Alabama is back atop The Associated Press poll, and Arkansas is out completely following the Crimson Tide’s 49-26 win in Fayetteville on Saturday before a crowd of 75,579.

We picked Alabama last week, but we thought it would be closer.

Arkansas got within five at 28-23, but Alabama answered in a big way. The Tide’s surge was highlighted by three runs of more than 70 yards.

Alabama ended the game with 555 yards of offense, with 317 of that coming on the ground. In securing its 16th consecutive win over Arkansas, the Tide went nine of 14 on third down and gained 225 yards on third-down plays. In the fourth quarter, Alabama averaged 20.2 yards per rush.

Nick’s Saban’s team is 5-0 for the 13th time in his 16 seasons at Alabama. Alabama is 73-18 against ranked teams since 2008 and is 15-1 in Southeastern Conference road openers under Saban.

The Razorbacks, meanwhile, are 0-6 against teams with reigning Heisman Trophy winners.

Arkansas’ 377 yards of offense was 102 yards below its season average.

Given the way Mississippi State is playing right now, it won’t get a lot easier for the Hogs in Starkville on Saturday.

We were 7-3 on the picks last week, making the record 37-7 for the season.

Here’s how we see this week’s games shaping up:

Arkansas 31, Mississippi State 30 — Are we going with our head or our heart here? Well, our head actually tells us that the Bulldogs won’t play as well as they did last Saturday in that 42-24 rout of Texas A&M. The Aggies helped them out with three turnovers in the red zone. Mississippi State is 4-1 overall and 1-1 in the SEC. The Bulldogs began the season with wins of 49-23 over Memphis and 39-17 over Arizona before falling 31-16 to LSU in Baton Rouge. That loss was followed by a 45-14 victory over Bowling Green and then the win over the Aggies.

James Madison 35, Arkansas State 33 — ASU improved to 2-3 overall with a 45-28 win over Louisiana-Monroe in Jonesboro on Saturday night. The Red Wolves scored four touchdowns on as many possessions in the second half to blow the game open. ASU hasn’t lost at home to Monroe since 2001. Johnnie Lange, who had a 98-yard kickoff return for a touchdown, finished the game with 258 all-purpose yards. It’s a much stiffer test this week as James Madison brings a 4-0 squad to Jonesboro for a game that will be telecast by the NFL Network. James Madison is 4-0 with wins of 44-7 over Middle Tennessee, 63-7 over Norfolk State, 32-28 over Appalachian State and 40-13 over Texas State.

UCA 24, Lindenwood 10 — Like ASU, the Bears are 2-3 and got a home victory Saturday. UCA scored 42 second-half points in a 49-20 victory over 4-2 Austin Peay. It was the Bears’ ASUN Conference opener. Will McElvain was 20 of 31 passing for 261 yards and four touchdowns. Just three years ago, Lindenwood upset Ouachita in the NCAA Division II playoffs. The school has since moved up to FCS. Wins of 21-20 over Houston Baptist and 37-3 over Keiser were followed by losses of 56-26 to Tennessee-Martin and 49-28 to Southeast Missouri State.

Texas Southern 14, UAPB 12 — In Baton Rouge on Saturday night, UAPB fell 59-3 to Southern University. Southern scored 35 of its points in the second quarter. The Golden Lions have dropped three consecutive games to fall to 2-3. Texas Southern comes to Pine Bluff this Saturday with a 1-4 record. The win came by a score of 24-0 over Southern. The losses have been by scores of 40-23 to Prairie View A&M, 59-27 to North Texas, 52-24 to UTSA and 16-13 to Alabama State. Based on the vastly different results against Southern, we’ll give an edge to the visitors in this one.

Ouachita 32, Southwestern Oklahoma 19 — Ouachita moved up to No. 5 in the American Football Coaches Association NCAA Division II national rankings following a 48-7 road victory at Northwestern Oklahoma. The Tigers, now 5-0, rolled to a 28-0 halftime lead and never looked back. This week’s opponent, Southwestern Oklahoma, is the surprise team of the Great American Conference so far. The Bulldogs went 0-11 last year, but they’re off to a 3-2 start in 2022. It’s Ouachita’s homecoming game, so there’s little chance the Tigers will overlook this opponent.

Harding 45, Southern Nazarene 13 — The Bisons bounced back from their loss to Ouachita with a 38-23 win in Searcy on Saturday over 1-4 Oklahoma Baptist. Harding led 24-10 at the half. Southern Nazarene is at home, but the 1-4 Crimson Storm shouldn’t present much of a challenge. Harding, now 4-1, moved up to No. 11 in this week’s AFCA rankings.

Henderson 27, East Central Oklahoma 21 — Henderson improved to 4-1 with a 31-23 win in Arkadelphia over 2-3 Southeastern Oklahoma. The two teams combined for 879 yards of offense in that one. East Central Oklahoma is off to a 3-2 start and should present a challenge for the Reddies in Ada on Saturday.

UAM 38, Northwestern Oklahoma 20 — UAM got off to a 3-1 start and then was upset Saturday by a final score of 37-27 at Southwestern Oklahoma. The Weevils are back home this week and should have no problem with 0-5 Northwestern Oklahoma.

Oklahoma Baptist 34, Arkansas Tech 29 — Both squads have struggled at times, so we’ll give a slight edge to the home team in this one. The Wonder Boys improved to 2-3 with a 48-35 win over Southern Nazarene last Saturday. Davontae Dean rushed for 165 yards and scored two touchdowns for Tech.

Southeastern Oklahoma 40, Southern Arkansas 37 — Again, we’ll give a slight edge to the home team in a battle of two 2-3 squads. SAU fell 34-22 to East Central Oklahoma on Saturday in Magnolia. The Muleriders have been inconsistent during the first five games of the season.

There seems to be a hex surrounding the Southwest Classic for Arkansas.

Texas A&M has won 10 of the previous 11 meetings. Saturday night’s game in Arlington marked the third time in the past nine meetings that the Aggies have come back from deficits of 14 or more points to win. It happened in 2014. It happened in 2017. It happened again Saturday.

The good news is that the contract is coming to an end in a couple of years, and the Aggies (who routinely draw more than 100,000 fans to home games) want to go back to a home-and-home series.

The even better news is that the end of the contract with Jerry Jones will make it easier for Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek to ensure there’s not another autumn like this one when there are no Little Rock games for the Hogs. He must realize that the long tradition of Little Rock games — even it it’s just one per season — is an integral part of this program’s rich tradition.

Saturday’s loss prevented Arkansas from starting 4-0 in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 1988-89.

KJ Jefferson rushed for 105 yards and passed for 171, but his ball security mistake changed this game. And now Alabama looms.

We went 5-2 on the picks last week to make the record 30-4 for the season.

