Arkansas Razorbacks The
1988 Arkansas Razorbacks football team was undefeated through Southwest Conference play. In the final regular season game, the #3
Miami Hurricanes defeated the Razorbacks, 18–16. Arkansas was invited to the Cotton Bowl Classic as the winner of the Southwest Conference. Arkansas played in its first Cotton Bowl Classic since the
1976 Cotton Bowl Classic.
UCLA Bruins Going into the
UCLA–USC rivalry game,
UCLA was 9-1 and had been ranked #1 for a couple of weeks earlier.
Eric Ball , the
1986 Rose Bowl MVP had a crucial fumble in the UCLA vs
Washington State game, when the #1 ranked Bruins were upset at home by the Cougars 34–30. The game was one of the notable ones in the
UCLA–USC rivalry in that it was for the Pac-10 championship, a possible Heisman Trophy for either
Troy Aikman of UCLA or
Rodney Peete of
USC. It was also for the Rose Bowl berth. Rodney Peete was found to have measles in the days before the game. USC used a strong ground game and "bend but don't break" defense, in front of the largest
Rose Bowl Stadium regular season crowd in history, to beat the Bruins 31–22. The Cotton Bowl Classic agreed to take the team that would not be going to the
1989 Rose Bowl. UCLA was the first Pac-10 team to play in the Cotton Bowl Classic and first from the West Coast since the
1949 Cotton Bowl Classic where the University of Oregon played SMU. ==Pre-game buildup==