Top 5 rivalries that were ruined by college football realignment

5. Texas-Arkansas

This is one of college football’s most underrated rivalries. As members of the Southwest Conference, and even before, Arkansas and Texas met on the football field every year from 1894 to 1990. That’s when Arkansas moved to join the SEC, which was another key domino in college football realignment.

Texas would later make the decision to join the newly-formed Big 12 conference along with Texas A&M, Texas Tech, and Baylor (TCU joined later).

Texas has a ton of natural rivals and frankly, just about every team in the SWC hated Texas. That’s just the way it worked. But Texas fans have an equal hatred towards Arkansas, plus there have been some monumental matchups such as the 1969 “Game of the Century” between top-ranked Texas and No. 2 Arkansas.

The Longhorns won the national championship last season, which was five years after Arkansas won it all in 1964, in a season that included a defining win over the Horns. Additionally, the Hogs’ 42-11 win over Texas in 1981 is still the largest margin of defeat by a No. 1 team by an opponent that was unranked.

The two programs have met 79 times including during the 2021 season, a game Arkansas won going away. Soon, the rivalry will be renewed so I guess in some ways, it was killed and then saved by realignment, just like another game on this list.

Still, the two college football rivals have met just five times since 1990 and that’s just a travesty for the sport because when the Longhorns and Razorbacks meet, it’s must-see TV for true college football fans.