The Razorbacks are headed to Memphis to take on Kansas State in the Liberty Bowl. The game will be televised by ESPN. That comes six years to the day since Arkansas’ last appearance in the Liberty Bowl, when the Hogs beat East Carolina 20-17 in overtime of what is considered, because of the frigid 10-degree wind chill, one of the most miserable football experiences fans have ever experienced.
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Kansas State will be making it’s Liberty Bowl debut. Huebener has the mobility to make up for some of those aerial struggles – he’s got 13 rushing touchdowns this season – but opponents haven’t exactly been afraid of Kansas State’s vertical attack this fall.
Arkansas’ current coach, Bret Bielema, spent two seasons in Manhattan, Kansas, as co-defensive coordinator for coach Bill Snyder. The Razorbacks (7-5) and the Wildcats (6-6) will meet in a bowl game for the second time in school history.
They last met in the Cotton Bowl back in 2012 with Arkansas winning 29-16.
“Welcome in to the Razorback Roundtable discussion Bo Mattingly joining me and the first question I have for Bo is what are we going to do with no Mike Irwin?” West Virginia and Texas A&M played in last year’s inaugural SEC-Big 12 pairing. Bielema is quite familiar with the Kansas State program.
Bouncing back from a 3-6 record with three games remaining, K-State became just the sixth Power 5 team in the “12-game schedule era” to avoid bowl elimination (in at least three-straight games) to qualify for a bowl game. Bielema names Snyder as one of his mentors in the profession. We pride ourselves on being a very national game.
The coaching matchup and whether this will be the 76-year-old Snyder’s final game will be the predominant storylines, but here are five more things to know about K-State heading into next month’s game. “Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics Jeff Long is one of the most outstanding collegiate leaders in the country and we look forward to welcoming Arkansas’ new Chancellor, Dr. Joseph Steinmetz, who will begin his appointment on January 1, the day before the game”.
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“It is a great honor to host Kansas State University”, said Steve Ehrhart, Executive Director of the AutoZone Liberty Bowl.