Here are the predictions for this week’s games:

Alabama 30, Arkansas 23 — Alabama is off to its usual 4-0 start with three routs and that scare at Texas. The Tide has wins of 55-0 over Utah State, 20-19 over Texas, 63-7 over Louisiana-Monroe and 55-3 over Vanderbilt. Expect Arkansas to play well and hang around until the fourth quarter. In the end, though, the Tide will escape Fayetteville with a victory, just as they escaped Austin on Sept. 10.

Arkansas State 28, Louisiana-Monroe 27 — The Red Wolves are 1-3 following a 29-26 loss at Old Dominion. ASU led 12-0 at the half but was outscored 21-7 in the third quarter. ASU’s offensive line is a real problem. There were eight quarterback sacks on Saturday. Louisiana-Monroe is 2-2 with wins of 35-7 over Nicholls and 21-17 over Louisiana-Lafayette. The losses were by scores of 52-10 to Texas and 63-7 to Alabama. We’ll give a slight edge to the home team.

Austin Peay 25, UCA 19 — UCA is 1-3 following a 35-27 loss at Southeast Missouri. Will McElvain passed for 284 yards for the Bears in the losing cause. Austin Peay lost its opener to Western Kentucky by a final score of 38-27 but has since run off four consecutive victories — 63-0 over Presbyterian, 41-0 over Mississippi Valley State, 28-3 over Alabama A&M and 31-20 over Eastern Kentucky.

Southern 17, UAPB 10 — The Golden Lions are 2-2 following a 38-21 loss at Alcorn State. A Syracuse transfer named Jarveon Howard rushed for 295 yards and four touchdowns for the Braves as they outscored UAPB 28-7 in the second half. The Golden Lions are back on the road this week against Southern University in Baton Rouge. Southern opened the season with an 86-0 victory over Florida Memorial University. It then lost a “money game” to LSU by a score of 65-17 and fell 24-0 to Texas Southern. With two weeks to prepare for this Saturday’s contest, we’ll give Southern the edge.

Ouachita 49, Northwestern Oklahoma 24 — Ouachita moves up to No. 6 in the country in NCAA Division II following its 21-13 victory over previously undefeated Harding at Cliff Harris Stadium on Saturday night. The 4-0 Tigers came into the game ranked No. 9. Harding, the defending Great American Conference champion and the coaches’ preseason pick to win the 2022 title, was No. 7 entering the game. Ouachita’s defense shut out Harding in the second half. The Bisons had 214 yards on the ground in the first half but only 58 during the final two quarters. Ouachita now must make its longest road trip of the year to take on 0-4 Northwestern Oklahoma.

Harding 35, Oklahoma Baptist 9 — In 2019, Harding lost its opener at Ouachita on a last-second field goal and went on to finish 10-1. This is a talented enough team to finish 10-1 yet again and go deep in the NCAA Division II playoffs. The Bisons will work off the frustration of the loss to Ouachita this Saturday at home against Oklahoma Baptist, which is 1-3.

Henderson 32, Southeastern Oklahoma 26 — Henderson was 3-0 and ranked No. 24 in the country going into last Saturday’s game at Magnolia against Southern Arkansas. SAU pulled the upset by a final score of 28-24. Mulerider quarterback O.B. Jones threw three touchdown passes. Then, the SAU defense held Henderson on downs at the Mulerider 25 with 1:38 left in the game. Henderson is back home in Arkadelphia this week against 2-2 Southeastern Oklahoma.

UAM 40, Southwestern Oklahoma 29 — The Boll Weevils are off to a 3-1 start. They beat Arkansas Tech by a final score of 35-14 last Saturday. Weevil quarterback Demilon Brown gets better every week. He carried the ball 17 times for 184 yards and scored three rushing touchdowns against Tech. He passed for another 114 yards. UAM is 3-1 for the first time since 2008. This week’s opponent, Southwestern Oklahoma, is 2-2.

Arkansas Tech 38, Southern Nazarene 34 — Tech is 1-3. Southern Nazarene is 1-3. It’s going to be a rough season for both teams. When in doubt, give the advantage to the home team. This one is being played in Russellville.

Southern Arkansas 42, East Central Oklahoma 31 — The Muleriders are home in Magnolia again this week and filled with confidence following their win over Henderson. Both SAU and East Central enter the game with 2-2 records, but the Mulerdiers appear to have a bit more talent.

At the end, most of the 74,133 in attendance at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium could finally exhale. Arkansas had overcome a 17-point deficit to subdue Bobby Petrino’s Missouri State Bears, 38-27.

No. 10 Arkansas lost two fumbles in the first half that the Bears turned into points. The Razorbacks led 597-409 in total offense, but Missouri State won the turnover battle 3-0. That allowed the Bears to keep the game close. Missouri State also dominated time of possession, 35:51 to 24:09.

So what are we to make of this?

Sam Pittman is now 7-0 in nonconference games, the first Razorback coach to do that since Lou Holtz. The mark of a good program is one that wins the games it’s supposed to win, even when having an off night.

Let’s also note that Petrino coached his 200th game as a college head coach and now has a record of 134-66. He’s pretty good at coaching this sport. Of course, we already knew that.

So don’t panic. Arkansas will be just fine.

We went 7-0 last week to bring the season record to 25-2.

Here are the picks for this week’s games:

Arkansas 31, Texas A&M 29 — Which Arkansas team will show up at AT&T Stadium in Arlington on Saturday night? Will it be the one that looked so organized and confident in wins over Cincinnati and South Carolina or will it be the bumblers who were on the field in Fayetteville last Saturday? The better question is probably which Texas A&M team will show up. Will it be the one that lost 17-14 to Appalachian State on Sept. 10 or the one that looked decent in a 17-9 win over Miami (which came in ranked 13th in the country). Max Johnson threw for 140 yards and a touchdown against Miami as he took over as Aggie quarterback.

Old Dominion 28, Arkansas State 24 — ASU fell to 1-2 with a 44-32 loss to the Memphis Tigers at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium. It was the 61st meeting between the two schools. The Red Wolves took a 32-31 lead late in the game but couldn’t hold it. Memphis, which had 547 yards of offense and 25 first downs, led 21-17 at halftime in a game that was close throughout. ASU heads to Virginia this week to battle an Old Dominion squad that shocked Virginia Tech, 20-17, in the season opener. Old Dominion has since lost 39-21 to East Carolina and 16-14 to Virginia. We’ll give a slight edge to the home team.

Southeast Missouri State 23, UCA 21 — UCA is 1-2 following a 31-16 victory over Idaho State in Pocatello, Idaho. Bear quarterback Will McElvain was 24 of 29 passing for 259 yards and one touchdown. UCA is back on the road this week to face a 2-1 Southeast Missouri team. SEMO started the season with a 42-10 loss to Iowa State but has bounced back for victories of 34-31 over Southern Illinois and 42-16 over Nicholls. Once more, we give a small advantage to the home team.

