Arkansas has steadily improved in each of the four seasons under Bret Bielema’s guidance.

After finishing 3-9 in his inaugural campaign, Bielema’s made bowl appearances in each of the past two seasons. Currently at 6-3, the Razorbacks will play in a third-straight postseason game.

Bielema’s career record in Fayetteville is 24-23. While some would deem this pedestrian, there’s more to the story than that.

Arkansas will be hosting LSU this weekend. It will be the fifth straight game for Bielema’s team against a ranked foe. Along with Ole Miss, the Razorbacks have played more ranked teams (7) than any other program in the country.

Including this weekend’s game, Bielema will have coached 48 games at Arkansas. 25 of those contests have been versus ranked teams — whilst 23 are of the unranked variety. Bielema’s record in those 25 games is 7-17.

This not only speaks to the respective strength of the SEC West, but also Bielema’s willingness to feature in high-profile non-conference games.