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Van Horn on new contract, Yurachek, recruiting

Andy Hodges
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Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn was in Harrison on Tuesday night with the Razorback Club and the first question from reporters before was about the contract.

“Right out of the chute you hit that one,” Van Horn said, obviously in good spirits.

He wasn’t offended, quickly offering that he and athletics director Hunter Yurachek had talked.

“Yes, we have,” Van Horn said.

It’s clear that just a couple of weeks after a near-miss with a national title against Oregon State in the College World Series, he’s already at work on the next one, but he wasn’t going to make contract negotiations too tough.

“I told him I was good with everything,” Van Horn said about the conversations with Yurachek. “I think everyone knows I want to be at Arkansas. It’s not all about the finances. It’s about being where you want to be to me.”

In his 16th year with the Razorbacks, he has now been in five College World Series with 15 NCAA appearances.

And he’s not interested in going anywhere, just listening to him.

He seemed to indicate the extension would carry through the 2023 season. There would also be options for 2024 and 2025. His current contract runs through 2021 with an annual financial package of $775,000, but bonuses could raise that total.

“I guess if I win enough we get to add some more years,” Van Horn said. “I’ll get a couple years added to that possibly. Then there might be a couple more in there if things go well.”

As we said, it doesn’t appear he’s going anywhere for awhile.

Which is good for Hogs baseball.

 

Tweaks, some throwback with new Hogs’ uniforms

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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PHOTOS FROM RAZORBACK SPORTS COMMUNICATIONS
Arkansas announced some tweaks to the main football uniform for the season Tuesday.

There’s still no word if the white helmets will re-appear or the gosh-awful ugly anthracite (gray) uniforms will re-emerge.

The Helmet

The iconic Razorback helmet is returning to the historic “pearl cardinal” look, most recently sported during the Darren McFadden era.

The Hogs had been wearing a “matte finish” helmet in recent years. While the “pearl cardinal” helmets have a bit more gloss to them, they do not have nearly the sheen seen on the “red chrome” helmets worn in the 2015 Liberty Bowl.

The Jersey

Other than the actual jersey template from Nike being an updated version, the only modification to the jersey is the removal of the “white chest tusks.” This less cluttered look more prominently displays Razorbacks across the chest.

The Pants

The pant stripe was moved up to connect at the waist as opposed to appearing mid leg in the most recent Razorback uniform.

The Cleats

Mostly white cleats will replace the black shoes worn for all but a few games in the past years. In 2015, the Hogs wore white until back-to-back losses to Toledo and Texas Tech brought back the black shoes.

Hogs name Donnenwirth interim assistant soccer coach

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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FAYETTEVILLE — Rob Donnenwirth was announced as the interim assistant coach for Razorback soccer Tuesday afternoon by coach Colby Hale.

Donnenwirth comes from East Carolina where he spent the previous 19 seasons and is the winningest coach in ECU history.

Donnenwirth compiled a 177-150-44 record with the Pirates, producing nine 10-win seasons since 1999 and one conference championship.

He also mentored 86 all-conference performers during his time in Greenville.

“I am very excited to join the Razorback soccer program this fall,” Donnenwirth said. “I have known Colby (Hale) since his days at UCF and have been amazed how he turned this program into a bona fide contender for SEC championships and beyond. This program has a distinct competitive identity and I can’t wait to get started working with the team.”

“We are thrilled to be adding someone of Rob’s caliber and experience to our staff,” Hale said. “We are committed to growing as a program and we know Rob will help us in that.”

Donnenwirth has spent the last 24 years as a collegiate head coach, including five years at North Carolina Wesleyan, his first head-coaching stop.

Combined at those two schools, Donnenwirth has a 239-176-53 (.567) and also served as an assistant coach at James Madison and UMass from 1988 to 1994.

Last year, ECU produced its best start in program history with a 4-0-1 mark and went 5-2-2 in non-conference play, capped by a 0-0 draw with No. 5 Virginia, the Pirates’ first tie against a top-five opponent in program history.

