas State came roaring back in the fourth quarter to cut it to 31-24, but the hole was too big to dig out of for the Red Wolves. So the curse of Lafayette continues. ASU last won there in 1992. Steve Roberts is 0-5 when he takes teams there. Four of those five losses have been by seven or fewer points.

I do think ASU sophomore quarterback Ryan Aplin is the real deal. He was 25 of 45 passing for a school-record 438 yards and two touchdowns.

I failed to predict victories by UCA and UAM.

I badly overestimated the kind of team Eastern Illinois would have and likely underestimated the Bears. UCA rolled to a 37-7 road victory to go to 2-0 on the season. The Bears got two touchdowns each from sophomore quaterback Terence Bobo out of Atkins and redshirt freshman quarterback Wynrick Smothers out of Louisiana. When Jordan Jefferson left Destrehan High School for LSU, Smothers took his place at quarterback. My friends in Conway tell me he’s going to be a great field general.

Nathan Dick completed 22 of 30 passes for 167 yards. Smothers was seven of seven passing for 46 yards. UCA finished the game with 376 yards of offense and held Eastern Illinois to 120 yards.

UAM, meanwhile, showed yet again what a tough league the Gulf South Conference is. For a third consecutive year, the Boll Weevils stepped up to play a Division I-AA team from the SWAC. And for a third consecutive year, the Weevils won. The victim was UAPB in 2008 and 2009. This year’s SWAC victim was Southern University at Baton Rouge. And it wasn’t even close. UAM won 31-7 after leading 24-0 at the half. UAM gained 371 yards in that game and held Southern to just 117 yards. UAM senior quarterback Scott Buisson passed for 164 yards and rushed for 101 yards.

UAM’s game at Ouachita on Saturday night could be one of the best games in all of Division II this weekend. The kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. at A.U. Williams Field.

Let’s get to the picks:

Arkansas 31, Georgia 28 — Georgia did not play well in a 17-6 loss on the road at South Carolina. The Bulldog defense gave up 182 rushing yards to a freshman back named Marcus Lattimore. Unfortunately, the very average Arkansas running game doesn’t have anyone like Lattimore. Georgia was outgained by more than 100 yards and held without a touchdown for the first time in three years. Still, expect the Bulldogs to score some points at home. If Mallett is on (he had 408 yards passing against Georgia last year), expect Arkansas to score a few more than the Dawgs between the hedges early Saturday afternoon.

Louisiana-Monroe 35, Arkansas State 32 — These Sun Belt Conference games often are hard to call. As we said, Arkansas State was a disappointment at Lafayette. Louisiana-Monroe, meanwhile, played relatively well against Arkansas in Little Rock. Look for a high-scoring, exciting game in Jonesboro. If Ryan Aplin has a big night, he could make us miss this prediction. We hope he does.

UCA 24, Murray State 14 — The Racers come into Conway with an 0-2 record after losses of 41-10 to Kent State and 30-17 to Southeast Missouri State. They will leave the state with an 0-3 record. The Bears are playing with a lot of confidence following the win over Eastern Illinois.

Ouachita 33, UAM 27 — This should be a marvelous game. Both teams have senior quarterbacks. We gave you Buisson’s stats for UAM. In Omaha, meanwhile, Ouachita’s Eli Cranor was 30 of 38 passing for 332 yards. Cranor, a senior from Russellville, is providing real leadership for the Tigers. Ouachita tailback Daniel McGee, a sophomore out of Fort Smith Southside, had 180 yards rushing. Nebraska-Omaha is a traditional Division II power, having posted 14 consecutive winning seasons while going to the playoffs in eight of those seasons. Ouachita raced out to a 38-10 lead before letting off the gas for a 38-23 victory. We told you what the Weevils did in Baton Rouge. UAM has defeated Ouachita in each of the past two seasons.

Henderson 21, Arkansas Tech 18 — Henderson was impressive in an opening victory against Southeastern Oklahoma and hung close for three quarters with No. 3 North Alabama before losing in Florence. The Reddies will have had two weeks to prepare for this game, and that will make the difference. Tech won at home against Lambuth to open the season and then lost a heartbreaker on the road last Thursday to Delta State, 27-25. Delta State hit a 48-yard field goal late for the win. This also should be an exciting game. You won’t go wrong by attending a game in either Arkadelphia (Ouachita-UAM) or Russellville (Henderson-Tech) on Saturday night.

North Alabama 42, Southern Arkansas 20 — The Muleriders looked horrible in a 20-0 loss at Harding to open the season. But they came back strong in a game against Texas State from Division I-AA, leading 17-3 over the Bobcats before losing 31-17 in San Marcos. We feel for SAU when looking at the schedule. After going to Florence this Saturday, the Muleriders must host No. 20 Valdosta State. SAU could easily start the season 0-4.

Harding 20, West Georgia 10 — Harding played pretty well in its 20-0 win over Southern Arkansas to open the season. The Bisons had last weekend off. This is the GSC Thursday night television game of the week. West Georgia, 1-9 a year ago, opened with a 10-7 loss to Wingate from the South Atlantic Conference and then defeated tiny Concordia from Selma, Ala., 24-20. A GSC school should defeat Concordia by far more than four points. Despite the long trip to Georgia, Harding wins.

