Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium

The Arkansas Razorbacks football program represents the University of Arkansas in the sport of American football. The Razorbacks play in the NCAA as part of the Football Bowl Subdivison and compete in the Southeastern Conference.

The program has honors for winning one national championship awarded by the Football Writers Association of America and Helms Athletic Foundation in 1964. It’s also won a national championship awarded by the Foundation for the Analysis of Competitions and Tournaments (FACT) in 1977.
Beyond these feats, the program has earned several conference championships, fielded 45 All-Americans, and has a strong all time record.

The first University of Arkansas football team was formed in 1894. Back then, it was coached by John Futrall who was also a Latin professor at the university. The team played three games, two against Fort Smith High School and one against Texas.

Before the 1909 season, the teams were called the Arkansas Cardinals which suited the university, since a bird was also the school’s mascot.

But the name and mascot changed following the 1909 season when coach Hugo Bezdek finished the season with an undefeated 7-0 record. Since then, the Cardinals became The Razorbacks, which was chosen after a reporter said the team played “like a wild band of Razorback hogs”. The name stuck and led to a student body vote to change the school mascot.

Following this vote, The Wooo Pig Sooie or “Calling the Hogs” became a school tradition and the official cheer for the university in the 1920s. Farmers would rush out to meet the bus returning from away games and would greet the team with the cheer.

The Razorbacks quickly became a powerhouse team, with strong victories over favorites such as Oklahoma, LSU, and Washington of St. Louis in the early 1900s. This led to the Razorbacks being considered the unofficial champions of the South and Southwest.