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No. 18 Razorbacks fall to Wake Forest in Ohio tournament

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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COLUMBUS, Ohio — No. 18 Arkansas won the doubles point, but Wake Forest rallied back in singles play to defeat the Razorbacks 4-2 on Friday in the first round of ITA Kick-Off Weekend at the Varsity Tennis Center.

“Hats off to Wake Forest today,” coach Michael Hegarty said. “We played a beautiful doubles point, and I was extremely proud of the efforts we had in singles as well.”

Behind consecutive victories from senior Leolia Jeanjean and sophomore Natsuho Arakawa at No. 3 and then junior Ana Oparenovic and freshman Tatum Rice at the top spot, the Razorbacks carried a 1-0 advantage into singles play.

The Demon Deacons took a 3-1 lead, thanks to consecutive singles victories at the No. 1, 6, and 5 positions. Sophomore Giulia Pairone responded with a win in straight sets at No. 3, but Wake Forest’s Anna Ulyashchenko clinched the match with a win at No. 4.

Up Next
Arkansas will play Kansas at 6 p.m. CT Saturday. Fans can follow Saturday’s match through live scoring here.

Wake Forest 4, No. 18 Arkansas 2

Singles Competition 
1. No. 72 Emma Davis (WF) def. Ana Oparenovic (AR) 6-4, 6-1
2. Mia Jurasic (AR) vs. No. 70 Eliza Omirou (WF) 6-2, 4-6, 2-5, unfinished
3. Giulia Pairone (AR) def. Chandler Carter (WF) 7-6 (7-2), 6-2
4. Anna Ulyashchenko (WF) def. Natsuho Arakawa (AR) 7-5, 7-6 (7-3)
5. Joanna Zalewski (WF) def. Tatum Rice (AR) 6-3, 6-7 (8-10), 6-1
6. M.C. Meredith (WF) def. Agne Cepelyte (AR) 7-5, 6-4

Doubles Competition 
1. Ana Oparenovic/Tatum Rice (AR) def. No. 42 Eliza Omirou/Anna Ulyashchenko (WF) 6-2
2. Giulia Pairone/Mia Jurasic (AR) vs. Chandler Carter/Emma Davis (WF) 4-4, unfinished
3. Leolia Jeanjean/Natsuho Arakawa (AR) def. M.C. Meredith/Joanna Zalewski (WF) 6-3

Match Notes:
Wake Forest 3-0
Arkansas 1-1; National ranking #18
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1); Singles (1,6,5,3,4)
Official: Jeri Banks T-2:45

Bud Light Morning Rush Podcast: Friday

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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Bud Light Morning Rush Podcast: Friday

Morning Rush Hour 2

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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Morning Rush Hour 1

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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Morning Rush Hour 1

The Basketball Junkies

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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Gamecocks blow past Hogs, 90-42, Thursday night

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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COLUMBIA, S.C. — Arkansas suffered a 90-42 loss at No.9 South Carolina in Southeastern Conference action in Columbia on Thursday.

The Razorbacks (11-10, 2-6 SEC) were undersized at most positions and South Carolina (17-3, 6-2 SEC) made Arkansas pay early scoring 18 points in the paint in the first quarter. Arkansas was unable to overcome the early deficit on the road.

Junior Malica Monk paced Arkansas with 12 points while sophomore Jailyn Mason added 10 points.

Graduate student Devin Cosper was in the lineup playing 24 minutes. She hit the Razorbacks’ first 3-point field goal of the night.

Arkansas played all 13 players and got seven points off the bench from freshman Macy Weaver.

Junior Keiryn Swenson added six for the Razorbacks. Freshman Taylah Thomas and junior Bailey Zimmerman scored two points each.

Notes

• Graduate student Devin Cosper returned to the starting lineup at South Carolina. Cosper has missed two games with an injury.

• Malica Monk scored 12 points. She has scored in double figures in 20 of 21 games.

• Jailyn Mason was in double figures for the 13th time this year with 10 points.

Up Next
Arkansas plays five of its final eight games in Bud Walton Arena. That stretch begins with Kentucky on Monday, Jan. 29, in a 6 p.m. tip.

The Razorbacks also host No. 10 Tennessee, No. 11 Missouri, LSU and No. 15 Texas A&M. Arkansas sprinkles in road trips to Alabama, Kentucky and Vanderbilt before the SEC Tournament.

Enos headed to Bama as associate head coach?

Andy Hodges
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With the news from Yahoo Sports that former Arkansas offensive coordinator Dan Enos is headed to Alabama as quarterbacks coach, speculation is rampant about the Crimson Tide’s offense.