Junior Courtney Cash was named All-AAC Second Team at the end of the year marking the fourth-straight season ECU had an all-conference selection.

Donnenwirth helped ECU transition from Conference USA to the American Athletic Conference in 2014 and from there, saw players such as Kendall Frey blossom.

Frey was named to the All-AAC First Team in 2015 after cracking the top five in multiple categories in the record book, closing her career fifth in all-time goals scored (22) and points (22).

Frey was also given All-AAC Third Team recognition as a sophomore in 2013 and received NSCAA Scholar All-South Region honors in 2014.

ECU’s best season in the AAC under Donnenwirth came in 2014 where he guided the Pirates to a 12-8-1 overall mark, reaching the semifinals of the conference tournament.

Frey along with senior defender Kelley Johnson and senior goalkeeper Erika Lenns earned all-conference nods.

In 2013, ECU’s final season in Conference USA, Donnenwirth kicked off the campaign with a milestone, claiming his 200th career victory in a 2-0 win over Davidson on Aug. 23.

The Pirates won at least nine matches for the eighth year in a row, going 9-9-3 with a 5-4-1 mark in C-USA play.

Caitlin Hite became the first freshman in program history to earn all-conference first team honors and the team reached the C-USA Tournament semifinals.

The 2008 season was Donnenwirth’s most successful as he led ECU to the best overall record in program history at 14-4-4 and a share of the C-USA Regular Season Championship.

That year the Pirates finished the C-USA season with a 7-0-4 mark, good for the first unbeaten run through league play since Charlotte went 8-0-2 in 2002.

East Carolina played in its first C-USA Championship game in 2008, but fell to Memphis, 4-1, and narrowly missed out on making the program’s first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance.

At the end of the year, Donnenwirth received his first C-USA Coach-of-the-Year award and was the Soccer Buzz Southeast Region Coach-of-the-Year runner-up.

The conclusion of the 2008 campaign also saw a Pirate agree to the first United States professional contract in program history as Madison Keller signed with the Washington Freedom of the Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) league.

In all, three former players signed professional contracts under Donnenwirth’s tenure at ECU: Amanda Duffy (Sweden `06), Keller and Kimmy Cummings (Ireland, `12).

Prior to arriving at ECU, Donnenwirth spent five years as the head coach at North Carolina Wesleyan College in Rocky Mount, N.C.

Under his guidance, the Battling Bishops enjoyed tremendous success, winning four Dixie Conference titles and making three trips to the NCAA Division III Tournament.

In Donnenwirth’s first year as the Bishops as head coach, the team advanced to the NCAA Final Four and finished with a 15-3-3 record.

Chris Webb and Trish Parker, former ECU assistant coaches, were a part of that squad and Parker was named the Division III National Player-of-the-Year.

In his tenure at N.C. Wesleyan, three Bishop players were named All-Americans, two were chosen Dixie Conference Players-of-the-Year and three were picked as the conference’s Rookie-of-the-Year.

Donnenwirth was also recognized several times while at N.C. Wesleyan, earning NCAA South Regional Coach of the Year twice and the Dixie Conference Coach of the Year three times.

Before heading to N.C. Wesleyan, Donnenwirth served as an assistant with the James Madison men’s and women’s teams and the UMass men’s squad.

Outside the college ranks, Donnenwirth has a wealth of experience in Olympic Development Programs (ODP).

He has been part of the United States Region III ODP coaching staff and served eight years as a North Carolina ODP coach with the under-13 and under-15 girls’ teams.

He was formerly the director of the Pitt Greenville Soccer Association’s traveling and recreational programs and is currently president of Soccer Express, a community soccer camp business that has attracted over 3,000 youth and adult campers in the U.S. and Canada.

As a player, Donnenwirth guided West Virginia Wesleyan College to back-to-back NAIA National Championships in 1984 and 1985 and was named a NAIA Honorable Mention All-American in 1987 as a goalkeeper. He earned a B.S. in marketing from West Virginia Wesleyan in 1988 and his M.B.A. from James Madison in 1990.

