Lost in Football Talk on Busy Friday, Hogs Have Big Game

Matchup with Auburn kicks off SEC, but Razorbacks playing best they have so far

Author:
Andy Hodges
Updated:
Jan 6, 2024 11:01 AM EST
Original:
Jan 6, 2024

In this story:

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Somehow, there hasn't been a lot of talk about Arkansas' game with Auburn on Saturday. Nearly all the talk Friday was around another rush of football players from the transfer portal leading to even more questions about how the Razorbacks' starting line-up will look next fall.

This game Saturday is really kinda big. The Tigers come in ranked with one of the best inside guys in the league in Johnie Broome, who is a senior and has probably seen just about everything.

"They understand who they are," Eric Musselman said this week. "Much like Wilmington, when they sub, they get better at times, and they get better at certain positions.

"They bring in a true point, a true off guard, a true small forward, a true power forward and a true center. So you’re getting a steady of diet of guys playing their natural position. There’s not a lot of real big line-up or not a lot maybe of small ball. It’s true position for position when they sub. And their bench points are phenomenal."

The Razorbacks are playing the best they have in the non-conference games. It gets real now with SEC games the rest of the way. There really aren't any guaranteed wins on the schedule for any teams.

"When you get to the SEC, it doesn’t matter if it’s this year or four years ago, you’re talking about great length," Musselman said. "You’re talking about great athleticism, and for the most part in our league you’re talking about really good pace of play. You’re talking about great rebounding teams. Those are some of the traits that I’ve seen over the last four-and-a-half years with SEC play."

This one is at home, too. The last time Auburn played in Bud Walton Arena, they were ranked No. 1 and after a Razorbacks' win, Musselman ripped off his shirt and waded into a raucous crowd that rushed the floor after the win. This year the Tigers are 25th or 24th depending on the poll you use. In every statistical ranking, Auburn is much higher. But none of that has mattered much in Musselman's time with the Hogs.

"Every game, whether you’re home or road, is really important to both teams," Musselman said. "It’s the start of conference play. It’s one game, but it’s against a team that has won a lot of games since Coach Pearl has been there. They’re going to be ready to play. We hope that our guys are ready to play. You’re playing against a team that’s ranked."

That's just part of it. The Razorbacks really can't expend too much on a game against Auburn. They hit the road for a while after that. Because the semester hasn't started, the Hogs will remain on the road.

"We have never gone on the road and stayed on the road," Musselman said. "We’re going to do that on this trip, based on the two places that we’re going to and based on the fact that we’re not in school, although we know that Georgia’s students are back, I think, and Florida’s students are back. We’re still not in class, so we’ll stay on the road for that one road trip. We haven’t done it in the past, so we'll see how it rolls."

They play the Bulldogs in Athens on Wednesday night in a late game, then play in Gainesville against the Gators Saturday afternoon. It's not anything particularly easy.

But it all starts Saturday at 1 p.m. at Bud Walton Arena before a sold-out crowd wanting to see a team that has improved significantly since Keyon Menifield showed up and breathed life into an offense that was wildly erratic at times throughout the non-conference schedule. The game will be televised on ESPN2 and fuboTV.

"He’s a player that really understands how to get people in the right spots," Musselman said. "He’s got creativeness off the bounce. He’s got shiftiness. He’s got really, really good court vision. I think that’s the one thing — when we recruited him, obviously we saw his ability to score, his ability to break down a defense when plays break down. It was important for him to gain some of the weight that he has, which he did do a great job of that during the course of the offseason. He’s helped."

If he's helped enough, we start to find out Saturday. Fans might want to remember recent history, though. Musselman's teams usually start coming together in the middle of January. If it comes together earlier this year nobody will really be complaining.