But the guess here is, no, the Crimson Tide won’t be going to a true pro-style offense, even though that is what Enos has primarily coached.

And, no, they won’t be a real spread team, either.

It will likely be something in between. Especially after they look at the film of Alabama’s second half comeback against Georgia for the national title with freshman Tua Tagovailoa replacing Jalen Hurts at quarterback.

You can bet Nick Saban keeps looking at it and shaking his head. But the one thing Saban is willing to do is change and be very flexible offensively, especially when it comes to incorporating spread and tempo because, well, it’s the one thing that gives him fits as a defensive coach.

Coaches tend to copy what gives them problems.

For Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh, it has to be disturbing, as Pete Thamel of Yahoo Sports pointed out:

Enos’ move away from Michigan is surprising, as he was officially announced as being hired there on Jan. 8, and it was later identified that he’d coach wide receivers. Jim Harbaugh hired Enos as part of the puzzle to fix Michigan’s ailing offense, which finished No. 105 in total offense last year and No. 110 in passing offense. But Enos will be leaving Ann Arbor for Tuscaloosa, another bad turn for Michigan’s beleaguered offense.

Apparently, Saban had a better offer. Let’s face it, being the quarterbacks coach and associate head coach at Alabama is a better gig than whatever Michigan was going to do (and they still hadn’t formalized his position there).

Enos got caught up in the purge after Bret Bielema was fired at Arkansas in November, despite having an offense that put up big numbers … at times.

Those included the Arkansas’ single-game SEC record with 661 total yards against Mississippi State in 2016 and the second most total yards in a season with 6,051 in 2015.

But the last two seasons nothing seemed to flow smoothly with the offense, although there are some former staff members who will tell you that was more Bielema’s directives to Enos than anything Enos really wanted to do.

He will have the same issues at Alabama, but far better talent to make his style work.

ITA Kickoff Weekend in Ohio next for Hogs’ women’s tennis

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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COLUMBUS, Ohio. — Fresh off a season-opening win, No. 18 Arkansas will travel to Columbus for the 10th annual Intercollegiate Tennis Association Kick-Off Weekend set for Friday and Saturday.

ITA Kick-Off Weekend will take place at 15 campus sites with four teams competing at each. The 15 schools that win both of their matches at these events will be invited to play in the Feb. 9-12 ITA National Team Indoor Championship hosted by the University of Wisconsin.

The Razorbacks, who will serve as the No. 2 seed in Columbus on Ohio State University’s campus, will face No. 3 seed Wake Forest at noon CT Friday.

Top seed and host No. 14 Ohio State will take on No. 4 seed Kansas. The two winners will advance to Saturday’s championship match, while the two losing teams will square off in a consolation match.

Quotable
“We have a fantastic regional here in Columbus with four teams playing very well right now,” coach Michael Hegarty said. “I’m excited to see us continue to grow through the weekend.”

Live Coverage
Fans can follow this weekend’s matches through live scoring and video here.

The Series
The all-time series between Arkansas and Wake Forest is split 1-1. In the previous meeting, the Razorbacks defeated the Demon Deacons 4-0 in the first round of the 2008 NCAA Tournament.

Season-Opening Success
The Hogs beat Tulsa 4-3 on Tuesday in its season opener at George M. Billingsley Tennis Center. Arkansas won the doubles point, highlighted by a 7-5 comeback win from its 57th-ranked duo of senior Mia Jurasic and junior Ana Oparenovic, and posted singles victories at the No. 4, 5 and 6 spots.

SEC Preseason Poll
The Southeastern Conference announced the women’s tennis coaches’ preseason poll Wednesday. Arkansas was picked to finish sixth overall. The preseason poll is voted on by the women’s tennis head coach at each institution and is based on a 14-13-12-11-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 vote. The SEC currently leads the nation with nine teams ranked in the top 25.

Team (Points)
1. Georgia (184)
2. Florida (174)
3. Vanderbilt (171)
4. South Carolina (140)
5. Auburn (138)
6. Arkansas (116)
7. Ole Miss (107)
8. LSU (101)
9. Kentucky (95)
10. Texas A&M (73)
11. Tennessee (61)
12. Mississippi State (47)
13. Alabama (34)
14. Missouri (16)

Red-White game in Little Rock makes political sense

Andy Hodges
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Arkansas’ annual Red-White game will be April 7 and be played in Little Rock.

From a political standpoint that makes sense.

Razorbacks athletics director Hunter Yurachek made the announcement Thursday afternoon.