Donnenwirth and his wife, Rosy, have three daughters: Allison, Madison and Carly.

Hogs set ’18 volleyball schedule with 13 home matches

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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FAYETTEVILLE — Featuring 13 home matches at Barnhill Arena and seven opponents that played in last year’s NCAA Tournament, coach Jason Watson has released the Razorbacks’ schedule for the upcoming year.

The 25th season of Arkansas volleyball begins Aug. 24 with a home match against Kansas.

Quick Facts

• Season & home opener: Aug. 24 vs Kansas
• SEC opener: Sept. 19 at Texas A&M
• SEC home opener: Sept. 23 vs Missouri
• 28 matches during the regular season | 13 home – 12 away – three neutral
• 10 matches against seven opponents that played in last year’s NCAA Tournament
• Four first-time opponents: Buffalo, Georgia Southern, North Dakota State, Northwestern

The Razorbacks’ schedule also features 11 matches against eight opponents that were ranked inside the final RPI Top 50 from last season.

In addition to its SEC slate, Arkansas is set to face three non-conference teams—Kansas, Minnesota and NC State — that played in the 2017 NCAA Tournament. Arkansas opens the season with a home and home against Kansas.

Along with its regular-season opener with Kansas, this year’s home schedule features the Arkansas Classic (Sept. 7-8) and nine conference matches.

The Razorbacks’ SEC home opener is Sunday, Sept. 23 against Missouri. Arkansas is scheduled for a four-match home stand during November that features preseason SEC favorite Kentucky (Nov. 14).

Date Opponent Site Time (CT)
Sat, Aug. 18 at Oklahoma (exhibition) Norman, Okla. 5 p.m.
Fri, Aug. 24 Kansas FAYETTEVILLE 6 p.m.
Sun, Aug. 26 at Kansas Lawrence, Kan. 1 p.m.
Fri, Aug. 31 vs Georgia Southern Minneapolis, Minn. 4:30 p.m.
Sat, Sept. 1 vs North Dakota State Minneapolis, Minn. 12 p.m.
Sat, Sept. 1 at Minnesota Minneapolis, Minn. 7 p.m.
Fri, Sept. 7 Butler FAYETTEVILLE 7 p.m.
Sat, Sept. 8 Buffalo FAYETTEVILLE 12 p.m.
Sat, Sept. 8 Northwestern FAYETTEVILLE 7 p.m.
Fri, Sept. 14 vs NC State Atlanta, Ga. 3 p.m.
Sat, Sept. 15 at Georgia Tech Atlanta, Ga. 3 p.m.
Wed, Sept. 19 at Texas A&M College Station, Texas 7 p.m.
Sun, Sept. 23 Missouri FAYETTEVILLE 1 p.m.
Fri, Sept. 28 at Kentucky Lexington, Ky. TBA
Sun, Sept. 30 at Tennessee Knoxville, Tenn. 12:30 p.m.
Fri, Oct. 5 Ole Miss FAYETTEVILLE 7 p.m.
Sun, Oct. 7 at Missouri Columbia, Mo. 1:30 p.m.
Fri, Oct. 12 Mississippi State FAYETTEVILLE 7 p.m.
Wed, Oct. 17 South Carolina FAYETTEVILLE 7 p.m.
Sun, Oct. 21 Alabama FAYETTEVILLE 1 p.m.
Wed, Oct. 24 at Mississippi State Starkville, Miss. 7 p.m.
Sun, Oct. 28 at Auburn Auburn, Ala. TBA
Sun, Nov. 4 at Florida Gainesville, Fla. 3 p.m.
Fri, Nov. 9 Georgia FAYETTEVILLE 7 p.m.
Sun, Nov. 11 LSU FAYETTEVILLE 1 p.m.
Wed, Nov. 14 Kentucky FAYETTEVILLE 5 p.m.
Sun, Nov. 18 Tennessee FAYETTEVILLE 1 p.m.
Wed, Nov. 21 at Georgia Athens, Ga. 5 p.m.
Fri, Nov. 23 at Alabama Tuscaloosa, Ala. 7 p.m.