Alcorn State 20, UAPB 17 — The Golden Lions dropped to 2-1 following a 63-7 thrashing at the hands of Oklahoma State. Let’s just hope the big check cleared. UAPB had only 230 yards of offense in that game. The Lions travel to Mississippi this week to play Alcorn State. Alcorn began the season with losses of 31-27 to Stephen F. Austin and 52-0 to Tulane but bounced back Saturday for a 30-19 win at McNeese State. For a third consecutive game, let’s give the advantage to the home team.

Ouachita 35, Harding 30 — It’s rare when two Arkansas teams are in the Top 10. On Saturday night at Cliff Harris Stadium in Arkadelphia, No. 7 Harding will visit No. 9 Ouachita. It’s safe to say that this is one of the biggest small college games ever played in Arkansas. Between them, Ouachita and Harding have won seven of the 10 Great American Conference titles. Ouachita has won five. Harding has won two, including last year. Ouachita roared to a 49-7 halftime lead Saturday in Russellville and wound up beating Arkansas Tech by a final score of 63-14. The Tigers had 629 yards of offense. Ouachita is now 46-4 in its past 50 regular-season games. Two of those four losses have come to Harding. The Bisons led Southern Arkansas only 17-10 at the half but pulled away for a 37-17 victory over the weekend as Will Fitzhugh rushed for 124 yards and three touchdowns. Yet again, the advantage goes to the home team.

Henderson 41, Southern Arkansas 27 — We’ll finally pick a road team. The visiting Reddies will have too much firepower for 1-2 Southern Arkansas in Magnolia on Saturday night. Henderson is 3-0 following a 37-27 victory over UAM. Coach Scott Maxfield earned his 120th victory at Henderson to become the winningest coach in school history.

UAM 43, Arkansas Tech 33 — It’s the 2-1 Boll Weevils vs. the 1-2 Wonder Boys. Not only are the Weevils at home, UAM also appears to have the most talent.

Isn’t it nice, Razorback fans, to be able to speak these words: “The University of Arkansas is in the AP Top 10.”

It might not last, but it feels good for now. The Razorbacks’ 44-30 victory over South Carolina was another display of Sam Pittman football as Arkansas’ offensive line dominated. That led to 295 yards on the ground and five rushing touchdowns. Raheim Sanders had a career-high 156 yards with two touchdowns.

On defense, meanwhile, the Razorbacks had three takeaways, six sacks and nine tackles for loss.

For the first time since 2003-04, Arkansas has won back-to-back Southeastern Conference openers. Arkansas now leads the series with South Carolina 14-10.

Arkansas led in time of possession 34:37 to 25:23.

Now, Bobby Petrino returns to Fayetteville with his Missouri State Bears.

We were 8-2 on the picks last week, making the record 18-2 for the season. Here are the picks for this week’s games:

Arkansas 43, Missouri State 27 — In an appearance before the Little Rock Touchdown Club on Monday, Paul Finebaum called Petrino a “reformed man” and warned Arkansas not to take this game for granted. Pittman won’t let that happen against an FCS foe. The Bears are off to a 2-0 start with victories of 27-14 over UCA and 35-30 over Tennessee-Martin. The Arkansas players are too young to remember much about the Petrino era in Fayetteville, but most of the fans aren’t. It will be louder than usual for a nonconference game in Fayetteville on Saturday night.

Memphis 31, Arkansas State 29 — ASU is 1-1 following the expected whipping at the hands of Ohio State. The Buckeyes rolled to a 45-12 victory as C.J. Stroud had 351 yards of offense. He completed 16 of his 24 passes and had four touchdowns. Memphis is 1-1. The Tigers fell 49-23 to Mississippi State in their opener and then came back Saturday with a 37-13 victory over Navy. We’ll give Memphis the slight edge in this one since the Tigers are home at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium.

UCA 24, Idaho State 23 — The Bears must make the long trip to Pocatello, Idaho, to take on an 0-2 Idaho State team that has lost 52-21 to UNLV and 38-7 to San Diego State. UCA is also 0-2. Its loss to Missouri State was followed by a 59-3 whipping at Ole Miss. Both of the Rebel quarterbacks had success against the Bears in a game that the Rebels led 31-0 at halftime. This is a tough one to call as it’s looking like both UCA and Idaho State will have down years.

Oklahoma State 59, UAPB 7 — A Golden Lion football team is 2-0 in the fall for the first time since 2000. UAPB picked on a tiny NAIA independent from Texas called North American last Saturday night and won 76-3. It was the fifth most lopsided victory since the school began football in 1916. Now, as is the case with most FCS schools, UAPB must play a Power 5 team in order to collect the check. It will be ugly. Let’s just hope the Golden Lions don’t get any key players hurt before SWAC play begins.

Harding 30, Southern Arkansas 22 — The defending Great American Conference champions from Harding moved to 2-0 following a 38-13 victory over 1-1 Southeastern Oklahoma, which was the only school to down the Bisons last year in the regular season when Harding went 10-1. The 2-0 Bisons host Southern Arkansas, which fell to 1-1 with a 24-20 loss at 1-1 Southwestern Oklahoma. Southwestern outscored the Muleriders 10-0 in the fourth quarter of that game. Harding is now up to No. 7 in the American Football Coaches Association NCAA Division II poll.

Ouachita 34, Arkansas Tech 25 — Ouachita moves up to No. 10 in the AFCA poll following its 45-0 shutout of 0-2 Southern Nazarene. The 2-0 Tigers, who have won five of the 10 GAC titles since the league was formed, are 45-4 in their past 49 regular-season games. Tech should be 2-0 and is much improved from last season. The Wonder Boys lost their opener in double overtime to Southeastern Oklahoma and then bounced back for a 35-13 victory over 0-2 East Central Oklahoma. Quarterback Taye Gatewood threw for three touchdowns and ran for another in that victory. Ouachita saw senior tailback T.J. Cole rush for 154 yards and two touchdowns in the victory over Southern Nazarene.

Henderson 33, UAM 28 — The Reddies and Boll Weevils are both 2-0 coming into Saturday night’s game at Arkadelphia. Henderson made its longest road trip of the season and came home with a 51-27 victory over 0-2 Northwestern Oklahoma. Henderson head coach Scott Maxfield is now tied with the legendary Ralph “Sporty” Carpenter with 119 victories at Henderson. Carpenter was the head coach there from 1971-89. UAM was at home Saturday and posted a 40-17 victory over 0-2 Oklahoma Baptist as Jonero Scott rushed for 175 yards and two touchdowns.

That was vintage Sam Pittman football at the end.

After Cincinnati made it a one-possession game in Fayetteville on Saturday afternoon, the Razorback offense kept the ball on the ground and ran the final 5:49 off the clock.

