ESPN projects Hogs to different bowls

FAYETTEVILLE — ESPN’s Mark Schlabach and Kyle Bonagura have projected where No. 10 Arkansas may go bowling after the season.

It’s obviously to take these projections, for any school, too seriously, but it’s still interesting to know what the national media is thinking.

Schlabach has the Hogs projected to face Minnesota (3-0) in the Citrus Bowl at noon on Jan. 2 and televised on ABC. The last time Arkansas played in Orlando, Fla., was against Wisconsin on New Year’s Day, 2007, in the then Capital One Bowl. The Badgers defeated Arkansas 17-14 that day.

Bonagura has the Hogs facing Iowa State (3-0) in the Tax Act Bowl on Dec. 28 in Houston. The game kicks off at 8 p.m. and televised on ESPN. The Hogs defeated Texas 31-7 on Dec. 29, 2014, in the then Advocare V100 Texas Bowl. Bonagura had a reasoning for placing Arkansas in this bowl game when asked which team took the biggest hit this past weekend.

“Arkansas. Maybe it’s harsh to slot a team here after a win, but Arkansas has received some CFP buzz, and teams in that conversation shouldn’t struggle at home against FCS teams, even good ones. Arkansas needed to erase a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat Missouri State. It’s not a loss — so it obviously could have been worse — but let’s pump the breaks on Arkansas a bit.”

The Hogs are 1-0 against Iowa State and 0-1 against Minnesota.