1988 Arkansas Razorbacks football team

The 1988 Arkansas Razorbacks football team represented the University of Arkansas as a member of the Southwest Conference (SWC) during the 1988 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by fifth-year head coach Ken Hatfield, the Razorbacks compiled an overall record of 10–2 with a mark of 7–0 in conference play, winning the SWC title. Arkansas was invited to the Cotton Bowl Classic, where the Razorbacks lost to UCLA. The team played home games at Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville, Arkansas and War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock, Arkansas.

1988 Arkansas Razorbacks football
SWC champion
ConferenceSouthwest Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 13
APNo. 12
Record10–2 (7–0 SWC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorDavid Lee (1st season)
Offensive schemeOption
Defensive coordinatorFred Goldsmith (5th season)
Home stadiumRazorback Stadium
War Memorial Stadium
Seasons
← 1987
1989 →
1988 Southwest Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 12 Arkansas $ 7 0 0 10 2 0
Texas A&M* 6 1 0 7 5 0
No. 18 Houston 5 2 0 9 3 0
Texas Tech 4 3 0 5 6 0
Baylor 2 5 0 6 5 0
Texas 2 5 0 4 7 0
TCU 2 5 0 4 7 0
Rice 0 7 0 0 11 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • *- Ineligible for conference championship and postseason bowl games due to NCAA sanctions.
Rankings from AP Poll

Defensive end Wayne Martin, safety Steve Atwater, and placekicker Kendall Trainor were all named 1st Team All-American. Senior linebacker LaSalle Harper was named defensive MVP of the Cotton Bowl, despite Arkansas losing the game.

Schedule

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DateOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 3Pacific (CA)*W 63–1449,600
September 10Tulsa*W 30–2643,008
September 17Ole Miss*
  • War Memorial Stadium
  • Little Rock, AR (rivalry)
W 21–1355,360[1]
October 1TCU
  • Razorback Stadium
  • Fayetteville, AR
RaycomW 53–1041,240
October 8Texas TechNo. 20
  • War Memorial Stadium
  • Little Rock, AR
W 31–1049,818
October 15at TexasNo. 17HSEW 27–2473,451
October 22at HoustonNo. 13RaycomW 26–2121,775
October 29RiceNo. 11
  • War Memorial Stadium
  • Little Rock, AR
W 21–1450,612
November 5at BaylorNo. 11HSEW 33–340,148
November 12Texas A&MNo. 11
  • Razorback Stadium
  • Fayetteville, AR (rivalry)
HSEW 25–2053,818
November 26at No. 3 Miami (FL)*No. 8CBSL 16–1863,271
January 2vs. No. 9 UCLA*No. 8CBSL 3–1774,304
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

[2]

Rankings

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Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked т = Tied with team above or below
Week
PollPre123456789101112131415Final
AP2017131111111089812
Coaches19 т1715111111111088813

Game summaries

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At Texas

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Texas A&M

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At Miami (FL)

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Arkansas at Miami (FL)
1 234Total
No. 8 Razorbacks 10 060 16
No. 3 Hurricanes 10 503 18
  • Source:

Vs. UCLA (Cotton Bowl)

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[3]

Roster

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1988 Arkansas Razorbacks football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
OT 72 Freddie Childress Sr
RB 18 Barry Foster Jr
QB 4 Quinn Grovey So
RB 34 JuJu Harshaw Jr
RB Joe Johnson Sr
RB Kerwin Price Fr
RB 35 James Rouse Jr
WR 2 Derek Russell So
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
S 27 Steve Atwater Sr
DB 9 Richard Brothers Sr
CB Anthony Cooney Jr
LB LaSalle Harper Sr
DE 83 Wayne Martin Sr
DB Patrick Williams Jr
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
P Allen Meacham Jr
K 22 Kendall Trainor Sr
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  •   Injured
  •   Redshirt

1989 NFL draft

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Player Position Round Pick NFL club
Wayne Martin Defensive end 1 19 New Orleans Saints
Steve Atwater Strong safety 1 20 Denver Broncos
Fred Childress Guard 2 55 Cincinnati Bengals
Kerry Owens Linebacker 4 89 Cincinnati Bengals
Richard Brothers Defensive back 7 189 Chicago Bears
Kendall Trainor Kicker 9 234 Phoenix Cardinals
LaSalle Harper Linebacker 9 243 Chicago Bears

[4]

References

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  1. ^ "Arkansas holds off Mississippi, 21–13". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. September 18, 1988. Retrieved November 11, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ "1988 Arkansas Razorbacks Schedule and Results".
  3. ^ "UCLA Hogs Cotton Bowl Spotlight by Shutting Down Arkansas, 17-3". Los Angeles Times. January 3, 1989. Retrieved November 17, 2019.
  4. ^ "1989 NFL Draft". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved November 17, 2019.