If there was one criticism you could have about Baylor’s overall profile last season, it was the non-conference scheduling. Baylor’s non-conference slate has been pretty weak and has become a target of criticism time and time again. But at least head coach Art Briles is mindful of that and is trying to change that in the years to come.
While taking time to answer questions at a Houston Touchdown Club luncheon Friday, Briles dropped one possible opponent to keep an eye on in the future schedule; Arkansas. Briles said “there’s a chance” Baylor could play Arkansas in a neutral-site game in Houston in 2019. That would be interesting to note, because according to FBSchedules.com Baylor’s 2019 non-conference slate is already full. So one of those games would have to be canceled or rescheduled. There is one game in particular that would be easy to wipe off the schedule; Incarnate Word on August 31, 2019.
This game in particular received plenty of criticism when it was first announced in March 2014. It also seemed to be the most likely game to be replaced to make room for a tougher opponent, which Arkansas certainly would be. After being left out of the College Football Playoff, Baylor has taken whatever measures it can to ensure it does not let the schedule hurt them again in the future. The problem is schedules are mapped out years in advance, so that leaves little wiggle room at times. This has not stopped Baylor from committing to add more beef to the schedule, and again, Arkansas certainly fills that bill.
The only problem is Arkansas is already scheduled to play Michigan on August 31, 2019. The home game against the Wolverines is the second half of a home-and-home contract that begins the previous season. The Michigan game also meets the SEC non-conference scheduling requirement for Arkansas. Moving the 2019 game vs. Michigan back to 2020 is likely out of the picture as well, because the Wolverines have a full slate in 2020 including games at Washington and home against Virginia Tech. The 2021 season would also be out for Michigan with both the Huskies and Hokies back on the schedule that season as well.
Arkansas and Baylor have not played each other since 1991, the final season Arkansas was in the Southwest Conference before leaving for the SEC. Arkansas leads the all-time series against their old SWC foes, 35-32-2.