Run it down their throats. Out-physical them, as coaches like to say.

And thus for the first time since 1974, a ranked Arkansas team has defeated a ranked opponent in a season-opening game. In 1974, it was No. 5 USC that lost at War Memorial Stadium.

The final statistics were close. Arkansas outgained Cincinnati 447-436. Both teams had 23 first downs.

You had to know it was going to be a tough test. Cincinnati is 22-3 since 2020. The three losses have come against Southeastern Conference teams.

Bumper Poole led the Arkansas defense with 13 tackles. He’s now eighth in school history with 362 tackles, and that number should soar in the weeks ahead.

Now, the SEC season starts for Arkansas.

We were 10-0 on the picks opening week. We’ll try to be perfect again this week, though the schedule is more challenging.

Arkansas’ six Great American Conference teams went 5-1 against Oklahoma foes. Arkansas Tech was the lone loser, but it took double overtime for Southeastern Oklahoma to overcome the Wonder Boys.

Arkansas State and UAPB took care of business at home with the Red Wolves easily defeating Grambling (at least the visitors brought their world-class band to Jonesboro) and the Golden Lions overcoming Lane College.

As expected, Bobby Petrino’s nationally ranked Missouri State Bears were too much for the UCA Bears to handle in Conway.

Let’s get to the picks for Week 2:

Arkansas 28, South Carolina 20 — The SEC flexed its muscles opening week, going 13-1 against nonconference foes. If LSU knew how to block for field goals and extra points, it might have been 14-0. South Carolina didn’t have nearly the challenge that Arkansas overcame. The Gamecocks rolled 35-14 against an outmanned Georgia State squad. Arkansas should win this game at home, but in the SEC it’s foolish to take anyone for granted. Pittman doesn’t strike us as the kind of coach who will allow a team to take a win for granted. Expect South Carolina to stay close.

Ohio State 47, Arkansas State 19 — The Red Wolves had jumped out to a 30-0 lead by the second quarter against Grambling. Quarterback James Blackman finished 15 of 20 passing for 210 yards with two passing scores and two rushing scores. Blackman led touchdown drives on four of the first five series. Anyone who saw Ohio State’s victory over Notre Dame knows what to expect in Columbus this Saturday. The key for the Red Wolves is to avoid injuries and make sure to collect that big check. A close game isn’t in the cards.

Ole Miss 41, UCA 17 — The Bears must have the same goals as the Red Wolves: Avoid injuries and make sure to collect the check. After a scoreless first quarter last Thursday night in Conway, Missouri State outscored UCA 17-0 in the second quarter. The UCA secondary gave up 266 yards through the air. It might be 400 yards this week. Ole Miss had a decent first half in a 28-10 season-opening victory over Troy. Our advice to UCA fans: Get there early, crash a party or two in the Grove, take in the scene (which is truly like none other) and have fun.

UAPB 29, North American 22 — The Golden Lions opened the season against much smaller Lane and still struggled before escaping with a 48-41 victory. UAPB had defeated Lane 34-16 last year to start the season. Sophomore running back Kayvon Britten had 237 rushing yards and 297 total yards. He’s now second on the school’s all-time list for single-game yardage. North American is a tiny NAIA program from the Houston area that we’ve frankly never heard of. UAPB, unfortunately, has a way of keeping what should be blowout victories close, as evidenced by last week’s win.

Ouachita 49, Southern Nazarene 25 — The Tigers must find a way to rally following the unexpected death Sunday of senior defensive end Clark Yarbrough. Fortunately, they’re hosting one of the conference’s least talented teams. Southern Nazarene finished 1-10 in 2021. In the rain last Thursday at Shawnee, Ouachita overcame a slow first half to defeat Oklahoma Baptist, 42-32. The game really wasn’t that close as Ouachita had a 30-point lead before putting in the substitutes. The Tiger offense again this year will feature the one-two punch of tailbacks T.J. Cole and Kendel Givens. Cole rushed for 176 yards and two touchdowns. Givens rushed for 142 yards and two touchdowns. Ouachita had 406 rushing yards. Continue to pray for Yarbrough’s mother, other family members, teammates and friends.

Henderson 35, Northwestern Oklahoma 21 — The Reddies got off to a 1-0 start with a 30-13 victory over Southwestern Oklahoma. Sophomore quarterback Landon Ledbetter accounted for 319 yards — 179 passing and 140 rushing. It will be the longest road trip of the season for Henderson, but Northwestern is among the conference’s weakest squads. Southern Arkansas hung 62 points on the Rangers last week en route to a 62-31 victory. Look for Ledbetter to pile up even larger numbers this week. Northwestern finished 2-9 a year ago.

Harding 18, Southeastern Oklahoma 16 — Harding is the defending GAC champion, and the Bisons were picked by the conference’s coaches to repeat that feat. Last year, Southeastern was the only team to defeat both Harding and Ouachita. Harding finished the regular season 10-1. Ouachita finished 9-2. Southeastern again appears to be the best of the six Oklahoma schools in the GAC and could win this game in Searcy. Harding opened the season with a 29-12 victory over East Central Oklahoma as Cole Keylon completed three touchdown passes. We’ll go with Harding in a tight one, but don’t be surprised if Southeastern has Harding’s number for a second consecutive season.

Oklahoma Baptist 36, UAM 31 — Oklahoma Baptist has a freshman quarterback out of Moore, Okla., who piled up huge numbers as a prep athlete and looked good at times against Ouachita. Meanwhile, UAM won its opener by a final score of 49-26 against Southern Nazarene as quarterback Demilion Brown rushed for 149 yards and passed for 228 yards. Brown must have an even bigger night for UAM to defeat an Oklahoma Baptist squad that’s filled with young talent.

Arkansas Tech 27, East Central Oklahoma 24 — The Wonder Boys showed improvement in that 41-34 loss to Southeastern Oklahoma in two overtimes. It has been a long dry streak for the conference’s largest school based on enrollment. Tech was 4-7 in 2021. We think Tech is going to be much improved this year, and East Central may find that out the hard way Saturday night in Russellville.

Southern Arkansas 40, Southwestern Oklahoma 32 — The Muleriders have a new coach and seemingly new life after going 4-7 last season. The 62 points scored in that victory over Northwestern Oklahoma were the most points ever posted by a Mulerider team in a season opener. This week’s opponent went 0-11 a year ago. The Muleriders should be able to overcome the long trip to Weatherford and move to 2-0. A Sept. 17 showdown at Harding looms.

Finally, college football season has arrived.

And it won’t be the usual boring nonconference opponent for the Razorbacks. No, ESPN will telecast a battle of two ranked teams in Fayetteville on Saturday afternoon. It could prove to be quite a test for the Hogs.

On Thursday night, meanwhile, former Hog head man Bobby Petrino brings his Missouri State Bears to Conway to take on the University of Central Arkansas Bears.

