The 1989 Arkansas Razorbacks football team represented the
University of Arkansas
The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and the largest university in the state. Founded as Arkansas ...
during the
1989 NCAA Division I-A football season
The 1989 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with Miami winning its third National Championship during the 1980s, cementing its claim as the decade's top team, winning more titles than any other program.
Notre Dame signed a six-year, $30 ...
. In Ken Hatfield's final year at UA, the Razorbacks went 10–2, and won their second straight SWC championship. Arkansas' victory over Texas A&M at Kyle Field in College Station broke an Aggie home-conference win streak of 22 consecutive games. However, Arkansas lost their fourth-straight bowl game and second consecutive
Cotton Bowl Classic
The Cotton Bowl Classic (also known as the Cotton Bowl) is an American college football bowl game that has been held annually in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex since January 1, 1937. The game was originally played at its namesake stadium i ...
.
Offensive tackle Jim Mabry was a consensus
All-American for the Hogs.
Another All-American was freshman kicker Todd Wright, who landed 20 of 23
field goals
A field goal (FG) is a means of scoring in gridiron football. To score a field goal, the team in possession of the ball must place kick, or drop kick, the ball through the goal, i.e., between the uprights and over the crossbar. The entire ba ...
on the year, including a 51-yard field goal against UTEP. His average of 1.82 per game tied as best in the league and with future
NFL kicker
Chris Gardocki from
Clemson.
As a team, the Razorbacks were the seventh-best rushing offense in college football, with an average of 314.2 yards per game on the ground.
Hatfield led Arkansas to back-to-back Southwest Conference titles in 1988-89, going 20-4 in that time including 14-1 against conference opponents. However, due to a sour relationship with
Frank Broyles
John Franklin Broyles (December 26, 1924 – August 14, 2017) was an American college football player and coach, college athletics administrator, and broadcaster. He served as the head football coach for one season at the University of Missouri ...
as a result of his hands-on approach as A.D., Hatfield left Arkansas to become the head coach of Clemson after the 1989 season. In fact, Hatfield accepted the Clemson job without ever visiting the campus prior to his hiring.
Schedule
Roster
Game summaries
Texas
Houston
References
Arkansas
Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...
Arkansas Razorbacks football seasons
Southwest Conference football champion seasons
Arkansas Razorbacks football
The Arkansas Razorbacks football program represents the University of Arkansas in the sport of American football. The Razorbacks compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the West ...
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