Coming up with the greatest seasons in Arkansas history wasn’t a problem, because there’s been many, many magical moments through the years. It’s just that most of them were a very long time ago.

Arkansas has won one national championship (1964), so it’s a no-brainer in picking its best year ever. There were many other close calls as well, but almost all of them were far back in history. Since joining the SEC in 1992, the Razorbacks haven’t even won a conference title, let alone competed for a national crown.

But there’s been plenty of magical moments. Here’s a look back at the five greatest seasons in Arkansas football history, but a few quick honorable mentions:

Honorable mentions

1975: 10-2 (6-1), Southwest Conference co-champions

Legendary Arkansas coach Frank Broyles won his seventh and final Southwest Conference championship in 1975, beating No. 2 Texas A&M on the final weekend of the season to finish in the three-way tie with the Aggies and Texas. Arkansas got the league’s slot in the Cotton Bowl and beat Georgia 31-10. The 10-2 Razorbacks finished No. 7 in the Associated Press poll and No. 6 in the UPI coaches poll.

1979: 10-2 (7-1) Southwest Conference co-champions

In Lou Holtz’s third year at Arkansas, the Razorbacks finished 10-2 and claimed a piece of the SWC title with Houston, a team that had beaten them 13-10 during the season. The Hogs played in the Sugar Bowl and lost 24-9 to eventual undefeated national champion Alabama. The highlight of the season was a huge 17-14 win over then-No. 2 Texas in October in Little Rock. The Razorbacks finished No. 8 in the final AP poll.

2006: 10-4 (7-1) SEC West champions

This season started and ended with a thud, but there was massive enjoyment throughout thanks to an impressive 10-game winning streak for Houston Nutt’s team that included wins over No. 2 Auburn and No. 13 Tennessee. The Razorbacks lost their season opener 50-14 to No. 6 USC before reeling off the 1o consecutive wins. After winning their first seven SEC games, they lost the regular season finale to No. 9 LSU then were beaten by No. 4 Florida in the SEC Championship Game and No. 6 Wisconsin in the Citrus Bowl. That’s a lot of losses to get a mention here, but that season had Hogs fans going wild.

1909: 7-0

Official records are a little shaky back then, but it’s still one of only two unbeaten full seasons in Arkansas history. Their dominance was impressive. The Razorbacks outscored their seven opponents 186-18, pitching four shutouts and allowing only six points in the other three games. They were coached by Hugo Bezdek.

1954: 8-3 (5-1), Southwest Conference champions

This was another season that started out with great promise, only to bottom out at the end. The Razorbacks won their first seven games and moved up to No. 4 in the rankings after impressive wins over Texas, No. 5 Ole Miss and No. 15 Rice to win the SWC. But they lost three of the final four games, including a 14-6 defeat to Georgia Tech in the Cotton Bowl. The Razorbacks finished the season ranked N0. 10 in the AP Poll. Little known fact: The regular season game with Ole Miss actually counted as an SEC conference game for Ole Miss because they hadn’t scheduled enough SEC opponents that year.

No. 5 … 1969. 9-2 (6-1), second in Southwest Conference, No. 3 final national ranking (UPI)

The Razorbacks won their first nine games of the 1969 season and went into their regular season finale ranked No. 2 while their opponent, the Texas Longhorns, were ranked No. 1. It was billed the “Game of the Century’’ and it was so important that then-President Richard Nixon was in attendance.

This was the game’s best rivalry in the 1960s. Both schools had won national titles, were neighboring states and had legendary coaches (Frank Broyles and Darrell Royal). The ’69 game was so important that it was moved from its traditional October weekend to Dec. 6 so it could be televised to a national audience, something rare back then.

Arkansas had a 14-point lead heading into the fourth quarter but Texas scored two touchdowns, and even went for two and got it on the first score, hoping to prevent a tie. Texas would win 15-14 and win the national championship a few weeks later. The Razorbacks lost to Ole Miss in the Sugar Bowl, ruining what was shaping up to be a great season with two disheartening losses.

