Arkansas-Texas A&M to Renew Football Rivalry at Dallas Cowboys New Stadium
by The Associated Press

ARLINGTON, Texas - Arkansas will renew its rivalry with former Southwest Conference foe Texas A&M in a decade-long football series, at the new Dallas Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, beginning on Oct. 3, 2009. The formal announcement was made in a press conference at the site of the state-of-the-art venue on Monday morning. The stadium is scheduled to be completed in 2009.

Former Razorback and Dallas Cowboys Owner and President Jerry Jones, Arkansas Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics Jeff Long, Texas A&M Athletic Director Bill Byrne, Arkansas head football coach Bobby Petrino and Texas A&M head football coach Mike Sherman were on hand for the announcement. Specific dates for the remainder of the series have not yet been finalized.


"This is truly a momentous day for the Arkansas football program," Long said. "The chance to renew a football rivalry with Texas A&M at what will be the finest sporting facility in the world is a tremendous opportunity for the Razorbacks. The series will also allow our university to gain more valuable exposure in the southwest and will boost recruitment of students and student-athletes. We are grateful to our alumnus, Jerry Jones, and the Dallas Cowboys for hosting what will become an even greater football rivalry."


The Razorbacks and Aggies have signed an agreement to meet each season on the football field through 2018 at the new state-of-the-art venue. Arkansas will serve as the home team in the neutral site series in 2009 and the corresponding odd years while Texas A&M will be the home team in 2010 and the corresponding even years. Television coverage of the individual games in the series will be determined by the home team's conference television agreements.


"Our coaches and student-athletes are looking forward to the opportunity to play an outstanding football program, Texas A&M, on a yearly basis in the Metroplex," Petrino said. "The University of Arkansas was a mainstay in Texas for many years as a member of the Southwest Conference and continues to have an avid fan base in Texas. This series will enable us to rekindle that support and allow us to tell prospective student-athletes that when they come to the University of Arkansas, they will have an opportunity to play each year in the best National Football League venue in the nation."


The new Dallas Cowboys' stadium will have a capacity of 80,000, but will be able to be expanded to accommodate 100,000 fans. Tickets will be evenly divided between the two schools.


Arkansas and Texas A&M have played 65 times in football including the first game of the series in 1903. The most recent meeting came in Arkansas' final season in the Southwest Conference in 1991. Arkansas leads the overall series between the two schools 38-24-3.

Nothing like a gimee "W" on the schedule...the 12th man sucks.

Shouldn't this be in the NCAA forum?

Since I went to A&M this should be in the Tooner forum. No one goes there, though, people are tired of me flaming myself.

Thumbs up to both Texas A&M and Arkansas for putting this game on the schedule. I really wish the Badgers would do something like this against another legit team. It sure would be more interesting to see Wisconsin start a yearly series against someone like Nebraska (picked them because of the fact that Alvarez played there) instead of playing the California-Polytechnic's of the world.