Pre-portal potential targets:

These are players who make sense for Arkansas to target one way or another AND are more likely than not to enter the transfer portal. Also a section for players to begin monitoring with rumblings of interest leading up to the portal contact window.

Note: this is not in any way, shape, or form suggesting that Arkansas has been in contact with these players before the season has ended or before the portal has opened. This is just a list of players who: 1) fill a position of need, 2) have a relationship with the staff, 3) are from the state, or 4) are players looking to jump to a bigger conference

Names to start monitoring:

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At this point we can hope it get so bad that Cal just retires. This is pathetic and he is clearly washed up and DNGAF

Who is the front runner Jackson?

From Arkansas Communications

——————

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The University of Arkansas has hired Kelsi Musick to be the 10th head coach of the Razorbacks’ women’s basketball program.

Musick has signed a five-year contract to be the Hogs’ head coach that runs through April 30, 2030 with a total compensation of $600,000 per year.

Musick comes to Arkansas after a successful three-year stint at Oral Roberts, where she led the Golden Eagles to postseason appearances in each of the last two seasons while increasing the team’s win total every year. ORU wrapped up their season last night in the first round of the WBIT to finish the year 24-9 and give the Golden Eagles consecutive 20-win seasons for the first time since 2009-12. She built the program each of her three seasons, winning 12 games in the first season, 21 wins in the second and 24 this past season – the most for the Golden Eagles in a single season since Debbie Yow won 26 games in 1982-83. Along the way, her teams were no stranger in taking down opponents from bigger conferences with a pair of wins against Southeastern Conference teams this past season to go with four total wins over teams from the American Athletic Conference over the last two years.

Known for her fast-paced, dribble-drive offense, Musick quickly turned around Oral Roberts. Her Golden Eagles have finished in the Top 20 nationally in points per game each of her three seasons – scoring 78.1 points per game in her first season to finish 16th, 81.8 points per game last season to finish eighth and averaged 83.2 points per game during the regular season to rank eighth nationally entering postseason play. Musick has also attracted elite talent, coaching 2023-24 Summit League Freshman of the Year Emily Robinson and Newcomer of the Year Taleyah Jones and reigning two-time Sixth Woman of the Year Jalei Oglesby. Jones and Oglesby were both named to the All-Summit League First Team this season after the duo led the Golden Eagles in points per game with Jones scoring 18.1 and Oglesby 17.3, respectively.

“As I spoke to Kelsi and people associated with her, I was impressed by her work ethic, enthusiasm and her ability to maximize resources in building winning programs at each of her coaching stops,” Director of Athletics and Vice Chancellor Hunter Yurachek said. “She has proven to be a great relationship builder and communicator throughout her career to the benefit of her teams and student-athletes on and off the court. Having grown up and coached in Oklahoma, she has a familiarity with our area that will help her quickly connect with our state and fan base.



“Kelsi is a rising star in the women’s basketball coaching profession. I believe the University of Arkansas is the best place for her to develop her full potential as a coach while also leading our program to success. Throughout my conversations with Kelsi, it was apparent she wanted to be an Arkansas Razorback and welcomed the challenge of building our women’s basketball program to compete against the best-of-the-best in the SEC. I want to thank Derita Dawkins, Taylor McGillis and Kat Devenport for their assistance during the search process.”

Musick led ORU to a second-place finish in the Summit League this past season after a third-place finish in her second season in Tulsa. Her 2023-24 team made history with the program’s first 20-win season since 2011-12 and made it to the postseason for the first time since 2011 by hosting Grambling in the first round of the WNIT.

“I am incredibly honored and grateful for the opportunity to lead the women’s basketball program at the University of Arkansas,” Musick said. “This is a place with a proud tradition, passionate fans and a commitment to excellence in every way. I’m excited to get to work building something special. I want to thank Hunter Yurachek and his staff for their belief in me, and I can’t wait to pour into our student-athletes, compete in the SEC and represent this university with pride.”

Prior to Oral Roberts, she spent 13 seasons as the head coach at NCAA Division II Southwestern Oklahoma State. Musick amassed a 259-125 (.674) record at SWOSU earning Great American Conference Coach of the Year honors five times while leading the Lady Bulldogs to the national championship game in 2019 as part of seven NCAA Tournament appearances.

The Lady Bulldogs ranked in the Top 10 nationally in scoring offense in seven of her nine nine seasons, averaging more than 80 points per game in five of those years. In her final season, the team averaged 82.1 points per game to rank third in the nation. That same season, sophomore Makyra Tramble was named the Ron Lenz National Player of the Year and an All-American. Tramble went on to become a three-time All-American and three-time GAC Player of the Year. Musick’s 2018-19 team won 35 consecutive games – setting the school record for wins in a single season – and advanced to the NCAA National Championship game.