Arkansas is coming off a season in which it posted a 19-11 overall record, a 10-win improvement from the previous season.

Earlier this summer, the Razorbacks were picked to finish seventh in the SEC in the preseason coaches’ poll.

Rising sophomores Hailey Dirrigl and Elizabeth Pamphile are Arkansas’ top returning offensive leaders after averaging 2.77 and 2.02 kills per set, respectively, last season.

Setter Rachel Rippee tallied 11.23 assists per set during the 2017 campaign which ranked second in the SEC.

Defensively, Kelly O’Brien led the Razorback with 115 total blocks last season and libero Okiana Valle picked up 3.61 digs per set while surpassing 1,000 career digs.

The 2018 postseason begins Nov. 29 with the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament with the regional round set for Dec. 7-8 at four non-predetermined sites.

The national semifinals and championship matches will be played Dec. 13 and 15 at the Target Center in Minneapolis.

Bud Light Morning Rush Podcast: Tuesday

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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Bud Light Morning Rush Podcast: Tuesday

New coaches main focus at SEC Media Days next week

Andy Hodges
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For the first time, the second-largest gathering of media people interviewing other media people, gets underway next week in Atlanta with SEC Media Days.

For actual news, it will be a relatively tame week. It’s hard to remember the last time some really breaking news came down during that week involving players.

Oh, there was Phillip Fulmer being served with legal papers in 2008 when he arrived. That was from a lawsuit filed several years earlier over allegedly turning in Alabama to the SEC on some recruiting stuff.

For the last couple of years we had everybody asking anybody connected with or covering Ole Miss about the NCAA investigation, but that’s over with now. Remember, it was shortly after the event last year when the Hugh Freeze scandal broke.

We don’t even Steve Spurrier around for entertainment any more.

Oh, Nick Saban will probably be ticked off at some question and try to bully somebody that asks something, but it won’t be anything of much importance.

Most of the attention will be focused on the new coaches in the SEC, five of whom will be walking into the chaos for the first time. Florida’s Dan Mullen has been there a few times, but as coach of Mississippi State.

Texas A&M’s Jimbo Fisher will be the spotlight new coach. Arkansas’ Chad Morris, Ole Miss’ Matt Luke, Mississippi State’s Joe Moorhead and Tennessee’s Jeremy Pruitt will be novelty items.

If Morris holds true to form, he may hit more spots on radio row than anybody since the SEC stopped making the coaches go down the gauntlet of stations interviewing anything that looks remotely interesting.

Then there will be the predictions.

The national media guys will tiptoe at almost every stop. To be honest, they simply don’t have the time to deep-dive into every school and most don’t step back and get a big-picture view. That’s why most thought Bret Bielema was a home-run hire back in 2013 when anybody looking at the big picture figured it was going to never work.

But there will be some constants.

Alabama will be favored in the West and Georgia in the East. Since 1992, I’ve picked Alabama to win the West and Florida the East every single year and been perfect nine times over 25 years and half-right five more times. Over half of the time those picks have hit on one side or the other.

That’s the pick again this year. No one will argue about the Crimson Tide, but probably raise eyebrows about the Gators. I’m playing the numbers.

Arkansas will likely be sixth or seventh in the West. The Hogs aren’t getting a great deal of respect for the coming season.

Few expect a banner year.

Razorback fans should rejoice. When picked low, Arkansas tends to finish higher. When they are picked to contend, the bottom falls out most of the time.

I’ve got an idea what I think, but I’m not making any predictions just yet.

Later this week, I’ll give you my prediction for what the media will pick. Oh, there won’t be any surprises at the top because I think Alabama and Georgia will be favored in each division.

It’s the rest of the pecking order that may be a little different.