Arkansas State and the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff are both home on Saturday. ASU hosts Grambling in Jonesboro, and UAPB hosts tiny Lane College in Pine Bluff.

All of the Great American Conference schools start the season Thursday night. The six Arkansas schools play the six Oklahoma schools. Remember, all games are conference games, and there are no bye weeks, just a grueling 11 consecutive weeks of conference play.

Four of the six Arkansas GAC schools are on the road. The two schools that are home are Henderson State University and Southern Arkansas University.

Let’s get to the picks:

Arkansas 31, Cincinnati 27 — Hopes are high on the hill as Arkansas comes off a 9-4 season. The No. 19 Razorbacks will have their hands full against No. 23 Cincinnati. There’s a deeper receiving corps this year for quarterback KJ Jefferson. That could make the difference if the Razorbacks get in a shootout Saturday afternoon. At the start of the season last year, offensive coordinator Kendal Briles was still trying to figure out how to best use Jefferson’s talents. Now, he knows.

Arkansas State 40, Grambling 24 — The 2021 season was a nightmare in Jonesboro as the Red Wolves went 2-10. Coach Butch Jones has shown he can recruit, though, so there should be improvement in 2022. Just how much improvement is anyone’s guess. Last year was the worst record in Jones’ career as a head coach. He was 85-54 as head coach at Central Michigan, Cincinnati and Tennessee. The only Red Wolf victories in 2021 were over UCA and Louisiana-Monroe. Remember, this is an ASU program that played in a bowl game every year from 2011-19.

Missouri State 30, UCA 22 — UCA teams qualified for the playoffs in three of the past six seasons. Last year wasn’t one of them as the Bears slumped to a 5-6 record. Four of the six losses were by 10 points or less. The roster has been revamped. There are a ton of question marks as UCA begins play in the ASUN Conference. Quarterback Breylin Smith is among those who are gone. Petrino obviously would love to start the season with a victory in the state he once called home.

UAPB 32, Lane College 14 — The Golden Lions began a less-than-stellar 2021 season with a 34-16 victory over Lane. You should expect a similar margin this year. The Lions finished the 2021 season with a 2-9 record as the team was beset by injuries. The only other victory came against Grambling. UAPB returns six offensive and five defensive starters.

Harding 29, East Central Oklahoma 15 — Last season saw Harding win its second GAC title with an 11-2 record. The Bisons reached the second round of the NCAA Division II playoffs and are picked by the GAC coaches to repeat as champions. Harding’s flexbone offense averaged 390.1 rushing yards per game last year, the highest average in Division II since 2014. But Harding must replace the conference’s all-time leading rusher, Cole Chancey.

Ouachita 33, Oklahoma Baptist 23 — Ouachita came into last season having won three consecutive GAC titles and five of the previous nine conference crowns. The Tigers return 10 offensive starters and six defensive starters off a 9-2 team. Ouachita has a combined regular-season record of 40-4 the previous four seasons. The coaches picked the Tigers second and Oklahoma Baptist fifth in the preseason poll. Ouachita will have a new quarterback in Riley Harms, a transfer from Kearney State in Nebraska.

UAM 43, Southern Nazarene 39 — The Boll Weevils went 5-6 in 2021. They return seven offensive and four defensive starters for head coach Hud Jackson, who is 39-71 in 10 seasons at the school. The preseason poll has the Boll Weevils seventh and Southern Nazarene last. UAM defeated Southern Nazarene by a final score of 30-23 in the opener a year ago. The key to the first game and the season will be the play of UAM quarterback Demilon Brown.

Southeastern Oklahoma 36, Arkansas Tech 19 — Southeastern was the only GAC team to defeat Harding last year and one of the two teams (along with Harding) to defeat Ouachita. Southeastern is picked third in the preseason poll; Tech is ninth. The Wonder Boys finished 4-7 last year after starting 0-4. Tech has an experienced team, however, with seven offensive and eight defensive starters returning. After being picked 11th in the 2021 poll, the Savage Storm went 9-3 and won the Live United Bowl against Emporia State.

Henderson 37, Southwestern Oklahoma 28 — The Reddies finished 9-2 last year and would have shared the conference title with Harding had they defeated Ouachita in the Battle of the Ravine. Ouachita kicked a 53-yard field goal late for a 31-28 victory. Henderson returns six offensive and nine defensive starters. Quarterback Adam Morse and All-American wide receiver L’liot Curry are gone. Henderson is picked fourth and Southwestern is picked 11th in the preseason poll.

Southern Arkansas 25, Northwestern Oklahoma 16 — Brad Smiley will be SAU’s third head coach in three seasons. The Muleriders were 4-7 a year ago and lost starting quarterback Hayden Mallory. SAU still has Jariq Sales, the 2021 GAC Freshman of the Year, who rushed for 1,475 yards and nine touchdowns. SAU was eighth and Northwestern was 10th in the preseason poll.

Isn’t it nice to be competitive again in the really big games?

Alabama’s 42-35 victory over Arkansas on Saturday had everything you could ask for in a college football game. The CBS crew seemed thrilled to finally be calling a game in Tuscaloosa that wasn’t a blowout.

How far has this Arkansas program come in a short time?

Consider this: In the previous four games between these two schools, Alabama won by a total of 156 points. It was 52-3 last year.

KJ Jefferson threw for 348 yards and three touchdowns.

Treylon Burks had 179 receiving yards and two scores. That puts Burks at No. 9 on the Arkansas single-game list.

Unfortunately for Arkansas, Alabama’s Bryce Young passed for a school record 559 yards and five touchdowns. The previous best by an Alabama quarterback had been Scott Hunter’s 484 yards against Auburn in 1969.

The most yards allowed by an Arkansas defense were 508 by Dak Prescott for Mississippi State in 2015.

Alabama has now won 15 consecutive games against Arkansas. The Tide reached 10 victories in a season for a 14th consecutive year.

Nick Saban is 18-2 against Arkansas. His last loss to a Razorback team was the 2002 Miracle on Markham when Saban was head coach at LSU.

How impressive was the fact that Arkansas stayed in this game until the very end?

Consider these facts:

— Alabama has a 70-17 record against nationally ranked teams since 2008.

— Saban is 266-66-1 in 26 seasons as a head coach. He’s 96-8 in home games at Alabama. Alabama is 61-2 in its past 63 games in Tuscaloosa.

Truly, it’s a new day in Fayetteville.

I was 4-1 on the picks last week to make the record 73-20 for the 2021 season.

Here are this week’s games:

Arkansas 31, Missouri 23 — Missouri beat Florida in overtime last Saturday, and just like that, Dan Mullen is gone. The Tigers elected to go for two after scoring in overtime and converted for the win, 24-23. Missouri comes into Friday’s game at Fayetteville 6-5 overall and 3-4 in the Southeastern Conference. This is a game the Razorbacks should win. Any realistic Arkansas fan would have taken an 8-4 record in a heartbeat coming into this 2021 season.