Musick’s career began at Fresno State with one season as the Director of Basketball Operations (2003-04) before becoming the head coach at Canton (Okla.) High School, her alma mater. After two seasons leading Canton, she returned to Fresno State as the Basketball Operations Coordinator (2006-08) before spending one season as an Assistant Coach. The Bulldogs won 20 games in consecutive seasons and captured the Western Athletic Conference regular-season and tournament titles before finishing 24-9 with a trip to the NCAA Tournament in 2009.

Musick played collegiately at Cameron University, where she set school records for career three-point shooting percentage and assists. As a senior, she helped lead the Aggies to a school record 25 wins and the program’s first-ever appearance in the NCAA Tournament. She was inducted into the Cameron University Athletics Hall of Fame in February 2025.

Musick and her husband, Josh, have three children – sons, Maddox and Titus, and one daughter, Amaria.

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Pittman talked about how Arkansas was still looking for their throw-it-up-and-go-get-it-guy. Brown fits the bill.

Has offers from multiple P5 and SEC teams

Hogs and Red Raiders tip off at 9:09 p.m. CT on TBS/TruTV.

What non-hog games have your attention this weekend? Any other teams you follow or root for? Any bets anyone likes?

I have Virginia at 25-1 and 22.5-1 to win it all. The line was so off on them and now it is down to 9/1 to 12/1 depending on the book.

Clemson- Ok St, Ole Miss vs Arizona and Vandy vs GCU are about the only good games tomorrow. I'm waiting on lines for Clemson and Vandy. Typically SEC teams don't do well when they travel out West for some reason.

For the season, I'd watch out for Florida. Seem to be under the radar this year. I've got Tennessee going back to back. I think they have something going on from a player development standpoint that is just better than everyone else.

Also, if you aren't participating in @Chauvinist Pig College Dickheat thread on The Main Board, you are missing out.

We've still got a while before Arkansas plays, but the games have already started. What are you watching?

😂

Didn’t watch. Don’t care. But absolutely pathetic.

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Amid a magical postseason run, coach John Calipari doesn't have the luxury of focusing only on this year's Arkansas basketball team.

Instead, he and the rest of the Razorbacks' coaching staff — along with every other program still playing in March — must balance game preparation with offseason roster construction this week.

Coming off the 75-66 NCAA Tournament victory over 2-seed St. John's on Saturday, Calipari must turn his focus to the oncoming storm that is the transfer portal.

RELATED: Social media reacts to Arkansas' win over St. John's

The college basketball transfer portal officially opens Monday and won't close for 30 days, on April 22. No team is safe from roster attrition, and the next few days will be critical in determining who may return for another year in Fayetteville.

"Monday, we're really preparing for a game and having individual meetings about are you coming back? If they put their name in the portal, they probably don't have an option to come back, but, you know, you care about the kids," Calipari said. "At the end of the year, it's all about them. Whatever they choose. You want to go pro? You want to come back? You want to go somewhere else? It's their choice. I have always been that way, but it's getting harder to be that way."

The timing of the portal opening doesn't come at an ideal time for Arkansas, which will play 3-seed Texas Tech on Thursday in San Francisco. Having will-you-stay-or-will-you-go conversations with players, especially in an ever-changing market that's sure to be ramped up a notch this year when it comes to NIL (hello, House Settlement), doesn't exactly play into the "one heartbeat" mantra Calipari and players have mentioned.

But, this is the reality of college athletics, and there are none more equipped to handle it than Calipari, who touched on the topic of roster building after the win over St. John's.

RELATED: Takeaways from Arkansas' win over St. John's

"We have a couple of really good freshmen coming in," Calipari said. "I'm hoping we get one more and then we have to get in the transfer portal and grab a couple of guys. I'm hoping we get a crew of these guys coming back."

Arkansas already has one non-freshman commitment for next year's team in Lebanese forward Karim Rtail. The Razorbacks also have signatures from five-star prospects Darius Acuff Jr. and Meleek Thomas and four-star Springdale native Isaiah Sealy.

Be sure to tune in to HawgBeat for more coverage of the Arkansas basketball team as it continues its March Madness run.

Good afternoon members of The Trough. Arkansas looks to complete its sweep today over South Carolina.

First pitch is set for 2 p.m. CT on SECN+.

