By Harry King
LITTLE ROCK — Never was slim and none more accurate than when applied to Arkansas’ chances of being involved in CBS’ two double-headers of Southeastern Conference football.
The network’s dates for double dipping are Oct. 10 and Nov. 14. The October date includes four of the SEC teams expected to be in the national picture while Arkansas plays Auburn in Fayetteville.
CBS is likely to begin that double-header in the afternoon with Alabama-Ole Miss in Oxford. That matchup between two of the three favorites in the Western Division will be the perfect tease for a night game in Baton Rouge between Florida and LSU.
The network will show Tim Tebow and his pals at every opportunity, and the Gators and Tigers have won four of the last six BCS championships.
The mid-November choices are not as juicy, but Arkansas vs. Troy will not get a sniff. That day, Auburn-Georgia, Florida-South Carolina, Mississippi-Tennessee, Alabama-Mississippi State and even Vanderbilt-Kentucky would get the nod ahead of the UA.
Arkansas’ best opportunities to participate in the pick-of-the-litter game are against Alabama on Sept. 26 and Florida on Oct. 17. If the Razorbacks only make two appearances, do not despair. Remember that ESPN paid handsomely so the cable network and its outlets can show every SEC game that isn’t on CBS.
The weekend following the U.S. Open tennis tournament, CBS begins its SEC package with Tennessee at Florida. That Sept. 19 game is a no brainer — Tebow plus the Vols’ outspoken new coach, Lane Kiffin, in his debut against the Gators. Several Florida players say Kiffin’s photo is posted throughout their locker room.
CBS must choose Arkansas-Alabama before the Razorbacks go for 2-0 vs. Georgia, but, if Alabama opens with a victory over Virginia Tech, the Crimson Tide will be 3-0 and nationally ranked. Mississippi at South Carolina is about the only game that could be more attractive, and only if the Gamecocks beat Georgia on Sept. 12.
Arkansas-Florida might be a bit more difficult to sell than Arkansas-Alabama, but Tebow is a hole card and the other alternatives are slim pickings. The No. 2 suspect is South Carolina at Alabama and, again, the Gamecocks would have to be making some noise.
Here is a projection of the game most likely to be on CBS:
Sept. 26: Arkansas at Alabama.
Oct. 3: LSU at Georgia.
Oct. 10: Alabama at Ole Miss and Florida at LSU.
Oct. 17: Arkansas at Florida.
Oct. 24: Tennessee at Alabama. Florida at Mississippi State, a distant second. There is Tebow and MSU could be on a three-game winning streak.
Oct. 31: Florida vs. Georgia. The network has agreed to do the game for the next 15 years.
Nov. 7: LSU at Alabama, likely to decide the Western Division.
Nov. 14: Florida at South Carolina, even though Steve Spurrier vs. the Gators is growing old. Tennessee at Ole Miss ahead of Auburn at Georgia for the other part of the double-header.
Nov. 21: Ole Miss at LSU, another swing game in the division, made more attractive by the fact that Alabama and Florida have non-conference games and two other SEC teams are idle.
Nov. 27: Alabama at Auburn, announced previously, bumping Arkansas-LSU to Saturday for at least two years.
Nov. 28: Florida State at Florida unless FSU is down and Arkansas at LSU is for a trip to the SEC championship game.
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Harry King is sports columnist for Stephens Media’s Arkansas News Bureau. His e-mail address is hking@arkansasnews.com.