No. 4 … 2011. 11-2 (6-2) third in SEC West, No. 5 final national ranking

Criticize this season being included if you must, but it has to be taken into consideration because of these contexts. In the 20 years since joining the SEC, the Razorbacks had basically been a non-factor. They hadn’t won a conference title and seemed to always be staring up at a long list of SEC rivals. Now they had a coach – Bobby Petrino – who was an offensive genius, one the Hogs faithful thought could contend with the big boys. They were 10-2 the previous year and had earned a spot in their first BCS bowl.

The Razorbacks lost only two games all season in 2011, to No. 3 Alabama early and No. 1 LSU late. Those two teams would later play for the national title. Arkansas beat Kansas State in the Cotton Bowl for its 11th win, tying a school record. They finished ranked No. 5 in the final AP poll and all seemed right in the Razorback Nation. They were perennial powers again.

Then, in the spring, Petrino was involved in a motorcycle accident with a former volleyball player he had been having an affair with. He lied about it, and then it all unraveled. Athletic director Jeff Long fired him “with cause” soon thereafter. And the great Petrino Era was over, just like that.

No. 3 … 1977. 11-1 (7-1), second in Southwest Conference, No. 3 final national ranking

Lou Holtz was hired to replace the legendary Frank Broyles and he didn’t miss a beat in his first year in 1977. Arkansas’ only loss was a 13-9 heartbreaker to arch-rival Texas in October.

The Razorbacks won the rest of them, including an impressive 31-6 pounding of No. 2 Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl, a win so impressive that many people talked about the Razorbacks being the best team in the country. They would finish No. 3 in the polls. Notre Dame was named national champion, jumping from No. 5 to No. 1 after beating No. 1-ranked Texas. In all, the top five teams in the polls finished with 11-1 marks.

There are many in Razorback Nation who are convinced that this ’77 squad was better than the Notre Dame team that won the title. They got a few No. 1 votes in the final polls, but not enough to claim a national title.

No. 2 … 1965. 10-1 (7-0), won Southwest Conference, No. 2 final national ranking (UPI)

We spoiled the ending up top when we talked about the one national title Arkansas has won in 1964. But, a year later, the Razorbacks almost did it again.

The defending national champions breezed through the regular season, winning 10 straight games and all seven Southwest Conference tilts for coach Frank Broyles. The highlight was a 27-24 win over No. 1-ranked Texas in Fayetteville that vaulted the Razorbacks to No. 1 in the country. In a weird poll vote, the Razorbacks actually fell to No. 2 two weeks later and would stay there, despite winning four straight games by a combined score of 141-23.

Their bid for a second straight national title came up short, losing to LSU 14-7 in the Cotton Bowl and seeing their 22-game winning streak – the longest by far in school history – come to an end. The Arkansas offense, ranked No. 1 in the country at 32.4 points per game, could manage only seven against its arch-rivals from the south. Arkansas scored on its first possession, but never scored again.

No. 1 … 1964. 11-0 (7-0), Southwest Conference champions, National champions, No. 2 final national ranking

The greatest season in Razorback history was orchestrated by legendary coach Frank Broyles. The Razorbacks ran the table, winning the conference thanks to a shocking upset of then No. 1-ranked Texas in Austin.

After that, they finished the season with five consecutive shutouts, a feat never duplicated before or since at Arkansas. They went to the Cotton Bowl ranked No. 2 in the country in both the AP and UPI polls and beat No. 6 Nebraska 10-7 in the Cotton Bowl.

Arkansas was No. 2 in the AP and UPI polls, the two major polls of the day, because their final polls were taken before the bowl games and Alabama was named national champion. But there were other polls, and Arkansas was named national champions by the Football Writers Association of America, which is considered far more reliable because that poll was taken after the bowls. Alabama lost its bowl game. That controversy went on for years, with many national champions named through the 1960s and ’70s prior to bowl season.

But this one belongs to Arkansas, fair and square. And Razorback Nation will never let anyone take it away from them.