Hey, what else do we have to discuss?

Razorbacks’ 2018 soccer schedule set; opens August 4

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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FAYETTEVILLE — Coming off its fourth NCAA Tournament appearance in the last five years and its second-straight SEC Tournament final appearance, the Razorbacks are roughly a month away from beginning its 2018 campaign with a top-notch schedule on the calendar.

Head coach Colby Hale enters his seventh season at the helm of the program and is the only coach in program history to take the team to an NCAA Tournament.

Last year’s team won 11 matches and made a miraculous run to the SEC Tournament final after coming in as the eight seed. Arkansas was the lowest-seeded team to ever reach the tournament final. With its run, Arkansas secured its ninth 10-win season in school history and third under Hale.

The Razorbacks will open the home portion of its schedule on Friday, Aug. 24 against Nebraska-Omaha before traveling to McNeese State (Aug. 26) on the back end of the weekend.

Arkansas will then have three-straight home matches coming against Baylor (Aug. 31), FAU (Sept. 7) and UConn (Sept. 9), which will lead right into its SEC opener at Georgia (Sept. 13).

Arkansas has set a single-game attendance record during the home-opening weekend in each of the last five seasons, including last year’s record-setting 3,401 fans that watched the Razorbacks take on top-ranked Penn State.

Seven teams from last year’s NCAA Tournament field will make up part of this year’s schedule, five coming from the SEC. Arkansas will open the year with two matches in State College, Pennsylvania against Duquesne (Aug. 17) and West Virginia (Aug. 19) as part of a tournament hosted by Penn State.

West Virginia finished 2017 with a 16-4-3 record and made it to the third round of the NCAA Tournament before bowing out to Penn State. The Mountaineers will be one of three Big 12 foes the Razorbacks will face this year.

They will also host Baylor at Razorback Field, their second home match of the season, and Kansas State (Aug. 4) as the first of two exhibitions prior to the regular season.

This year’s conference slate is full of tournament teams as Texas A&M (Sept. 20), Alabama (Sept. 23), Ole Miss (Oct. 7), Auburn (Oct. 21), and Florida (Oct. 25) make up five of the 10 teams Arkansas will face in the league coming off NCAA Tournament appearances.

Including Texas A&M and Auburn, the rest of the home conference schedule will be against Missouri (Sept. 27), LSU (Oct. 4) and Kentucky (Oct. 11).

Once again, the SEC Soccer Tournament will be played in Orange Beach, Alabama at the Orange Beach Sportsplex.

The top 10 teams in the conference will make the field and the top six will have a bye to the quarterfinals. The tournament is slated to start on Oct. 28 and run through Nov. 4.

2018 Razorback Soccer Schedule

Date Opponent Location Time (CT)
Sat, Aug. 4 Kansas St. (Exh.) Razorback Field 6:30 p.m.
Thu, Aug. 9 at Nebraska (Exh.) Lincoln, Neb. 7 p.m.
Fri, Aug. 17 vs. Duquesne State College, Pa. 4 p.m.
Sun, Aug. 19 vs. West Virginia State College, Pa. 11 a.m.
Fri, Aug. 24 Nebraska-Omaha Razorback Field 7 p.m.
Sun, Aug. 26 at McNeese St. Lake Charles, La. 6 p.m.
Fri, Aug. 31 Baylor Razorback Field 7 p.m.
Fri, Sept. 7 Florida Atlantic Razorback Field 7 p.m.
Sun, Sept. 9 UConn Razorback Field 1 p.m.
Thu, Sept. 13 at Georgia Athens, Ga. 6 p.m.
Sun, Sept. 16 Providence Razorback Field 6 p.m.
Thu, Sept. 20 Texas A&M Razorback Field 7 p.m.
Sun, Sept. 23 at Alabama Tuscaloosa, Ala. 6 p.m.
Thu, Sept. 27 Missouri Razorback Field 6:30 p.m.
Thu, Oct. 4 LSU Razorback Field 6:30 p.m.
Sun, Oct. 7 at Ole Miss Oxford, Miss. 2 p.m.
Thu, Oct. 11 Kentucky Razorback Field 6:30 p.m.
Thu, Oct. 18 at Mississippi St. Starkville, Miss. 7 p.m.
Sun, Oct. 21 Auburn Razorback Field 1 p.m.
Thu, Oct. 25 at Florida Gainesville, Fla. 6 p.m.
Sun, Oct. 28 SEC Tournament Orange Beach, Ala. TBD
Tue, Oct. 30 SEC Tournament Orange Beach, Ala. TBD
Thu, Nov. 1 SEC Tournament Orange Beach, Ala. TBD
Sun, Nov. 4 SEC Tournament Orange Beach, Ala. TBD