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FAYETTEVILLE — The No. 3 Arkansas baseball team (23-2, 5-1 SEC) secured their first Southeastern Conference series sweep of the season Sunday with an 11-4 win over the South Carolina Gamecocks (17-8, 1-5 SEC) at Baum-Walker Stadium.

South Carolina tied the game at 4-4 in the top of the seventh inning, but the Hogs benefited from three big swings from Justin Thomas Jr., Brent Iredale and Ryder Helfrick in a seven-run bottom of the eighth inning to put them over the top.

Iredale's five runs batted in led the Razorbacks, who opened SEC play with a series win at Ole Miss last weekend. Catcher Ryder Helfrick hit two solo home runs, while outfielders Charles Davalan and Logan Maxwell both had two hits apiece. The Razorbacks had 13 total hits in the contest and they left 10 runners on base.

Arkansas starting pitcher Landon Beidelschies went five innings and gave up two earned runs on five hits with two walks and three strikeouts. Relievers Ben Bybee, Parker Coil and Carson Wiggins all combined for four scoreless innings.

With winds blowing up to 25 miles per hour straight out to centerfield when the game started, South Carolina leadoff hitter Nathan Hall drove a solo home run right field on Beidelschies' second pitch of the game. Gamecock's starter Jarvis Evans Jr., who was pitching after the scheduled starter was hit by a home run ball Saturday, pitched a scoreless bottom of the first inning.

South Carolina first baseman Beau Hollins led the top of the second inning off with another solo home run to make the lead 2-0 for the road team. The Razorbacks cut the deficit in half with a two out solo home run from Helfrick to left center field in the bottom of the second.

Davalan hit his second home run in as many days with a solo shot to left center field in the bottom of the third inning that tied the game. The Razorbacks threatened with back-to-back two out singles from Maxwell and Kuhio Aloy in the frame, but Evans managed to strand the two.

Beidelschies settled in with his second straight scoreless frame in the top of the fourth inning. After Cam Kozeal led the bottom half of the fourth off with a walk, South Carolina turner to right-handed pitcher Tyler Pitzer in relief of Evans.

Second baseman Nolan Souza singled to left field to bring Kozeal around third base, but he was thrown out at home by Gamecocks' left fielder Evan Stone. Pitzer gave up another single to Justin Thomas Jr. before he stranded both Souza and Thomas on base to keep the game tied at 2-2 after four innings.

Despite some drama on the basepaths in the top of the fifth inning, Beidelschies got out of the frame allowing just one hit and stranding a runner. Arkansas managed to take the lead in the bottom of the fifth via an RBI sacrifice fly out from Iredale. Kozeal followed Iredale with an RBI fielder's choice that made it a 4-2 lead for the Hogs.

Bybee came on in relief of Beidelschies in the top of the sixth inning and he erased a leadoff single with an inning-ending 4-6-3 double play. Gamecocks' reliever Mark Marlatt also pitched a scoreless bottom half in the sixth.

Flamethrowing right-hander Christian Foutch took over in the top of the seventh for the Hogs and he hit a batter with his first pitch and then gave up a double two pitches later to quickly end his outing and bring on lefty Parker Coil. South Carolina immediately tied the game at 4-4 on a two-run double to right field from shortstop Will Tippett.

Coil managed to get out of the top of the seventh inning with no further damage done. Arkansas put on a two out baserunner with a single from Kozeal, but he was left stranded to keep the game tied.

The Gamecocks turned to righty Brendan Sweeney in the bottom of the seventh and he issued a leadoff walk to Souza, who was driven in on a two-run home run to left field from Justin Thomas Jr. that gave the Hogs a 6-4 lead.

Reliever Ryder Garino took over for South Carolina after the homer and he soon ran into a bases loaded situation with one out before giving up a grand slam to Brent Iredale that broke the game wide open with the Hogs up 10-4 after the big swing. Helfrick added his second homer of the day with a solo shot to left field for extra insurance before the frame came to an end.

Freshman right-hander Carson Wiggins took over in the top of the ninth for the Razorbacks and faced one more than the minimum to close things down.

Up next, Arkansas will host Missouri State on Tuesday evening for a midweek matchup at Baum-Walker Stadium. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. CT and the game will be streamed on SEC Network+.

Box Score

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Who do we get back next year?
Knox, Billy, Big Z …. Does Brazil, DJ or others come back?

A transfer defensive back has officially scheduled a visit to Arkansas, according to a report by Rival's Adam Friedman on Tuesday.

