Houston, Arkansas Set Pivotal Non-Conference Tilt at Never Forget Tribute Classic
Preseason top-15 programs to square off in a CBS Sports national broadcast on Dec. 20 at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.
NEWARK, N.J. (Sept. 8, 2025) – Preseason top-15 programs Houston and Arkansas will meet at the Never Forget Tribute Classic, a crucial non-conference showdown on Dec. 20 at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. The game will air on The CBS Television Network and stream live on Paramount+. Game time will be announced at a later date.
This will be the eighth edition of the Never Forget Tribute Classic, which is hosted by Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment (HBSE). The event has traditionally supported various 9/11-related organizations and will select a charity beneficiary once again in 2025. The recipient of support from this season’s game will be unveiled in the coming weeks.
Fans interested in attending the Never Forget Tribute Classic can register to receive direct email alerts regarding ticket news and other details at prucenter.com/nftc. The presale for Never Forget Tribute Classic will begin on Oct. 7 and will go on sale to the general public on Oct. 8. Tickets will be available for at Ticketmaster.com, Prucenter.com, and Prudential Center’s Box Office.
Houston is poised to enter the 2025-26 season as one of the elite programs in the country, returning three starters – Emanuel Sharp, Joseph Tugler and Milos Uzan – that helped the Cougars reach the national championship game this past April. Houston will also welcome the nation’s No. 3 ranked recruiting class, according to 247Sports, that includes top-20 prospects Chris Cenac Jr. (No. 7), Isiah Harwell (No. 16) and Kingston Flemings (No. 20). In 11 seasons with the program, head coach Kelvin Sampson has led the program to a 299-84 record, six conference championships, seven NCAA Tournament appearances at two Final four berths (2021, 2025).
Following a run to the Sweet 16 in the 2025 NCAA Tournament that saw it knock off Kansas and St. John’s, Arkansas and second-year head coach John Calipari return four significant contributors from last year’s program in Trevon Brazile, Karter Knox, Billy Richmond and DJ Wagner. The Razorbacks will bring in the No. 5 ranked recruiting class in the country, according to 247Sports, led by five-star and top-15 standouts Darius Acuff Jr. (No. 5) and Maleek Thomas (No. 13), in addition to four-star standout Isaiah Sealy, who is the top-rated recruit in the state of Arkansas.
Arkansas owns a 22-18 advantage in the all-time series, with the Cougars having won the most recent meeting between the teams, 91-65, on Dec. 2, 2017. Of those 40 contests, 37 occurred while both programs were members of the former Southwest Conference. The series has seen numerous memorable matchups between the two, including the Razorbacks victory over the Cougars on March 4, 1984, which ended Houston’s 39-game conference winning streak.
Intersport, a Chicago-based sports marketing and events agency, will handle the event’s operations.
The matchup between Houston and Arkansas is one of three that CBS Sports and Intersport will produce on Dec. 20. The CBS Sports Classic, featuring North Carolina vs. Ohio State and Kentucky vs. St. John’s, is also set for Dec. 20 and will take place at State Farm Arena in Atlanta. All six programs appear in one or more offseason top-25 rankings, with St. John’s and Houston appearing as high as No. 1 in various polls.
What They’re Saying About the Never Forget Tribute Classic
Houston Head Coach Kelvin Sampson
“The great thing about piecing together a schedule is that you have to schedule teams who are going to test you. When you play one of John’s teams, you know their fan base is going to travel. Prudential Center is going to be full of Razorback fans. Arkansas is one of the great programs in the country, and John is a Hall of Fame coach. This is a great opportunity to test ourselves early against one of the best programs in the country.”
Arkansas Head Coach John Calipari
“We are excited about this matchup for our fans. Razorback nation proved last year they will show up for games like this that are played in elite facilities at destination cities. We look forward to facing a top-level program led by one of the best coaches in the country. Kelvin and I have been friends a long time. He has built an incredible program with a great culture at Houston. This game will be a great measuring stick for us as we wind down the nonconference part of the schedule and start to turn our attention to the SEC schedule.”
HBSE/Prudential Center Vice President of Sports Properties and Special Events Dylan Wanagiel
“Building upon last year’s record-setting college basketball season for Prudential Center, and the honor of hosting the NCAA Men’s Basketball Division I East Regional, we are proud to partner with industry-leader Intersport to bring this marquee event to Newark. Arkansas and Houston are nationally renowned programs, and we look forward to delivering another exciting iteration of the Never Forget Tribute Classic between National Championship hopefuls while also contributing to our community.”
Annual Never Forget Tribute Classic Results
Dec. 10, 2016
No. 1 Villanova 74, No. 23 Notre Dame 66
Pittsburgh 81, Penn State 73
Dec. 9, 2017
No. 19 Seton Hall 90, VCU 67
No. 5 Florida 66, No. 17 Cincinnati
Dec. 8, 2018
No. 11 Florida State 79, UConn 71
No. 22 Mississippi State 82, Clemson 71
Dec. 14, 2019
Mississippi State 67, Kansas State 63
No. 20 Villanova 78, Delaware 70
Dec. 11, 2021
No. 3 UConn 71, UCLA 61 (women’s)
No 15 UConn 74, St. Bonaventure 64 (men’s)
Dec. 10, 2022
Villanova 77, Boston College 56
Dec. 21, 2024
Princeton 83, Rutgers 82
About Intersport
Intersport is an award-winning agency that fills the empty space between marketing campaigns and consumers—helping brands make more meaningful connections. Its industry-leading team offers expert insights in content marketing, experiential marketing, hospitality, partnership consulting and platform development. The Chicago-based agency also owns and operates events across the professional and collegiate sports landscape, including basketball, football, golf, pickleball and volleyball. Intersport has been headquartered in Chicago since its inception in 1985 and has an additional office in Detroit. Learn more at www.intersport.global and on social media (LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook).
About Prudential Center
Prudential Center is the world-class sports and entertainment venue located in downtown Newark, New Jersey. Opened in October 2007, the state-of-the-art arena is the home of the National Hockey League’s (NHL) three-time Stanley Cup Champion New Jersey Devils, Seton Hall University’s NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball program, Professional Women’s Hockey League’s (PWHL) New York Sirens and more than 210 concerts, family shows and special events each year. Ranked in the Top 10 worldwide by Pollstar, Billboard and various other industry publications, Prudential Center is recognized as one of the premier venues in the United States, and hosts over 2 million guests annually. For more information about Prudential Center, visit prucenter.com and follow the arena on Facebook, X, Instagram, and TikTok @PruCenter. Prudential Center is a HBSE property.
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