If you woke up today with an extra spring in your step, or if the air felt just a bit crisper than usual, that’s because it’s Texas week. And although many of the actual Razorback players have been getting a crash course in the history of the rivalry lately, I’m guessing that most visitors to this site need no such refresher.

Any longtime Hog fan knows that the Longhorns suck for a variety of reasons, and even if they’ve tended to own us on the field more often than not (personally, I blame the refs), that only makes the victories even sweeter. So, in honor of what will surely be a history-making upset this Saturday, we present to you our three favorite Razorback wins over Texas (note: we’re only covering games we remember, which dates back to 1980 or so. We’re counting on our always-excellent commenters to fill in details on some of the older games we missed, plus any other favorites not mentioned here).

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3. October 19, 1991: Arkansas 14, Texas 13 – Granted, this game was more about the Longhorns failing choking more than any particular Razorback heroism, but knowing that Texas utterly blew their chance to send the Hogs out of the SWC with a loss just makes this game even sweeter. Arkansas jumped out to a 14 point lead in the first half and then watched as the Horns missed both a PAT and a 39-yd field goal in the 4th quarter to seal their fate.

This one holds a special memory for both your Expats editors, as Stephen and I watched the game from the War Memorial south end zone and deliriously ran out onto the field with thousands of other giddy fans when time expired. It really felt like a final middle finger to Texas and all of the SWC before we moved on to greener pastures. (random note: the day before was the final issue of the late, lamented Arkansas Gazette, making it a big weekend in Arkansas history)

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2. October 17, 1981: Arkansas 42, Texas 11 – Fact #1: beating Texas is always cause for celebration. Fact #2: beating Texas while they’re ranked #1 in the country is really cause for celebration. Fact #3: Absolutely routing Texas to the point of utter humiliation while they’re ranked #1 is cause for some sort of epic, week long party.

This game probably should be ranked #1 on this list, but the fact is I was just an 8-year old Hog fan in training at the time and don’t remember the specifics very well (although I do remember using it as ammo to taunt my Texas relatives, which was good enough). Please share your recollections in the comments section!

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1. January 1, 2000: Arkansas 27, Texas 6 – The 21st century got off to a particularly good start, as the Hogs dominated the Horns in their only meeting in a bowl game. After battling to a 3-3 tie at halftime, Clint Stoener, Cedric Cobbs, Anthony Lucas and company absolutely pummeled Texas the rest of the way. My personal favorite stat is that the Arkansas defense held the Longhorns to all of -27 yards rushing (yes, that’s minus 27).

In addition to being my favorite Razorback victory over Texas, this game represented the emotional high point of the Houston Nutt era. And, if you want to savor every last moment there’s a DVD available for purchase. Or, if you’re more into instant gratification check out this very excellent YouTube recap.

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Honorable mentions:
September 13, 2003: Arkansas 38, Texas 28
October 18, 1986: Arkansas 21, Texas 14
October 15, 1988: Arkansas 27, Texas 24

(there’s more at www.razorbackexpats.com)

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