We went 9-0 on our college football picks last week.

That’s right.

9-0.

Now before you get all excited, remember that the first week of the college football season has become cannon fodder week. Many of the picks were easy. We weren’t real sure about Harding against Southern Arkansas or UAM against West Alabama going into the long Labor Day weekend.

The other seven picks were a bit easier.

It gets much harder this week. There are some good games on the schedule.

Here we go:

Arkansas 49, Louisiana-Monroe 17 — Louisiana-Monroe is a Division I-A school. Tennessee Tech is in Division I-AA. We still refuse to do that FBS/FCS stuff. What’s the NCAA going to do about it anyway? Put this blog on probation? So Louisiana-Monroe should provide the Hogs with a stiffer challenge than they faced last Saturday in Fayetteville. There just wasn’t much to complain about in the opener as Ryan Mallett went 21 of 24 through the air, Alex Tejada boomed kicks into the end zone and the defense came to play. Louisiana-Monroe opens its season this week. The players will wish they were somewhere other than War Memorial Stadium as Mallett passes for at least four touchdowns. At least one couch will be burned and one portable toilet will be turned over on the golf course before the game. One final prediction: Men who shouldn’t be seen in public without a shirt will do so anyway.

Arkansas State 32, Louisiana-Lafayette 30 — Both of these teams went into SEC stadiums to collect a check last weekend. Arkansas State hung around longer in a 52-26 loss to Auburn than Louisiana-Lafayette did in a 55-7 loss to Georgia. Steve Roberts’ squad gets it done in a close game in south Louisiana, providing the Red Wolves a big boost the week before they open conference play in Jonesboro against Louisiana-Monroe.

Alabama State 28, UAPB 24 — The Golden Lions hung around for a half in El Paso before falling to UTEP, 31-10. The home team scored 17 unanswered points in the second half. Josh Boudreaux threw for 202 yards and Raymond Webber caught 10 passes for 123 yards for UAPB. Alabama State, meanwhile, opened its season with an impressive 36-6 conference win over divisional rival Mississippi Valley State. It’s hard to go against the Hornets at home following that victory.

Eastern Illinois 31, UCA 28 — The Bears played relatively well Thursday night in a 47-20 victory in Conway against Division II foe Elizabeth City State. Nathan Dick, in his first start as the Bear quarterback, was 26 of 35 through the air for 351 yards and three touchdowns. Eastern Illinois, meanwhile, lost its opener, 37-7. But the Panthers were playing the highest ranked Division I-A opponent of any I-AA school last weekend, No. 9 Iowa. Eastern Illinois is No. 22 nationally in I-AA this week. Not only that, the Panthers will retire the No. 18 worn by former EIU quarterback and current New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton at halftime Saturday in Charleston, Ill.

Ouachita 25, Nebraska-Omaha 22 — Ouachita plays on a Thursday for a second consecutive week, but this isn’t Texas College. The Tigers never broke a sweat in winning their opener, 70-0, over the hapless Steers from Tyler. Nebraska-Omaha came into the season ranked No. 12 nationally in Division II but lost its opener 32-29 to Nebraska-Kearney. This should be one of the better games in Division II this week.

Delta State 21, Arkansas Tech 19 — The Wonder Boys also play for a second consecutive Thursday night. Tech won its opener, 34-19, in Russellville against Lambuth, a good NAIA club. Delta State, meanwhile, was losing to Division I-AA Jackson State from the SWAC, 32-17. This week’s game will be televised on the CBS College Sports Network and should be quite a battle. The slight edge goes to the home team.

Southern University 42, UAM 28 — The Boll Weevils lost an exciting game at home last Thursday to West Alabama, 27-20. West Alabama is ranked No. 7 nationally this week in Division II. The Boll Weevils step up in class to play Southern University from the SWAC on Saturday night in Baton Rouge. Southern opened its season on national television Monday with a 37-27 win over Delaware State in the annual MEAC/SWAC Challenge at the Florida Citrus Bowl in Orlando. Scott Buisson racks up some passing yardage for UAM this week, but it’s not enough.

Texas State 31, Southern Arkansas 10 — The Mulerider offense was anemic at best Saturday night in a 20-0 loss at Harding. I was there. Now, Southern Arkansas must make the long trip to San Marcos, Texas, to play Division I-AA Texas State from the Southland Conference. Texas State collected a check in a 68-28 loss to Houston on Saturday night. Now, it’s the Muleriders’ turn to collect a check in a losing effort.

It’s a smart move for a coalition of business and civic leaders in Little Rock and North Little Rock to have a full week of activities leading up to the first of two University of Arkansas football games this season at War Memorial Stadium.

The days when people in central Arkansas could take for granted that Razorback games would always be played here are long gone.

