Heston Kjerstad is high on Phil Elson’s beloved Pittsburgh Pirates’ draft spot at No. 7 and ESPN insider Kiley McDaniel said on Halftime Wednesday afternoon they have him on their radar.
Are regional matchups like Hogs-Memphis becoming more likely now?
There aren’t a lot of benefits for college athletics right now with far more questions than answers but the economic hit may force schools like Arkansas and others to start scheduling by geography.
My view is there would be more fan interest in playing schools like Memphis or even the community college in Jonesboro than bringing in the likes of Nevada or Charleston Wherever.
It’s not just my opinion, but CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander had the same thoughts Wednesday morning with Tye Richardson and Tommy Craft (The Morning Rush) on ESPN Arkansas.
“We will see (geographic rivalries) well established a year or two from now,” Norlander said. “The financial impact of all this will be realized in ’21, ’22 and ’23. When it comes to who you can play, geography might end up having a real impact on that.”
The guess here is the current coronavirus crisis is going to change a lot of college athletics and that might not be all that bad.
With Penny Hardaway and Eric Musselman having a cordial relationship, it really doesn’t make sense to NOT play in that sport. Exactly why the Razorbacks don’t play Memphis every year in basketball and football has been a head-scratcher.
It won’t be surprising to see that happen.
“Given what Penny has said since he’s taken the gig he just doesn’t seem like a coach who’s scared of that kind of stuff and not worried about any previous politics with that,” Norlander said.
The coaches can get the ball rolling, but it’s going to take Hunter Yurachek to just lay out the numbers and increased fan interest for the games to actually happen.
“This applies to college football as much as college basketball,” Norlander said. “It is such a good thing for the health and interest of the sport when you have natural geographic rivals that aren’t in the same conference that are willing to play each other — ideally — annually, but short of that at least frequently.
“For Memphis and Arkansas there’s almost no reason not to do it.”
He’s got a point there that some have wondered about for awhile. If nothing else, the Hogs have struggled mightily against lesser teams the last few years in football.
Musselman is upgrading the schedule in basketball by taking his team to neutral-site matchups, leaving a chance for home matchups that could boost some of that attendance that falls a bit in November and December.
Even going to Memphis for a game every other year would probably create a hot ticket for a road game in an NBA facility in a downtown where Razorback fans usually find a way to have a good time.
“Why wouldn’t you?” Norlander said. “At this point Memphis and Arkansas are essentially on even footing. Playing each other would benefit both programs, the fan bases would be into it.
“Both coaches certainly seem to see the game in a lot of ways that would help it. It would be terrific.”
Quite possibly it could get both programs some solid early-season exposure on a broader scale.
“Is a Memphis-Arkansas game going to bring in wide national appeal?” Norlander said. “Not necessarily, but it’s not going to be a thing where only people in the region care.
“If you tell me Arkansas Memphis, we look up in two years from now and they’re playing a game, both of these teams have made the NCAA Tournament, both of these teams are bringing in five-star recruits and have really strong classes, yes that becomes a game on a given day.
“Say they play on the first Saturday in December and both teams are in the tournament, that becomes a game — almost certainly — that’s a top three game that day. It would be one of the top games that day.”
It’s something Norlander feels the sport needs.
“We need more coaches, athletic directors and their schools to be willing to do that.” he said. “It inherently helps the sport. Sometimes ego gets in the way. Missouri and Kansas are doing it in football and basketball. I would love to see it.”
That may be a big boost after this shutdown business as they start to sort things out. The guess here is expenses are going to be scrutinized more closely … at least for a few years.
Which may force some of these schools to do what they should have been doing for awhile.
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Williams on making move from Southside to Pea Ridge, but having to wait
When Jeff Williams decided to make the move from Fort Smith Southside to Pea Ridge, he knew what he was getting into but it’s still frustrating not even being able to meet his new players.
“That’s the weird part,” he told Derek Ruscin and Zach Arns (Ruscin & Zach) on ESPN Arkansas Tuesday afternoon. “Everybody’s going through this. From West Memphis to Warren, Arkansas, to Northwest Arkansas to Central Arkansas …. everybody’s in the same situation.”
Williams coached Southside for 15 years. He’s coached in four state championship games and won one, downing Rogers in 2007. Leaving wasn’t an easy decision for the coach that’s followed two Hall of Famers in Scooter Register at El Dorado, then Barry Lunney at Southside.
“You could just watch Pea Ridge over the last couple of years, just how the community has grown and how successful the football program’s been,” he said. “I’ve been at Southside for over 15 years and had a lot of great times and great memories. It wasn’t an easy decision. There’s a lot of great people in Fort Smith that I’ve been a part of for a long time.”
But he’s going to have to wait awhile just to actually get to meet his players.
