Hope Now for Razorback Fans is SEC Tournament Really Doesn't Matter
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Everybody's hoping Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn wasn't putting a whole lot of importance on the SEC Tournament this week. After two straight losses following a 9-6 defeat by Kentucky where Hagen Smith got the loss, it's going to be a problem otherwise.
It became rather clear by March this team would have to rely on a pitching staff that looked impossible not to be good enough to reach Omaha. After some with far more knowledge than me predicted they would be happy to just play a couple of games at the tournament, then have everybody rested for the NCAA Regional next week. The Razorbacks should be hosting, but there's nothing official yet.
"Depends on where you are," Van Horn said Thursday morning. "Depends on your record at the time coming in here. Eepending upon how you're playing. If you're not playing very well, you come in here, play really good, you can gain some momentum. Come in here, you got things locked up and you just don't want to get anybody hurt, you want to play, obviously, you want to win, you don't like losing, you are used to winning. That's why you're in this position that you're in. Just depends on who you are and where you're at as far as wins and losses and how you're playing. I wouldn't say it's not important. It's more important for some teams than it is others, like everybody knows."
The Hogs played in this tournament like someone that just wasn't wanting to get anybody hurt. Omaha is Van Horn's goal every year, which is what he does some things in February and March that leaves fans muttering and complaining at times. The players get it
"You're playing all year to get to Omaha, and this is where it starts," Peyton Holt said after the second straight loss. "We've been preparing for this since August. And we're really not going to change much, we're going to do our work, be intentional and take it day by day."
That's a string of cliches that looked at it after this week may just provide some re-enforcement that winning a conference tournament isn't that big of a deal. No problem there. Van Horn has Omaha as the end goal every year for the Hogs and it's not considerinred a good year if they don't end up there. This one was expected at the end of March to pretty much be a lock to get there.
"They will get back and rest up just a little bit," Van Horn said later. "Message (to the team) out there was, this is where we wanted to be as far as we know we're going to be in a regional, a really good opportunity to host. It's time to take a step forward. We kind of went backward a couple weeks ago, sideways. We've been up and down. We need to make a move and finish this thing up the right way."
Notice he's not assuming hosting a super regional. A lot of that's going to come down to rankings and that always becomes the cause for concern with a team dropping as fast as the Razorbacks have been doing down the stretch. Turning it on for the NCAA has gone sideways before.
Whether anybody wants to admit it or not, baseball is not like football. Winning all 12 games in a regular season is a big deal. One loss to the wrong team can send the whole playoff plans into the trash. Basketball and baseball isn't that way. Sometimes early you have to remember where you want to be at the end.
Van Horn probably starts thinking about that in February when it starts. You might want to hold off hitting that panic button for at least another week.
HOGS FEED:
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• Despite shorter start, Razorbacks' Smith still develops aura at SEC Tournament
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ANDY HODGES
Sports columnist, writer, former radio host and television host who has been expressing an opinion on sports in the media for over four decades. He has been at numerous media stops in Arkansas, Texas and Mississippi.