Tatlow selected to serve in Peace Corps in Dominican Republic

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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FAYETTEVILLE —Arkansas graduate Chelsea Tatlow has been selected to serve as a Peace Corps Volunteer, earning an invitation to serve as a Spanish Literacy Promoter in the Dominican Republic beginning March 5, 2019.

The Columbia, Missouri native dedicated much of her college career to service, earning a career sweep of the Southeastern Conference Community Service Team honors.

She completed the sweep after serving as the team’s swimming and diving community service coordinator, having made a lasting impact on the Northwest Arkansas community with her involvement throughout her career as a Razorback.

The social work and sociology graduate traveled to Belize in the summer of 2017 to participate in the Summer Service Learning program.

Tatlow is a three-time CSCAA First Team Scholar All-American and a 2017 SEC Winter Academic Honor Roll selection.

She was named to the Dean’s List all eight semesters and to the Chancellor’s List six semesters.

The 2015 Hogspy Rookie of the Year, Tatlow qualified and competed at the NCAA Championships each of her first three seasons as a Razorback.

Tatlow has worked with the Equestrian Bridges Church, the Equestrian Bridges Therapeutic Riding Center, the Yvonne Richardson Center and a member of the Leadership Academy.

She has worked with Special Education at the Springdale Junior High, the Book Hogs Read to Win Program at Butterfield Elementary, the Relay For Life Cancer Society and the Sweat Hogs Salute to Excellence Program at Folsom Elementary.

She has donated funds to the Salvation Army and the 7Hills Homeless Shelter. She has filled backpacks for Girls On The Run and volunteered for Habitat For Humanity, the Veteran’s Hospital, the Bentonville Half Marathon, Special Olympics, the Operations Baton Rouge Flood Victims, and the Shop With Razorbacks at Toy-r-Us.

She has also worked with the Razorback Reads at Springdale Public Library, the Fayetteville Food Hub, the Fayetteville Underground, and the Fayetteville Park and Recreation.

Bud Light Morning Rush Podcast: Monday

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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Bud Light Morning Rush Podcast: Monday

Hogs, Long each get needed fresh starts with new job

Andy Hodges
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Arkansas athletics, politics, and, well, pretty much the entire state has run on tradition for decades.

That’s a nice way of terming it. Some call it the “good ol’ boy network” and while many denounce it the fact of the matter is few outsiders in the history of Razorback athletics have broken through it.

Getting into it is a little like joining a fraternity back in the day. You’re either a legacy (born in the state), do a blood oath-type thing (playing for the Hogs in some sport) … or buy your way in.

When it comes to the Razorbacks, if you come in without playing you better win — a lot — and get along with the boys already in the network. Of course, being a legacy won’t buy you a lifetime job without winning, either. Ask Ken Hatfield or Houston Nutt about that little aspect.

Jeffrey P. Long had little interest in being part of the network in any way, shape, form or fashion. He found out — apparently with little warning — that might not have been the best approach.

In the minds of some, he was — at best — a carpetbagger talking out of both sides of his mouth, saying one thing in interviews and then being completely different in person. Some donors felt the only people he cared about, in order, were million-dollar donors in the luxury suites and ESPN.