Arkansas State 22, Texas State 20 — A long season will come to an end in Jonesboro on Saturday afternoon. The Red Wolves fell to 2-9 overall and 1-6 in Sun Belt Conference play with a 28-20 loss in Atlanta last Saturday to Georgia State. ASU finished with 270 yards of total offense but had a negative three rushing yards. Georgia State rushed for 283 yards and four touchdowns. This is a winnable game for the Red Wolves as Texas State limps in with a 3-8 record. The wins were by scores of 23-17 over Florida International, 33-31 over South Alabama and 27-19 over Louisiana-Monroe. The losses have been by scores of 29-20 to Baylor, 42-24 to Incarnate Word, 59-21 to Eastern Michigan, 31-28 to Troy, 28-16 to Georgia State, 45-0 to Louisiana-Lafayette, 38-30 to Georgia Southern and 35-21 to Coastal Carolina. In a battle of two struggling teams, let’s give a slight advantage to the home team.

Harding 24, Northwest Missouri 19 — It seems as if Northwest Missouri is the team that always knocks Harding out of the NCAA Division II playoffs. This might be the year that changes. Harding improved to 11-1 Saturday in Searcy with a first-round playoff victory over Washburn. It wasn’t as close as the 30-14 final score indicated. Harding dominated. The Bisons outgained Washburn 409-38 over the first three quarters. Harding kept the ball for 47:24 of the 60 minutes and had 29 first downs to just seven for Washburn. The Bisons had 419 rushing yards; Washburn had minus two. The Bisons led 20-7 at the half and 27-7 after three quarters. Cole Chancey carried the ball 41 times on the beautiful November afternoon for 176 yards. Northwest Missouri is 10-1 with its one loss coming to none other than Washburn, 17-16. Since then, the Bearcats haven’t had a close game. They’ve defeated Northeastern Oklahoma 59-7, Nebraska-Kearney 66-13, Missouri Southern 49-7, Emporia State 35-7 and Central Washington 50-21.

The Battle for the Golden Boot. The Battle of the Ravine. Even Arkansas State’s victory.

They all came down to late field goals. It was quite a Saturday for teams from this state.

Cam Little kicked a 37-yard field goal in overtime to power Arkansas to a 16-13 victory at LSU. It was his third field goal of the game. The last one followed a Montaric Brown interception on LSU’s first overtime possession. Little has made 17 field goals this season.

Little has been such a pleasant surprise that he could probably give Sarah Huckabee Sanders a run for her money in the governor’s race if the election were this November rather than next November. As it is, the Razorbacks move to 7-3 overall and 3-3 in the Southeastern Conference with two games remaining in the regular season.

Arkansas broke a five-game losing streak in the series against LSU and has its first seven-win season since 2016. Sam Pittman evened his record at 10-10 as the Razorback head coach.

LSU falls to 4-6 overall and 2-5 in the SEC under its lame-duck coach. The Tigers outgained the Hogs 308-218, but Arkansas won the takeaway battle 3-0.

Alabama looms in this week’s CBS game.

I was 4-3 on the picks last week to make the season record 69-19.

Here are this week’s games:

Alabama 35, Arkansas 26 — Arkansas has the ability to hang around for at least three quarters in this one. This is a good Alabama team, but it’s not the best team in the nation. The Tide warmed up last Saturday with a 59-3 nonconference win over 1-9 New Mexico State. Alabama is now 9-1. Bryce Young was 21 of 23 passing for 270 yards and five touchdowns. Alabama led 49-3 at the half. Arkansas must hope that the Tide is looking ahead to the Iron Bowl.

Georgia State 33, Arkansas State 31 — The Red Wolves downed Louisiana-Monroe by a final score of 27-24 after making a 42-yard field goal with 1:17 left on the clock. ASU scored 17 of the game’s final 20 points. An interception with 20 seconds left sealed the victory. It was ASU’s first win since Sept. 4 and ended an eight-game losing streak. The Red Wolves are now 2-8 overall and 1-5 in the Sun Belt Conference. Louisiana-Monroe fell to 4-6 and 2-5. This week’s opponent, Georgia State, is 5-5. The wins have come by scores of 20-9 over Charlotte, 55-21 over Louisiana-Monroe, 28-16 over Texas State, 21-14 over Georgia Southern and 42-40 over Coastal Carolina. The losses have been by scores of 43-10 to Army, 59-17 to North Carolina, 34-24 to Auburn, 45-16 to Appalachian State and 21-17 to Louisiana-Lafayette. The game is in Atlanta.

UCA 28, Tarleton State 25 — The Bears fell to 5-5 overall and 3-3 in conference play with a 27-14 loss to Stephen F. Austin, which improved to 7-3 and 3-2. UCA’s offense was held to a season low of 304 yards. Breylin Smith was 17 of 27 passing for 163 yards. UCA makes a road trip to Stephenville, Texas, this weekend to battle Tarleton State. The game will determine which team has a winning season and which one has a losing season since Tarleton is also 5-5. Its wins have come by scores of 54-7 over Fort Lewis, 40-21 over New Mexico Highlands, 41-20 over Dixie State, 17-14 over Midwestern State and 42-21 over Lamar. The losses were by scores of 20-10 to Stephen F. Austin, 40-35 to Southern Utah, 20-3 to Eastern Kentucky, 45-27 to Sam Houston State and 29-3 to Abilene Christian.

Alabama A&M 30, UAPB 20 — The Golden Lions will end a disappointing season with a trip to Huntsville, Ala., to take on Alabama A&M. UAPB fell to 2-8 overall and 1-6 in the SWAC last Saturday with a 37-7 loss to Florida A&M in Pine Bluff. The Rattlers are 8-2 overall and 6-1 in conference play in their first year in the SWAC. Florida A&M finished the game with 570 yards of offense. Alabama A&M is 6-3 overall and 4-3 in SWAC play. The wins have been by scores of 42-41 over South Carolina State, 30-27 over Bethune-Cookman, 45-35 over Tuskegee, 42-28 over Alabama State, 42-14 over Mississippi Valley State and 52-49 over Texas Southern. The losses were by scores of 37-28 to Grambling, 61-15 to Jackson State and 35-31 to Florida A&M.

Harding 27, Washburn 19 — Harding is 10-1 and the Great American Conference champion following a 31-0 victory at 4-7 Arkansas Tech. The Bisons led just 7-0 at halftime but scored on their first four possessions of the second half. Cole Chancey rushed for 210 yards on 28 carries with 181 of those yards coming in the second half. Harding hosts a first-round NCAA Division II playoff game Saturday afternoon in Searcy. Washburn is 9-2. Harding has the ability to go deep into the playoffs because teams from outside the GAC haven’t seen anything like the Bisons’ double-slot option offense.

