NWADG College Football

2022

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25 NWA COLLEGE FOOTBALL PREVIEW | 8.28.2022 https://www.soundsolutions2210.com/resound-hearing-aids Sound Solutions, Inc. audiology & hearing aid center 479-443-2210 Mon-Fri: 8:30-3:30 61 E Sunbridge Dr, Ste 2 Fayetteville, AR • Hear through the noise • Join in conversations and get all the details • Know where sounds are coming from • Reduce annoying sounds like wind noise Exercise in the comfort of your own home. no excuses. www.ytfs.com Largest suppLier of fitness equipment in arkansas. free Delivery on Most equipment & Largest Selection of Supplements in Ar Fayetteville 479-521-3481 RogeRs 479-633-9837 FoRt smith 479-551-2799 little Rock 501-954-9837 www.shopcupids.com ShopCupids.com Locations in Springdale & Bentonville coached receivers. While Georgia is a heavy favorite to win the East and Florida looks to be a couple of recruiting classes away from seriously challenging the Bulldogs, this is a chance for Napier to make an early statement against one of the Gators' most bitter rivals. It was in this game last season that things began unraveling for Dan Mullen as Florida's coach. Mullen led the Gators to a 29-9 record the previous three seasons, but when Georgia beat Florida 34-7 and media began playing up the differences in how Kirby Smart recruited compared to Mullen, it became clear there might be a coaching change in Gainesville. Smart wants the game moved out of Jacksonville because neither school can host recruits at the neutral site according to SEC rules. Napier, asked at SEC Media Days if he'd like to see the game moved to campus sites, said he needs to first experience it in Jacksonville. 8. GEORGIA AT KENTUCKY, NOV. 19, LEXINGTON, KY. Kentucky, coming off a 10-3 season, at SEC Media Days was picked to finish second in the East behind Georgia. It was a distant second — the Bulldogs received 172 first-place votes compared to 4 for the Wildcats — but the fact Kentucky finished so high in the media voting is notable. The key for Kentucky is playing well enough leading into the game so that the SEC regular-season finale against Georgia at Kroger Field will determine the East champion. Mark Stoops has done an incredible job going into his 10th season as Kentucky's coach and is two victories shy of reaching 61 victories to break Bear Bryant's school record. But the Wildcats never have won the East since the SEC divided up into divisions in 1992 with the additions of Arkansas and South Carolina, so getting to Atlanta might mean almost as much to Kentucky fans as winning a basketball national championship. The only other East team that hasn't won the division is Vanderbilt. 9. MISSISSIPPI STATE AT OLE MISS, NOV. 24, OXFORD, MISS, 6 P.M. ESPN The Egg Bowl is one of the more underrated rivalries in college football and will be in the national spotlight on Thanksgiving night. It's a matchup filled with hate from both fanbases. The coaches — Lane Kiffin for Ole Miss and Mike Leach for Mississippi State — get along remarkably well under the circumstances, but they also understand the importance of winning the game. Kiffin's Rebels are 2-0 against Leach and the Bulldogs, winning 31-24 in 2020 and 31-21 last season. So the pressure is on the Bulldogs to not lose to Ole Miss for a third consecutive year. Ole Miss hasn't won three in a row over Mississippi State since 2002-04. The Rebels have a 55-29–4 series lead, but it's 5-5 in the last 10 meetings. 10. AUBURN AT ALABAMA, NOV. 26, TUSCALOOSA, ALA. It's still called the Iron Bowl, even though it hasn't been played in Birmingham since 1998. Birmingham hosted the game from 1948-88 before Tigers Coach Pat Dye got it moved to Auburn when Auburn was the home team starting in 1989. Alabama continued to be the home team in Birmingham until 2000 when the game was played in Tuscaloosa for the first time since 1901. It's hard to believe, but Alabama and Auburn did play between 1908 and 1947, but now have arguably the fiercest rivalry in college football. Alabama was picked at SEC Media Days to win the West, and Auburn was picked seventh, but that doesn't mean the Iron Bowl won't be competitive. Last season Auburn brought a three-game losing streak into the game, but Alabama had to rally to win 24-22 in four overtimes after trailing 10-3 in the fourth quarter. Auburn Coach Bryan Harsin could be coaching for his job in just his second season with the Tigers after they lost their final five games last year to finish 6-7. Beating Alabama could go a long way toward Harsin keeping his job for another season — assuming he hasn't already been fired before the Tigers play the Tide. Games n Continued from Page 23

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