Hogs Face Far More Formidable, Legitimate Foe in Missouri State Than Fans Realize

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The last time the Razorbacks took the field, they put up 14 runs and still climbed into bed later that night with a loss.

It was the kind of offensive breakthrough head coach Dave Van Horn had desperately been waiting to see happen, but the Hogs just couldn't hold it together in the field or on the mound. Just to be clear, "took the field" refers to when Arkansas last squared off against Missouri State, it's opponent Tuesday night, not the brutal home run barrage carried out by No. 5 Georgia Saturday.

It was just a few weeks ago that everyone decided the sky was falling because the Bears took down the Hogs in extra innings at a packed Hammons Field in Springfield at what was the apex of the team's hitting struggles and a low point in faith by the Arkansas fan base. This time it's different.

The Razorbacks only recently had a dip in hitting and faith held in the team by Razorbacks fans is merely waning after spending a long weekend beating themselves up with custom-made statistics specifically meant to destroy the happiness of OmaHog believers.

For instance, it's not a team that went 4-2 against a pair of Top 10 teams in Alabama and Georgia in back-to-back weekends with a mid-week win sandwiched in the middle. No, it's the first time since the middle of last decade the Razorbacks have lost back-to-back home series.

To put that in perspective, to string that little self-depricating tid-bit together, fans had to reach all the way back into last month to grab the Florida series, back before the previous Missouri State game, to awkwardly stick it together with this past weekend's series to make the claim as if it took place back-to-back miserable weekends.

Now, as for the Bears, one doesn't have to twist reality and bend time to turn them into the literal Bad News Bears. The actual numbers, especially as they pertain to Hogs head coach Dave Van Horn, show they are as bad news as it gets for Arkansas when it comes to teams not residing in the SEC.

For the record, if Arkansas can manage to fend off Missouri State Tuesday night, it will count far more than the win over Georgia Friday night. See, while the Bears dropped a couple of spots over the past week, they still hold an RPI advantage over the Bulldogs.

Mizzou State dropped to No. 16 for cancelling its game against actual Mizzou and winning a series over Western Kentucky, 2-1, while Georgia took a tiny tumble to No. 20 for taking the series over Arkansas, 2-1, while scratching out a 12-10 victory over East Tennessee State in the mid-week.

But, beyond tacking No. 16 Missouri State to the end of No. 5 Auburn and No. 4 Alabama with SEC leading No. 20 Georgia in a giant, never ending RPI buffet, the Bears have had their way with Arkansas over the course of history, particularly Van Horn's history.

They may well be the only team that truly makes him sweaty when it pops up on the schedule. He holds a modest 21-13 lead in the series overall, but when the battle moves to Baum-Walker, that differential drops to a shaky at best, 13-9.

In fact, his Hogs not only lost to the Bears the last time they played them, they also lost to them the last time they played them. Meaning, not only did they lose three weeks ago in Springfield in a tight, high octane game, but, in almost a mirror image repeat performance, the Bears won 14-13 in 10 innings the last time the two teams traded swings in Fayetteville.

"I don't have any anxiety for a midweek game," Van Horn said in regard to how much more a loss might hurt than a win over Missouri State last year. "I don't have any anxiety at all, honestly. I know maybe that's not the exact word for it. Nah. I like our team. I like the way we play. We just got beat. Whoopy. Move on."

Obviously, taking a resume hit for losing to a high-level RPI team like Missouri State isn't a concern this year. Van Horn is looking at a resume booster in Tuesday's opportunity.

The programs have drawn so close in performance level against one another lately, despite Arkansas being ranked No. 1 at some point in the season during many of the years being referenced, that the series is tied, 5-5, over the past 10 games. What should make Hogs fans nervous is the 4-3 edge at Baum-Walker the Bears hold over the Razorbacks in that stretch.

With Missouri State playing in a minor league stadium that they share with the Springfield Cardinals, they have facilities relatively comparable to the Razorbacks as far as quality stadium while also drawing large crowds.

"Yeah, we knew it would be pretty rowdy," Van Horn said of the atmosphere with nearly 7,000 in attendance at Missouri State a couple of weeks ago. "It's a warm night. They have a really good team this year. I think they had a couple of promotions going on. I didn't know there would be this many people here. This is the most I've ever seen here when we've played. I think it has to do with the weather being good and the Razorbacks coming to town. It's a really good atmosphere to play on the road."

Yes, Tuesday is supposed to be a revenge game of sorts, but it's far from an underdog affair. It wouldn't be surprising to see Missouri State favored in some betting books close to first pitch.

Speaking of first pitch, junior righty Tate McGuire will take the mound looking for his first win of the season. He last secured a win when battling Little Rock almost exactly a year ago on April 22 of last season. He faces Brock Lucas, a transfer from Mizzou who is making his 13th appearance on the year and his second against Arkansas where he last dropped by for just over an inning to give up three runs.

The Bears will be looking to pull down the theoretical sweep with a third consecutive win over the Hogs. Meanwhile, Dave Van Horn hopes to do something he hasn't done since April of 2024 — beat those Bad New Bears despite their high scoring antics.

First pitch will take place at 6 p.m. on SEC Network+ or the ESPN app.

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