Hunter Yurachek has apparently given coaches at every Arkansas sport the okay to schedule other schools in the state with one notable exception — football — which is the primary one people want to see.
The story was first reported at WholeHogSports.com on Friday afternoon.
It is a move made primarily for economic reasons that will also jump-start fans talking about possible matchups in all sports.
Which comes at a good time for everybody since we were looking at some time when we would be digging around to find out how players were running, jumping and doing basically drills when players officially start voluntary workouts Monday.
The decision means, simply, the Razorbacks can schedule games against Arkansas State and Central Arkansas. The Red Wolves play in the Sun Belt Conference while the FCS Bears are in the Southland Conference.
With the Hogs already playing contests against Arkansas-Little Rock and Arkansas-Pine Bluff, the door is now open to add the other two schools in the state to schedules.
Except in football.
But the guess is that’s coming. Probably with games in Fayetteville, simply because college sports is a money business these days and other arguments don’t get a spot in the conversation very often.
The Hogs played baseball, softball and some other spring sports against Little Rock and UAPB the last time we had full seasons in 2019’s spring season. They were on the schedule again.
It’s more cost-effective for everybody to play the in-state schools.
With no official announcement of schedules for men’s and women’s basketball for this winter, it will not be surprising to see at least one of those games put on the schedule in men’s and women’s basketball.
The spring sports will probably have a healthy scattering of those teams.
But not football, which has a schedule that is looking more and more to be complete despite the ongoing Covid-19 situation.
Of course the dream matchup every sports fan in the state has an opinion on is the Hogs and Red Wolves playing, which is probably a couple of years away at least.
A lot of folks tend to think the game should be played in Little Rock, which would be an advantage for Arkansas State but cost the UA money and likely won’t happen. Forget the pipe dream of splitting the stadium in half because that’s not going to happen.
Which is why ASU is going to have to travel to Fayetteville. There probably will be a sellout simply because every Red Wolves fan is going to snap up every available ticket on the secondary market they can get their hands on.
Basketball could be a different story.
The matchup could make for a huge weekend in North Little Rock with matchups over a couple of days between different teams.
And football will probably happen down the road.