The kick veered badly to the left, Mike Leach announced an open tryout for kickers at Mississippi State and Arkansas became bowl eligible for the first time since 2016.

Arkansas 31, Mississippi State 28.

It was a fun finish as the Razorbacks drove 75 yards for the go-ahead touchdown, which came with just 21 seconds remaining. The Hogs moved to 6-3 overall and 2-3 in the Southeastern Conference while Mississippi State fell to 5-4 and 3-3.

With LSU down this year, an 8-4 finish now seems possible. It’s remarkable how far this program has come in two years.

Meanwhile, it’s Battle of the Ravine week in Arkansas. The Battle of the Ravine is to small-college football what the Iron Bowl between Alabama and Auburn is to FBS football — an intense rivalry that divides families right down the middle and is talked about 365 days a year.

It’s the only college football game in the country in which the visiting team walks to a road game rather than taking a bus or airplane. I still believe that one of these years ESPN will decide to bring “College GameDay” to Arkadelphia to experience that walk.

Henderson will walk across U.S. Highway 67 this year to take on Ouachita at 1 p.m. at Cliff Harris Stadium. Both teams are nationally ranked. The two teams have a combined record of 17-3. In other words, there will be some good football played Saturday afternoon.

Two years ago, Sports Illustrated devoted eight pages to the Battle of the Ravine, the largest spread in SI for a sports event in this state that I can remember. This rivalry deserves that kind of national attention.

Every Arkansan should experience the Battle of the Ravine at least once.

I was 8-2 on my picks last week, making the record 65-16 for the year.

Arkansas 29, LSU 27 — Let’s stick with the Hogs for another week even though the game is in Baton Rouge. They certainly showed their grit in Fayetteville last Saturday afternoon. It was the latest winning touchdown for an Arkansas team since a Greg Childs touchdown reception with 15 seconds left against Georgia in 2010. The Hogs are now 18-13-1 in the series against Mississippi State. The Bulldogs missed all three field goal attempts. Cam Little, an Arkansas freshman, made field goals of 51, 48 and 46 yards. He’s the first Razorback kicker since 1997 to make three field goals of 45 or more yards in the same game. LSU may have a lame duck in Coach O, but the Tigers didn’t play like it Saturday against Alabama. The Tide (8-1, 5-1) struggled to beat LSU (4-5, 2-4). It wasn’t over until the final play when an LSU pass fell incomplete in the end zone, allowing Alabama to escape with a 20-14 victory. It should be a close, exciting game in Death Valley this Saturday night.

Henderson 35, Ouachita 25 — Henderson is 9-1, and Ouachita is 8-2. With a victory, the Reddies will clinch at least a share of the Great American Conference championship and a spot in the NCAA Division II playoffs. Ouachita, which had won the previous three GAC titles, saw its hopes for a fourth consecutive crown go up in flames with a 35-21 loss to 8-2 Southeastern Oklahoma. It ended a 19-game conference winning streak for Ouachita at Cliff Harris Stadium. The Tigers, of course, would love nothing more than to spoil Henderson’s party. Ouachita has won the past four Battles of the Ravine. Henderson stayed on track for a GAC title when David Heaton kicked a 43-yard field goal in Shawnee, Okla., as time expired for a 36-34 victory over 6-4 Oklahoma Baptist. Henderson began the winning drive 99 yards away with no timeouts and 2:14 on the clock after a goal-line stand by its defense. It was truly the stuff that championship teams are made of. Reddie quarterback Adam Morse was 28 of 50 passing for 373 yards and two touchdowns.

Harding 51, Arkansas Tech 22 — The Bisons are 9-1 (having only lost to that same Southeastern Oklahoma squad that knocked off Ouachita) and on a roll. They beat 0-10 Southwestern Oklahoma by a final score of 55-7 Saturday, rushing for 459 yards and seven touchdowns. Six different Bisons scored first-half touchdowns as Harding sprinted to a 41-0 halftime lead. They certainly won’t let off the gas this Saturday with at least a share of the GAC title on the line. Arkansas Tech improved to 4-6 with a 56-21 win over 1-9 Northwestern Oklahoma. Senior quarterback Jack Lindsey passed for 185 yards and three touchdowns for the Wonder Boys. Tech led 35-0 at halftime.

Southern Arkansas 21, UAM 19 — Both SAU and UAM are 4-6 entering the final game of the season. Southern Arkansas beat 1-9 Southern Nazarene 31-10 as freshman Jariq Scales rushed for 195 yards and one touchdown. UAM, meanwhile, lost 35-10 to 6-4 East Central Oklahoma as East Central jumped out to a 21-0 halftime lead. The Boll Weevils have lost four consecutive games. This week’s game is in Magnolia. Give a slight advantage to the home team.

Louisiana-Monroe 40, Arkansas State 37 — This is a winnable game for the Red Wolves, but it’s hard to have much confidence in a team that’s now 1-8 with eight consecutive losses. The Red Wolves fell 48-14 to Appalachian State (7-2, 4-1) in Jonesboro on Saturday. ASU had just 199 yards of offense in that game. Louisiana-Monroe is 4-5 overall but 4-1 at home, and the game is in Monroe. The victories have come by scores of 12-7 over Jackson State, 29-16 over Troy, 31-28 over Liberty and 41-31 over South Alabama. The losses have been by scores of 45-10 to Kentucky, 59-6 to Coastal Carolina, 55-21 to Georgia State, 59-28 to Appalachian State and 27-19 to Texas State.

Stephen F. Austin 32, UCA 26 — The Bears are 5-4 following a 63-3 homecoming win over an NAIA opponent, Texas Wesleyan. By halftime against the outmatched visitors, UCA already had 49 points, 538 yards of total offense and 410 yards through the air. This is a Texas Wesleyan team that goes to Batesville to play Lyon this week, if that gives you any idea what kind of mismatch this was. Stephen F. Austin is 6-3 with wins of 20-10 over Tarleton State, 58-13 over Mississippi Valley State, 61-13 over Lincoln University of California, 37-20 over Dixie State of Utah, 41-27 over Abilene Christian and 31-17 over Eastern Kentucky. The losses were by scores of 28-22 to Texas Tech, 21-20 to Sam Houston and 38-24 to Jacksonville State.

Florida A&M 41, UAPB 20 — The UAPB losing streak ends at seven games. The Golden Lions are now 2-7 overall and 1-5 in the SWAC after beating Grambling (3-6, 2-4) on Saturday afternoon in Pine Bluff by a final score of 33-26. The opponent will be much tougher this week. Florida A&M comes to Pine Bluff with a record of 7-2 overall and 5-1 in conference play. The Rattler wins have been by scores of 34-7 over Fort Valley State, 28-0 over Alabama State, 30-7 over South Carolina State, 35-31 over Alabama A&M, 31-28 over Mississippi Valley State, 26-3 over Grambling and 29-17 over Southern University. The losses were by scores of 7-6 to Jackson State and 38-17 to South Florida.

