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No Pressure – Van Horn declares this team doesn't have the pressure on it that last season's preseason No. 1 team had. This is very true. There is no pressure on a team that comes into the season unranked, but the expectations are still there. Omaha is still the goal. Arkansas isn't a place that goes through rebuilding years, players say. But the fact that Arkansas lost its top players to the draft and that there are 27 new faces in the clubhouse doesn't bother this team. They're relaxed and just anxious to get on the diamond.
Not Playing Hard Ball – Dave Van Horn hopped on his soapbox a bit at baseball media day last Friday, claiming the new rules the NCAA is planning to implement as far as the baseball used, isn't enough. DVH said he fears the lack of offense in college baseball will drive fans away. I'm paraphrasing, but basically, he said he didn't want fans leaving Baum Stadium before the final out because Arkansas may be down three runs heading into the ninth because there's no way the offense could produce those runs. Van Horn may just be the voice needed to get it done. Hell, he's only a manager for Team USA and coached his teams to four CWS appearances.
The Dogs on the Back Porch – Maybe I'm too young to know what that means, but that's what Arkansas pitcher Chris Oliver had to say about Arkansas in 2014 – "We're the dogs on the back porch." I suppose it's an alternative to the more hip "they're not the new kids on the block anymore." But, there's no question this team appears to be more relaxed, a polar opposite of last year's team. Oliver also said guys got into it a few times in the clubhouse and the chemistry wasn't always there. Makes complete sense. Here's more from the players at baseball media day from last Friday.
Bert So Hard – As every fan that follows Arkansas football and kept up with recruiting knows, the Razorbacks were not in the top 25 in recruiting rankings. And while fans certainly have their own feelings about not having one of the nation's top classes, Bret Bielema gave the rankings the "Kanye shrug." He's not caught up in the ranking of his new class and neither is Randy Shannon (says the guy who pulls the highly-touted kids out of Florida). I think it's great they don't get caught up in the rankings. Sure, they pay them some attention, but they don't obsess over it. What really counts, as Shannon says, is once you get those kids on campus.
Tweet of the Week
O yea ... I put on for my city ✊✊💸🏀😤 #ratchetcity #ShreveportNews shout out to diamondstatedesigns for the love pic.twitter.com/mSDLeXWjiy
— Mike Qualls (@Mr_WALKONAIR) February 11, 2014
Someone made a sweet graphic for Q. Only problem is the skyline in the pic isn't of Shreveport, but Little Rock. The graphic also led to a neat respect-filled back and forth between Q and Hog running back Jonathan Williams (click on dateline to see comments).