Had the War Memorial Stadium Commission not made massive improvements to the stadium during the past decade, I would be the first to tell you that the games were taken for granted and the powers that be in central Arkansas had no one to blame but themselves as all home games headed for the hills.

Instead, there were millions of dollars invested in improvements, capped by the $7.3 million press box that was discussed in a previous post.

Now, for a second year, RazorRock activities will lead up to the September nonconference game. And rather than just one week during football season, the RazorRock team is positioning itself to spring into action each time a Razorback team — football, basketball or baseball — plays in central Arkansas.

Those of us associated with the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame figured we should be a part of these activities. So on Wednesday at noon, the Hall of Fame will host a panel discussion featuring former Razorback football players Anthony Lucas, Clint Stoerner and Kevin Scanlon.

I hope to see many of you there.

Ray Tucker, the executive director of the Hall of Fame, will moderate the discussion.

Admission is free, and there’s plenty of free parking. We’re billing it as a brown-bag luncheon, so bring your lunch with you. The Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame is on the west side of Verizon Arena in North Little Rock. It’s a nice facility. If you haven’t toured the museum, you need to do so.

The discussion should be fun.

Kevin Scanlon, who has long been employed by Stephens Inc., followed Coach Lou Holtz from North Carolina State to Arkansas (Coach Holtz had a short stop in between with the New York Jets). Kevin started at quarterback his senior season in 1979, leading the Razorbacks to a 10-2 record, a No. 6 national ranking and a berth in the Sugar Bowl against Bear Bryant’s Alabama Crimson Tide.

That was my first of several Sugar Bowls to cover as a sportswriter, and I watched Alabama win its second consecutive national championship with a victory over the Hogs on Jan. 1, 1980. Bringing in the new decade in the French Quarter the previous evening was quite fun.

Kevin set the Arkansas single-season pass accuracy record as a senior (66.2 percent), was named the most valuable player on the team and was selected to play in the Japan Bowl all-star game. At a postseason banquet, Holtz called Kevin “the best quarterback I ever coached.”

As a high school player at Beaver Falls, Pa., Kevin broke almost all of the records that had been set by Joe Namath. Kevin and Broadway Joe both are members of the Beaver County Sports Hall of Fame in a county that has as much sports tradition as any county in the country.

After freshman and sophomore seasons at Quigley Catholic High School, Kevin played two seasons under famed Beaver Falls Tigers Coach Larry Bruno, who had coached Namath. Bruno had a record of 134-52-9 in two decades as the head coach at Beaver Falls. Kevin was a high school All-American his senior season in 1974. He finished as the school’s all-time leader in passing yards (3,515) and touchdown passes (33). He completed 67 percent of his passes as a high school senior.

Meanwhile, Razorback fans will long remember Stoerner and Lucas for what happened on a November afternoon in Fayetteville in 1999. With 3:44 left in the game, Lucas split two defenders to bring in a 23-yard touchdown pass and lead Arkansas to a 28-24 victory over No. 3 Tennessee, the defending national champion. Arkansas fans rushed the field at the end of the game and carried the goal posts to Dickson Street.

Anthony, a 6-3 receiver from Tallulah, La., and one of the finest people I know, had enrolled at Arkansas in the fall of 1994 as a part-time student. His ACT score didn’t meet the requirements to be eligible that first season, but he worked hard and joined the football team in the spring of 1995. He posted what was then a freshman record of 27 catches for 526 yards and four touchdowns as Arkansas won the Southeastern Conference Western Division.

In the 1996 season opener, however, Anthony suffered a season-ending injury. After a medical hardship ruling, he returned as a sophomore in 1997 and finished the year with 27 catches for 495 yards and four touchdowns. In 1998, he had 43 receptions for a school record 1,004 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns.

Anthony was a preseason All-American coming into his senior season. He had 37 receptions for 822 yards and four touchdowns. That performance earned him first-team All-SEC recognition and third-team All-American recognition. Anthony finished his Razorback career with 2,879 receiving yards, 137 catches and 23 touchdowns.

Anthony has stayed involved in sports, directing Life CHAMPS youth sports in Little Rock and helping coordinate the D1 Little Rock sports training and therapy center.

Clint, a product of Baytown, Texas, set UA records for most pass attempts in a game (52 against Alabama in 1999), most pass attempts in a season (357 in 1997), most career pass attempts (1,023), most career pass completions (528), most passing yards in a game (387 against LSU in 1997), most passing yards in a season (2,629 in 1998), most touchdown passes in a season (26 in 1998), most career touchdown passes (57) and most consecutive passes without an interception (134).

Now, we’re watching Ryan Mallett break those records.

After his famous pass to beat Tennessee in 1999 (Clint was 18 of 28 passing that day for 228 yards and three touchdowns), he led the Hogs to a 27-6 Cotton Bowl victory over Texas on Jan. 1, 2000. Clint played for five years in the NFL, with four of those seasons spent at Dallas. He started two games for the Cowboys in 2001. He also played two seasons in NFL Europe and several seasons in the Arena Football League.

The event should be fun. I hope to see you at the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame at noon Wednesday. We’ll be finished by 1 p.m.