College football fans in Arkansas have plenty of choices this Saturday. And the weather promises to be perfect.

There are college games in 10 Arkansas cities — Fayetteville, Jonesboro, Conway, Pine Bluff, Arkadelphia, Searcy, Russellville, Monticello, Little Rock and Batesville.

Never can I remember that many college games in the state on the same day.

Both FBS teams from the state play at home.

Both FCS teams from Arkansas are home.

Four of the six NCAA Division II programs have home games.

Hendrix, which competes in NCAA Division III, plays at Little Rock’s War Memorial Stadium.

And Lyon, which plays in the NAIA, is home in Batesville.

I went 8-1 on the picks last week, am 14-1 during the past two weeks and now have a season record of 57-14.

Let’s get to the predictions for this week’s games:

Arkansas 30, Mississippi State 29 — The Hogs got a needed break. They had an easy nonconference game at War Memorial Stadium against the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, and that was followed by an open date. So it will have been three weeks since the previous Southeastern Conference contest when the ball is kicked off in Fayetteville this Saturday afternoon. Given that time for injuries to heal, along with the fact that the Razorbacks play at home, don’t be surprised if they manage to beat Mississippi State. This is a Mississippi State team that’s getting better. In Starkville on Saturday, the Bulldogs shocked Kentucky by a final score of 31-17. The Wildcats fell to 6-2 overall and 4-2 in the SEC while Mississippi State improved to 5-3 and 3-2. Will Rogers was 36 of 39 passing for 344 yards for the Bulldogs.

Appalachian State 40, Arkansas State 28 — The misery continued for Arkansas State last Saturday with a 31-13 loss at South Alabama. The Jaguars ran off 28 consecutive points to start the game, scoring touchdowns on each of their first four possessions. South Alabama outgained ASU 352-70 in the first half. The Red Wolves fell to 1-7 overall and 0-4 in conference play. South Alabama improved to 5-3 and 2-3. Appalachian State brings a 6-2 record to Jonesboro this week. The victories have come by scores of 33-19 over East Carolina, 44-10 over Elon, 31-30 over Marshall, 45-16 over Georgia State, 30-27 over Coastal Carolina and 59-28 over Louisiana-Monroe. The losses have been by scores of 25-23 to Miami and 41-13 to Louisiana-Lafayette.

Grambling 33, UAPB 18 — The Golden Lions are 1-7 after losing 59-17 to Texas Southern on Saturday. UAPB led 3-0 early. Skyler Perry was one of the few bright spots for the Golden Lions as he was 25 of 37 passing for 311 yards. Grambling brings a 3-5 record to Pine Bluff on Saturday. The three victories were by scores of 16-10 over Tennessee State, 37-28 over Alabama A&M and 34-20 over Texas Southern. The losses have come by scores of 37-0 to Southern Mississippi, 45-0 to Houston, 24-10 to Prairie View A&M, 24-20 to Alcorn State and 26-3 to Florida A&M.

UCA 64, Texas Wesleyan 10 — Conference realignment created scheduling scrambles, which means the FCS Bears play an NAIA team in Conway (a team that will later play Lyon if that gives you any idea). UCA will be able to name the score Saturday. The Bears evened their record at 4-4 last Saturday with a 38-14 win over Jacksonville State in Alabama. UCA intercepted three passes and returned two of them for touchdowns. On offense, Darius Hale rushed for 120 yards and a touchdown. Quarterback Breylin Smith was 22 of 35 passing for 229 yards and one touchdown. Texas Wesleyan is 6-2, but the wins have come against the likes of Arizona Christian, Oklahoma Panhandle, Wayland Baptist, Southwestern Assemblies of God, Louisiana College and Texas College. The losses were to Ottawa University out of Arizona and Langston.

Ouachita 27, Southeastern Oklahoma 24 — Ouachita, Harding and Henderson remain tied for the Great American Conference lead with just two weeks to go. All three teams are 8-1. Ouachita has the stiffest test of the bunch this week as the Tigers host 7-2 Southeastern Oklahoma (the only team to beat Harding so far this season) at Cliff Harris Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Ouachita, which has won 35 of its past 36 GAC games, trailed by 11 points near the end of the third quarter Saturday at East Central Oklahoma. Senior Hayden Lassiter from Warren returned an interception for a touchdown on the final play of the quarter. That began a run of 26 consecutive points by the Tigers and resulted in a 43-28 victory over 5-3 East Central. T.J. Cole had 226 yards rushing and four touchdowns on 32 carries for Ouachita. Freshman Kendel Givens out of Little Rock Christian had his 20th rushing touchdown of the season.

Henderson 39, Oklahoma Baptist 36 — Oklahoma Baptist, which is 6-3, has the talent to give the Reddies all they can handle in Shawnee on Saturday. The Reddies defeated 1-8 Southern Nazarene by a final score of 34-3 in Arkadelphia last Saturday. Senior quarterback Adam Morse passed for 237 yards and rushed for another 66. The Reddie defense added a 62-yard interception return for a touchdown. Neither Ouachita nor Henderson can afford to look ahead just yet to the Nov. 13 Battle of the Ravine.

Harding 57, Southwestern Oklahoma 19 — The Bisons are on cruise control. They get 0-9 Southwestern Oklahoma in Searcy this Saturday. Harding defeated 1-8 Northwestern Oklahoma 73-14 last Saturday. The Bisons rushed for a school record 674 yards and scored 10 rushing touchdowns. Harding scored touchdowns on six of its seven first-half possessions, added a 54-yard field goal and led 45-0 at the half. The Bisons had three freshmen rush for more than 100 yards each. This week’s game should play out pretty much the same way.

Arkansas Tech 17, Northwestern Oklahoma 16 — The Wonder Boys kept Southwestern Oklahoma winless as Jesus Zizumbo kicked a 36-yard field goal with eight seconds remaining for a 15-14 road win last Saturday. Tech scored nine points in the final five minutes of that game. There’s another winnable game this week for the Wonder Boys, who improved to 3-6.

Southern Arkansas 37, Southern Nazarene 25 — The Muleriders fell to 3-6 with a 44-40 loss in Magnolia last Saturday to Oklahoma Baptist. The visitors scored two touchdowns in the final 7:32 after Southern Arkansas had gone up by 10 points at 40-30 with 10:49 left in the game.

East Central Oklahoma 23, UAM 15 — The Boll Weevils have lost three consecutive games and are now 4-5. Southeastern Oklahoma jumped out to a 17-0 lead against UAM last week and never looked back, cruising to a 34-14 victory.