Ashaad Williams, a 6-foot-2, 178-pound redshirt junior from FCS program North Alabama, received an offer from the Razorbacks and new secondary coach Nick Perry, who coached at Alabama and is a native of the state, himself. Williams has also received offers from Ole Miss, Purdue, Kansas, Western Kentucky, New Mexico, Kent State, Old Dominion and UTEP.

Williams, who entered the portal as a grad transfer, told HawgBeat that he's planning to make his over to Fayetteville from March 14-16.

The Russellville, Alabama, native totaled 26 tackles, two tackles for loss, one sack, two interceptions and 10 pass breakups during the 2024 season. In 2023, Williams racked up 22 total tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, five pass breakups and a forced fumble.

According to Pro Football Focus, Williams ended his 2024 campaign with an 81.6 defensive grade, an 80.7 run defense grade, a 70.5 tackling grade, a 75.1 pass-rush grade and an 81.6 coverage grade on 510 snaps.

Coach Sam Pittman made it clear last Thursday that addressing the secondary is a top priority in the spring transfer portal window, which opens April 16 and runs through April 25.

“I’d (say we need help at) any secondary position," Pittman said. "And now we just don't need a guy. We need help. And again, we'll see what we have. But going today, I would say a couple of inside guys and then whomever in the back end."

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Has any other team in SEC done this? Has any other team in all NCAA done this?

Coach John Calipari and the Arkansas Razorbacks (22-13, 8-10 SEC) are still alive in the NCAA Tournament following their 75-66 win Saturday afternoon over 2-seed St. John's at the Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, Rhode Island.

Led by freshman Billy Richmond III's career-high 16 points, the Hogs fought through major foul trouble to advance to their fourth Sweet 16 in the last five seasons. Calipari's club received massive performances from freshmen Karter Knox (15 points) and Boogie Fland (six points) too.

As a team, Arkansas shot 27-of-63 from the field, 2-of-19 from beyond the arc and 19-of-27 from the charity stripe. Zvonimir Ivisic fouled out before the 10:00 minute mark in the second half, while Jonas Aidoo was also called for four fouls.

St. John's center Zuby Ejiofor was by far and away the Johnnies' best player. He poured in a game-high 23 points and racked up 12 boards to boot. Guard Devion Smith (13 points) was the only other player to record double digit points.

Below are highlights and social media reactions from the Hoop Hogs' victory...

CLICK HERE FOR HIGHLIGHTS AND REACTIONS

The Arkansas Razorbacks have hired a general manager for their athletic department, according to a report by Jon Rothstein on Tuesday.

Remy Cofield, the Director of Scouting for the Boston Celtics, is leaving the NBA to join Arkansas' program, per Rothstein.

Before being promoted to his position with the Celtics, Cofield was the general manager of the Maine Red Claws from 2021-22. He also spent time as a college scout for the Celtics (2019-22), a basketball operations assistant for the Celtics (2013-19) and a corporate sales executive for the Celtics (2012-13), per RealGM.

A native of Newton, Massachusetts, Cofield played for the Pennsylvania basketball team from 2007-09. He played in 27 games and averaged 2.9 points per contest in that span. Cofield was a four-year letterwinner and two-year captain at Roxbury Latin High School in Massachusetts.

Arkansas coach Sam Pittman recently said that the Razorbacks were expecting to hire a general manager by late March or early April, and he detailed his expectations for whoever was selected for the role.

"Well, I want somebody that's done it," Pittman said. "So you may have to go to the NFL, NBA, whatever, to find somebody like that. You want someone who's kind of done that before, whether it be the top dog or the second, you know, somebody that understands that. Because that's something that I've never dealt with. Well, I have for three years, and I want some help. You would want a recruiter. If somebody comes in and says, 'Well, I need $500,000,' you don't want to just — Hell, any of us can say, 'Oh, okay.’

“I mean, we need a negotiator. To be honest with you, I need someone that takes the, ‘Well, Coach Pittman won't give it to me. Coach Pittman won't give it to me.’ I need that taken off my plate. I need somebody to be ahead of what the market is...But that's what I'm looking for. And I'm looking for someone to talk to these kids’ agents, besides me. I want somebody else to talk to them and then give me the information.”

moves onto the S16 with the worst roster he will have at Arkansas.

Nm

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Good afternoon, folks! We've got the No. 3 Diamond Hogs taking on South Carolina with a chance to clinch the series this afternoon at Baum-Walker Stadium. First pitch is 2 p.m. CT on SECN+.

I won't be doing inning-by-inning updates with basketball going on as well, but I'll add periodic updates and such here in the thread.

Game 1 recap (Arkansas 12, South Carolina 2)

Click here to follow along with live stats on your own

Click here to watch on SECN+

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