Vitello Gone, Van Horn's Hogs Still Here and They Own Tennessee

Arkansas has won 46 of 75 meetings against Vols and new coach may not change series ledger.

Arkansas Razorbacks coach Dave Van Horn against the Tennessee Volunteers at Baum-Walker Stadium. | Nilsen Roman-HogsonSI Images

For years, an Arkansas matchup with Tennessee meant squaring off against one of the sharpest minds in college baseball.

Not anymore.

Former Razorback assistant Tony Vitello is no longer roaming the Tennessee' dugout. He's managing the San Francisco Giants, currently parked near the bottom of the NL West.

You don't hear his name floating around as a future replacement for Dave Van Horn for the Hogs theses days.

He's busy trying without much luck to turn around a big-league team out west. That little theme, which once added an extra layer of intrigue to this rivalry, simply doesn't exist right now.

What does exist is a legitimate SEC Tournament second-round game between the No. 12-ranked Hogs (36-19) and the Tennessee Vols (38-19) this afternoon around 4:30 or so at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium in Hoover, Ala.

The Hogs enter as the No. 7 seed in the tournament, while Tennessee checks in as the No. 10 seed. It's the first time these two programs have met in 2026 and Arkansas owns the clear upper hand historically.

San Francisco Giants manager Tony Vitello (23) looks on against the Washington Nationals during the first inning at Nationals Park. | Brad Mills-Imagn Images

Van Horn's Mastery Over the Vols

Van Horn has built something of a fortress against Tennessee over his 24 years in Fayetteville.

The Razorbacks are 34-15 against the Volunteers under his watch, including a 3-1 mark in SEC Tournament games played in Hoover.

The all-time series sits 46-29 in favor of Arkansas. That's not a rivalry that favors the orange and white, regardless of who's managing the other team.

This season, Tennessee is operating under first-year head coach Josh Elander, who's guided the Vols to a 38-19 record with a 15-15 mark in SEC play.

It's a respectable debut season, but Tennessee's conference record tells a complicated story heading into this tournament. It's about like everybody else this year.

Arkansas Razorbacks Camden Kozeal against Stetson. | Arkansas Communications

How the Hogs Got Here

Arkansas didn't have to play Tuesday. The Razorbacks earned a first-round bye after closing the regular season with a series win over Kentucky.

It wasn't particularly clean for the Hogs. Kentucky took the opener 4-3 and Arkansas had to grind back with a 5-4 win in Game 2 before bouncing back with a wild 16-12 victory in the series finale.

That kind of run might matter heading into a tournament where every game is must-win.

Tennessee took a different path to Wednesday. The Vols handled South Carolina 11-6 in Tuesday's first-round action to reach this point.

They'd also closed the regular season with a series win over Oklahoma, winning Games 1 and 2 before the Sooners salvaged the finale 12-9.

Arkansas Razorbacks pitcher Tate McGuire delivering a pitch against the TCU Horned Frogs on Saturday night at the Shriners Children's' College Showdown in Arlington, Texas. | Arkansas Communications

Who Takes the Mound

The pitching matchup features Arkansas right-hander Tate McGuire (1-0, 4.61 ERA) going up against Tennessee left-hander Evan Blanco (7-3, 4.56 ERA).

McGuire has been all over the place this year balancing some solid outings with some that sent him back to the dugout really fast and others that made fans start wondering if he should be more prominent in the rotation.

They haven't figured out that answer yet.

Blanco has been one of the steadier arms in the Volunteers' rotation and his 7-3 record shows he's not great, but steady. McGuire has to at least match that in what is expected to be a low scoring game.

What's Next

The winner of this game advances to face No. 2 seed Texas. Hog fans will love that. Anytime they can play the Longhorns it's an outpouring of emotion because they do love to hate Texas.

A run through Hoover could give Arkansas a shot at a deep NCAA Tournament run. Van Horn's program finished 17-13 in SEC play, solid enough to earn that first-round bye but not the kind of record that gives any hope to host a regional or even get one most folks will like.

Fans can watch the game on the SEC Network or listen statewide on the Razorback Sports Network at 103.7 The Buzz in Little Rock, ESPN Arkansas 95.3 in Fort Smith, 96.3 in Hot Springs and 104.3 in Harrison-Mountain Home.