The game will kick off at 1 p.m., and admission will be free and open to the public. Additional details on the spring game and other festivities that weekend will be made in the coming weeks.

“This is a great opportunity for Central Arkansas to welcome back the Razorbacks by hosting the spring game at War Memorial Stadium,” Arkansas Director of Parks and Tourism Kane Webb said. “It brings back vivid memories for many of us who remember attending Red-White games at War Memorial and feeling a part of the statewide Razorback tradition.”

In addition to the traditional spring game in Central Arkansas, a family friendly event is being planned in Northwest Arkansas with more details to come at a later date.

Yurachek e-mailed WholeHogSports.com about the reasoning for the move:

“One thing that has become abundantly clear to Coach (Chad) Morris and me is the importance of the Razorbacks throughout the state,” Yurachek wrote. “… To better connect our new staff and program across the state this Spring, Coach Morris and I have decided that we will be taking the spring game to War Memorial Stadium on April 7.”

It’s a political bone thrown to the fans in Central Arkansas that makes sense, particularly with the construction going on with Razorback Stadium.

“We look forward to welcoming Coach Morris, his staff and the entire team to War Memorial Stadium,” War Memorial Stadium Commission Chairman Kevin Crass said. “This is a great opportunity for War Memorial Stadium and the fans in Central Arkansas to support the Hogs by having a record crowd for the spring game. We are grateful to Hunter Yurachek and Coach Morris for bringing this exciting weekend to fans throughout the state.”

The Hogs played spring games in first Fayetteville, then the next week in Little Rock for decades. The last time a spring game was played in Little Rock was 1988.

It was always an interesting game. In 1972, with Arkansas projected to be among the top teams in the nation with Joe Ferguson and a high-powered offense returning, a then-national record crowd of over 31,000 were there.

In 1978, there was a parade in downtown Little Rock in advance of a spring game that got rained out that might have surpassed that number. A storm with high winds, lots of rain and lightning made Lou Holtz just call it off.

As the Razorbacks enter the final year of their contract to play games at War Memorial Stadium, this is a political move that actually isn’t that bad of an idea.

With the unpredictability of Arkansas weather at that time of the year, though, it’s anybody’s guess how that will play out.

There’s also an SEC baseball series going on that weekend with Auburn at Baum Stadium, so it’s a good bet the crowd (which can get in for free) will be a sign of just how much Central Arkansas wants to support the Hogs playing there.

It will be Morris’ first showing and it will be in Central Arkansas, which apparently is now a priority for the new regime in football.

We’ll see how it comes off.

#OmaHogs get another Top 6 ranking as season nears

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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FAYETTEVILLE — It may sound like a broken record, but Arkansas continues to catch the eye of the college baseball nation as the fifth preseason poll was released today with the Hogs again in the top six.

The Razorbacks will start 2018 at No. 6 according to the USA Today/Coaches poll.

With USA Today as the newest of the six polls to release its preseason rankings, Arkansas is ranked No. 6 by Perfect Game, No. 4 by Baseball America, No. 4 by D1Baseball.com, and No. 3 by Collegiate Baseball, its highest preseason ranking since 2013.

Two of the top-10 teams from the Baseball America poll will be coming to Baum Stadium including No. 3 Texas Tech (April 24-25) and No. 8 Kentucky (March 16-18). Texas A&M (May 11-13) will also come into Baum Stadium this year as it was just on the outside of the top-10 at No. 11.

Arkansas will also go on the road to face unanimous No. 1 Florida (March 23-25), as well as No. 9 LSU (May 4-6), No. 15 Mississippi State (April 20-22), and No. 19 Ole Miss (March 29-31).

Arkansas is scheduled to open the 2018 season against Bucknell on Friday, Feb. 16 with first pitch at 3 p.m. at Baum Stadium. Season tickets, mini-plan, and group tickets are now on sale through the Razorback Ticket Office.

Team D1Baseball.com Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball Baseball America USA Today/Coaches
Florida 1 1 1 1 1
Arkansas 4 6 3 4 6
Texas Tech* 3 4 5 4 3
Kentucky* 8 8 8 8 8
LSU 16 12 10 17 9
Ole Miss 9 11 — 16 19
Texas A&M* 10 15 — 10 11
Mississippi St. 12 25 13 23 15
Texas* 21 23 — 14 20
South Carolina* — — 19 — —
Missouri St.* — — 22 — —
*=Home Opponent

Anderson on win over Bulldogs, hosting Cowboys

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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Arkansas coach Mike Anderson met with the media Thursday and talked about the Hogs’ win over Georgia and Saturday’s home date with the Cowboys.

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