The last time Auburn football faced off against the Arkansas Razorbacks it was way too close for comfort. The Razorbacks were leading by one point late in the fourth quarter of the 2020 matchup when quarterback Bo Nix drove the offense all the way to field goal range.
And then came THE play.
On third-and-one, Nix fumbled the snap and in an attempt to stop the clock spiked the ball. Arkansas fell on the ball, which Nix spiked backward, so was it a fumble or not? The officials ruled the play an incomplete pass with intentional grounding, so the Tigers maintained possession and kicked a field goal to win the game.
Down one w/ seconds left., Auburn’s Bo Nix fumbles the snap then tries to spike it by throwing it behind him.
— Bad Sports Refs (@BadSportsRefs) October 10, 2020
But the call was ruled intentional grounding rather than a fumble. Auburn then kicked a FG w/ :07 left to win 30-28 #ARKvsAUB pic.twitter.com/f0AD54BriE
Arkansas fans were not happy, and honestly neither were Auburn football fans. What a disaster. But according to Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman, last year’s game isn’t the biggest factor in the Razorbacks’ preparation for this year’s matchup.
Instead, after suffering two straight losses, Pittman says that the team is more focused on trying to win a football game at home, and to continue their winning streak in Razorback Stadium, per Auburn Undercover:
"“I don’t know. I’ve gone back and forth on what to do with that. A lot of similar players on our team. A lot of guys have gone. I’m sure the same way with Auburn, as well. I think our deal would be more right now is winning home ball games. We’re off to a good start of winning here this year. We’re undefeated in our stadium. It’s been several years since we’ve been undefeated in Razorback Stadium, and I think that means something. Just because it means something to me doesn’t mean it resonates with the kids. I believe headed one more game towards winning in our stadium and winning out in our stadium would be a big deal to our players. I think that might be a little bit more than the revenge factor because Auburn kids didn’t really have anything to do with that, it was just a bad call.”"
Arkansas is currently ranked #17, and Auburn football is heading into the game as the underdogs. With both teams coming off a tough loss and looking to get a win, it should be an exciting game.