CFB Zeitgeist
June 22, 2026 · Dead Period · Heritage Window · 2026 Outlook

Central Arkansas

3-9 2025 final

Central Arkansas is the Arkansas program that won a conference title in 2017 and has spent eight seasons losing its way.

The Bears are in the woods.

Record
3-9
win% .250
FCS Top 25
—
Conf Standing
—
Playoff Path
Building résumé
Dead PeriodOffseasonPatientPost-loss — diagnostic
The Long Wait·Offseason

Central Arkansas is the Arkansas program that won a conference title in 2017 and has spent eight seasons losing its way.

Title DroughtSince 2017 · 8 yrs

Central Arkansas finished 3–9 (2–6 UAC) in 2025 under eighth-year coach Nathan Brown, marking one of the program's worst seasons since joining the UAC. The Bears have now gone eight years (since 2017) without a conference title an…

low signal
Read the full program story ↓

Offseason

69 days

until kickoff · Sun Aug 30 · 17:00 UTC

Act I

The 2026 Outlook

The Pulse on Central Arkansas

Quiet · dead period heritage · signal ramps back in camp
—
The Bears are in the woods.

What moved it — offseason · last 30 days

June Dead-period quiet — official-visit + heritage window —
Camp Fall camp ~40 days out
"Go Central Arkansas" — Central Arkansas fanbase · recurring line
0 mentions · awaiting signal

Aspiration Ladder

Brief Part III §33.4 · Central Arkansas

Winning record—

The baseline expectation.

Conference title—

The annual recruiting proof point.

Playoff bid (24-team bracket)—

Conference qualifier or at-large.

Championship gameLocked—

Championship weekend. Top-4 in the country.

Central Arkansas · Next-Season Outcome Band

Floor / Base / Ceiling

floor1-11Sub-.500 season. Playoff bid out of reach.
base3-9Mid-table finish. Conference title a stretch.
ceiling6-6Conference title race. Playoff bid in play.

Variance assumed at ±2 wins from last-season record. Replace with the season-path projection once preview data is built.

Act II

Who We Are

FCS Program Prestige · Central Arkansas

Mid-Major Contender

FCS Playoff Contender — consistent bracket participant, regional force.

T1Regional
T2Mid-Major
T3Power
T4National
T5Blue Blood
T6Dynasty
T7All-Time

Fanbase Health Index · Central Arkansas · low confidence

Stable (44)

DecliningStableGrowingSurging
On-Field — 3-9 (25% win rate)44

Home-Field Advantage · Central Arkansas · 2018-present

Strong

62% home win rate vs 33% on the road. margin runs +12.2 better at home.

Home18-11Away12-24
Act III

Last Season Reviewed

2025 season · tap to expand

Recent Form · last 10 games

Hibernating

Zero of five. Reset territory.

Streak L5Last 5 · 0-5Last 10 · 2-8

UAC Standing · 2025

7th in the UAC

Central Arkansas is 7th of 9 in the UAC at 3-9. The path to the title is steep — the focus is on playoff positioning and rivalry wins.

#ProgramRecord
1Tarleton State12-2
2Abilene Christian9-5
3West Georgia8-3
4Austin Peay7-5
5Southern Utah7-5
6Eastern Kentucky5-7
7Central Arkansas3-9
8North Alabama2-10
9Utah Tech2-10

Schedule Strength · Central Arkansas · 2025

Balanced

Average opponent win rate 51% across 12 finalized games. 1 FBS top-25 opponent played (Missouri).

Opp Win %0.519
Top-251
Top-100

FCS → NFL Pipeline

2025–2025

Developing

1 picks last 5 cycles. The pipeline is real but still building volume.

1 picks · last 5 yrs
#121 David Walker Defensive Edge · 2025 · Tampa Bay

Moment of the Year · Central Arkansas · 2025

Won 41-17 vs Arkansas-Pine Bluff

Week 2 of 2025. A statement margin. Recruiting boards re-rendered overnight.

Decisive Margin

From the Archive — Central Arkansas

2022: Won 49-20 vs Austin Peay

In 2022, the program won 49-20 vs Austin Peay — a blowout home result that left the 29-point margin on the books.

The Bears eat tonight.