Catch 22

After facing Penn State for the first time in the Outback Bowl on Jan. 1, the Razorbacks will have 22 Power 5 Conference teams remaining that it has never played in football.

“I think it’s really cool, because for as long as Penn State and Arkansas have been playing football, there are not too many things you can say that’s never happened before,” Penn State Coach James Franklin said. “So I think that’s cool.”

Penn State will be the second first-time opponent in a bowl in recent years for the Razorbacks following their 35-24 loss to Virginia Tech in the 2016 Belk Bowl.

Five teams the Razorbacks have never played are in the Big Ten: Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan State and Purdue. Nine are from the Atlantic Coast Conference and seven play in the Pac-12.

West Virginia is the only current member of the Big 12 that Arkansas has never faced.

Another Power 5 team on the list is Notre Dame. Arkansas was scheduled to face the Fighting Irish on the road last season before covid-19 restrictions caused a postponement. The teams are scheduled to square off for the first time in 2025 at Reynolds Razorback Stadium, and again in 2028 in South Bend, Ind.