“We’re going to go up and meet the coaches and see what they’ve been doing then try to set up some Zoom meetings, get familiar with the kids and where we need to put them,” he said. “Hopefully we can get started pretty soon. I’m hearing rumors here and there but until somebody gives us something definite we’re just waiting.”
But he’s been getting a plan together since before he got the job in Pea Ridge.
“I had sat down with the Southside staff and kinda had a plan if we get ’em back in June what we need to do, if we get ’em back in July this is what we need to do, if we get ’em back August 1 this is what we need to do and if we don’t get ’em back until the middle of August this is what we need to do,” Williams said.
“You gotta have a plan. Coaches are big planners. I’m an organized guy and you get your yearly plan, then a monthly plan, then a weekly plan, then a daily plan.”
That is what coaches tend to do.
“We’re all big planners and it’s about to drive everybody crazy,”. The No. 1 thing is to be safe. The worst thing that could happen is come back too early and this epidemic spikes back up and we’re back to ground zero.”
Most of the talk has been about colleges and pro sports getting back to business as usual, but this is not something high school coaches have seen, either.
“It’s kinda been mind-boggling,” Williams said. “I never thought it would get to this.
“The best thing you can do is prepare. You just kinda roll your sleeves up and go to work when they let us loose.”
Van Horn on maintenance issues with all-grass, Kjerstad’s big year, more
Arkansas is one of the rare college baseball facilities with all natural grass but Dave Van Horn said Tuesday he might not be that opposed to putting in some of the fake stuff.
“It’s more just a maintenance nightmare,” he said Tuesday with Phil Elson and Matt Jenkins (Halftime) on ESPN Arkansas. “For what we do I would almost like to have some of the synthetic turf around home plate and in the foul areas. It is difficult sometimes.”
That may come as a little bit of a surprise to some Razorback fans.
“I’m in the middle on it, really,” he said. “In fall ball and early in the year we tear up the field so bad. We’re trying to baby that grass and it’s kind of a pain, bot be honest with you.”
That was why former athletics director Frank Broyles loved the fake grass, especially in the winters in Northwest Arkansas that can be harsh at times, especially with natural turf.
Broyles put Astro-Turf down in 1969 and in just a few years had one of the longest straight runs of the fake stuff from the North End Zone facility down to George Cole Field.
Changes in MLB draft affecting college baseball
Van Horn didn’t really have enough time to go into a lot of detail on the announcement last week the Major League Baseball Draft would be shortened to just five rounds, but he knows some players might be coming back he didn’t really expect.
Naturally, he’s in favor of players staying in college longer, especially if they are not chosen high and he’s realistic about the financial part of it.
“If I was a parent I’d take no less than $2 million to buy my kid out of college,” Van Horn said. “The goal is to make it to the big leagues and stick.”
The signing bonuses if you’re picked higher are a false promise. Many don’t realize the best-case scenario is 40 percent of that is gone before they get it (for taxes), then the agent’s part and that $400,000 suddenly turns to about $250,000 … if they are lucky.
The change this year will have some players back in school that would have normally been gone.
“It’s going to make college baseball a little bit older for a year or two,” Van Horn said. “It’s going to get a few really good players to skip pro ball and go to college. It’s so much better for the kids that don’t get to the big leagues and don’t get their degrees.”
The Hogs’ Heston Kjerstad and Casey Martin will probably be picked high and gone. Catcher Casey Opitz might be on the bubble.
Kjerstad’s missed chance at big season
Van Horn knows Kjerstad won’t be back, but was looking forward to him putting up some monster numbers the way things were shaping up before getting cancelled in mid-March.
“He would have been one of three invited to Golden Spike awards,” he said about the top award in college baseball.
It was a hot start as Kjerstad was living up to all the pre-season hype and expectations as the original schedule had them heading to Knoxville on Wednesday for the final regular-season series.
“If we were heading to Tennessee tomorrow Heston would have close to mid-20’s in home runs and be hitting around .370,” Van Horn said. “He wore it out and I don’t think he was even hot.”
That was based in large part of Kjerstad’s work in developing his game.
“He’d be there on the weekends and working later, more on speed and athleticism,” Van Horn said.
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After little playing time over two seasons, Washington enters transfer portal
Arkansas outfielder Curtis Washington, Jr., is in the transfer portal after just six games in the shortened 2020 season and little playing time over his two seasons in Fayetteville.
He had one start in 2020.
Washington was a speedster with skills, but he’s been battling for time in an outfield group loaded with talent the last couple of years.
He played both right field and left field and was used as a pinch hitter in some situations. This past season, he went 1-for-5 from the plate for an average of .200.
Washington is the second player to go into the portal after pitcher Collin Taylor entered it last week.
Taylor didn’t appear in any games for Arkansas in 2020 as a sophomore. The Hogs got off to an 11-5 start to the 2020 season.