The recurring theme from many Arkansas-based donors was Long took a baseball bat to many time-honored traditions. That included what some felt was a lack of civility. He allegedly made disparaging comments about southern people accidentally within earshot of some boosters, who weren’t really happy about it.

Some felt he played favorites in the media. There are some who say he instructed UA personnel that only certain media people would be notified in advance of some breaking stories. That didn’t exactly make a lot of friends and he had little to no support from that corner when things fell apart.

Before anyone accuses me of doing anything on a personal level, I interviewed Long maybe three or four times during his entire tenure. The two or three requests I made of him directly, he obliged. To be honest, it’s doubtful he even knew who I was … or cared. That’s perfectly fine with me.

In the end, it was time for him to move on. He may have done some positive things in his 10 years. The problem was for every positive you heard about him, there were 10 negatives.

Now he’s on to another adventure. A decade ago, we were told by people here and in Pittsburgh he left town as the executioner was sharpening the axe. No telling now if that’s accurate or not and now it doesn’t matter.

Long has a new gig in Kansas, which has fallen to being relevant in just a single sport — college basketball.

With a coach there in Bill Self, that’s the only person on the staff that Long has to get along with. For a university that is the home of James Naismith’s original rules of basketball (after a Kansas graduate purchased them at auction), it’s clear which sport is king.

The Jayhawks also were, at one point in time, as big in track and field as Arkansas now and had some good runs in football with a couple of Orange Bowl appearances. But not a lot lately. It’s even the alma mater of Gale Sayers and John Riggins, two Hall of Famers, but Kansas hasn’t exactly been a hotbed of NFL stars in the last 50 years or so.

Lately, though, well they made the Hogs look like a dominant force in football.

Many are saying Long’s biggest charge is getting football to be respectable. If he can accomplish that, he should make millions if he writes a book about how that transpires.

In the final analysis, Long’s new job in Kansas helps Arkansas by several million dollars. Whether it helps the Jayhawks is anybody’s guess.

Razorback fans can now move on. Long was a hot-button issue with many longtime donors that got extremely emotional at times.

But it’s time to move on. While some were not completely ecstatic with the hiring of Hunter Yurachek to replace Long, many have said they are willing to at least “see how it goes.”

In Arkansas terms, that’s giving him a chance. Time will tell on that one, too, but Hunter likely won’t have a grace period the length of what Long had. By all appearances, he’s handling it very well and understands he was given two ears, two eyes and only one mouth to use in proportion.

Hog fans will have a Long memory. That won’t go away for a few years and it will be a bitter taste for some fans every time they hear the name.

And that may last awhile.

Schultz takes bronze medal at Bolzana FINA Grand Prix in Italy

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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BOLZANO, Italy — Arkansas rising sophomore Brooke Schultz scored bronze in the women’s 3-meter final at the Bolzano FINA Grand Prix, to secure one of six medals for Team USA Sunday afternoon.

Place Team Athlete ‘ Score
1  CHN Yiwen Chen 341.50
2  CHN Xiaohui Huang 323.25
3  USA BROOKE SCHULTZ 283.60
4  GBR Alicia Blagg 281.10
5  CAN Ashley McCool 251.60
6  USA Alison Gibson 214.15

Schultz began competition in fifth-place following a front 2 1/2 somersaults with 1 twist that landed her 49.50 points, a spot she would hold for the following two rounds. The fourth round saw Schultz make her move up to third place with her most successful dive of the day, a back 2 1/2 pike for 67.50 points. She held the position through the final round.

The competition is her first since she clinched a national title at the USA Diving Senior National Championships on May 18 in the 3-meter synchro, along with Murphy Bromberg of Texas. The pair posted 287.40 points to take first.

This past spring, Schultz claimed Arkansas’ third national title, and first since 1985, with a school and personal-record 399.45 points in the three-meter finals of the 2018 NCAA Division I Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships. In conference competition, Schultz took the first and second Southeastern Conference titles in school history in the one and three-meter springboard.

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