Soccer Preview: Arkansas vs. #19 Texas
FAYETTEVILLE – Arkansas soccer (2-3-1) will host No. 19 Texas (5-1-1) for the SEC opener on Thursday, September 10 at Razorback Field.
Kickoff is set for 8:00 p.m. and the matchup will be televised on SEC Network with Mike Watts (play-by-play) and Jill Loyden (analyst) on the call.
The Hogs won the SEC regular season in 2025 and were predicted to finish second this year by the league’s head coaches.
ON THE LONGHORNS
Texas enters its first week ranked after a 5-1-1 start to the season
under first-year head coach Margueritte Aozasa. The Longhorns picked up notable non-conference wins over Pitt and No. 19 TCU and a result at Arizona State. Four of their seven non-conference matches were on the road. Texas goalkeeper Bayliss Flynn ranks second in the SEC and fifth nationally with four shutouts. She was named the SEC Goalkeeper of the Week following the win at TCU. Junior forward Amalia Villareal, All-SEC in 2025 and the 2024 SEC Freshman of the Year, leads the Longhorns with four goals.
LAST TIME OUT
Arkansas picked up its second win and second shutout of the season last Friday, 5-0 against Jackson State. Midfielder Zoe Susi picked up her first collegiate brace and scored the first two goals. Forward Paige Szymanski scored and assisted for the second straight game. Freshman forward Ivy Harding netted her first collegiate goal. Forward Vailana Tu’ua finally scored her first goal of the season. The Hogs outshot the Tigers 33-4 and forced 10 saves.
TOUGH SCHEDULE
As of this week’s poll, Arkansas played/will play 7 ranked teams: No. 7
North Carolina (L, 2-0), No. 8 Tennessee, No. 11 Alabama, No. 17 Baylor (L,
4-1), No. 19 Texas, No. 23 Florida and No. 24 Clemson (L, 1-0). All three Power-4 non-conference opponents appeared in the NCAA Tournament last season, with Clemson finishing in the second round and UNC and Baylor making it to the Sweet 16. In total, eight of Arkansas’ 2026 opponents appeared in last year’s NCAA Tournament: UNC, Baylor, Clemson, Alabama, Georgia, LSU, Tennessee and Kentucky.
KEEPING IT FRIENDLY
The Razorbacks played two preseason exhibitions prior to the first week of games against Kansas City and No. 21 Memphis. Arkansas defeated the Roos, 3-0, and lost to Memphis on the road, 2-0. Returning sophomore Vailana Tu’ua scored a four-minute brace followed by a header from senior Bella Field five minutes later. Arkansas played five matches in the spring and outscored opponents 15-1, including a 2-0 win on the road at TCU, a team who went to the College Cup in 2025. Aniyah Nurse-Whyte led the squad with three goals, followed by Zoe Susi, Natalie Wagner, Vailana Tu’ua and Lauren Van Rhein with two.
HIGH ON THE HOGS
Arkansas entered the first week of matches ranked No. 10 in the United Soccer Coaches preseason top 25. The Hogs received the No. 18 ranking in TopDrawerSoccer’s preseason top 25 and were predicted to finish second in the SEC by the league’s head coaches. Prior to week two, Arkansas had been ranked in every United Soccer Coaches poll since September 13, 2022, 209 weeks ago. In 2024, the Hogs received their first No. 1 ranking in program history and the first for an SEC team since 1998.
SOLID SIGNEES
Arkansas’ 2026 recruiting class finished at No. 30 in TopDrawerSoccer’s combined recruiting class rankings. 2025’s 19th-ranked class was the only time Colby Hale has signed a top 25 class since his tenure began at Arkansas in 2012. Multiple players ranked in the IMG Academy National Top 200: #108 MacKenzie Gwin (#18 in Southern California, #42 Forward), #157 Ivy Harding (#14 in Rocky Mountains & Southwest, #56 Midfielder) and #181 Lauren Van Rhein (#9 in Heartland, #61 Forward).
KEEPER KEEGAN
Arkansas junior goalkeeper Keegan Smith has quickly cemented herself as one of the program’s best after just one season between the pipes. In her debut season in 2024, Smith tied former Razorback Grace Barbara (2022) for the single-season shutout record (11) and finished with the second-lowest goals-against average (.62) behind former Hog and current Racing Louisville FC keeper Katie Lund (.48, 2019). The Bath, New York native shut out seven of Arkansas’ 10 SEC regular season opponents and two of three NCAA Tournament opponents (Oklahoma State and Cal) to lead the Razorbacks back to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2022. She allowed just six goals at Razorback Field to help the Hogs to an unbeaten home record of 11-0-2. Keegan was the first freshman goalkeeper in program history to receive All-SEC honors. She finished the 2024 season ranked the No. 3 freshman in the nation and was placed on the Best XI Freshman Team by TopDrawerSoccer. During the offseason, Smith was called up to the U-19 U.S. Women’s National Team training camp in Spain in February of 2025. She was called up a second time in June of 2025, this time for the U-18/19 U.S. YNT combined training camp in Fayetteville, Georgia. Smith picked up her first shutout of 2025 in the 2-0 win over Georgia Southern on August 24. Smith added another clean sheet, her 13th overall, on September 2 at BYU. She tied her career high with 9 saves, including several highlight-reel saves that garnered attention on social media. Smith missed 11 games due to a hip flexor muscle issue and made her return on Nov. 14 for the NCAA Tournament opener against Dartmouth. She recorded three saves and her 14th career shutout. She started in Arkansas’ second round game against 4-seed Washington, a 1-0 loss.
HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE
Arkansas is unbeaten in 54 of its last 60 matches at Razorback Field, dating back to 2021. The Hogs have gone 49-6-5 at Razorback Field since beating No. 25 BYU on Aug. 30, 2021. Arkansas is also unbeaten in its last 26 SEC home matches, dating back to 2020. The six losses came on November 17, 2023 against Pittsburgh in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, on Aug. 14, 2025 against No. 13 Iowa, Aug. 28, 2025 against No. 3 Duke, on Aug. 12, 2026 against Baylor, on Aug. 20, 2026 against No. 7 North Carolina and on August 27, 2026 against Clemson. The Razorbacks have outscored opponents 211-50 at Razorback Field during this stretch.
FAMILIAR POSITION
This year’s ranking marks the seventh straight season Arkansas has been placed inside the top two of the preseason poll. 1. Vanderbilt 2. Arkansas 3. Georgia 4. LSU 4. Tennessee 6. South Carolina 7. Texas 8. Florida 9. Alabama 10. Oklahoma 11. Auburn 12. Texas A&M 13. Kentucky 13. Mississippi State 15. Ole Miss 16. Missouri.
For more information on Arkansas soccer, follow @RazorbackSoccer on social media.
