One Permanent Baseball Rival Won't Move Needle for Fans

Arkansas set to meet Ole Miss and Missouri every year with new league schedule

Jacob Davis | Nov 9, 2023

One Permanent Baseball Rival Won't Move Needle for Fans /

In this story:

Arkansas Razorbacks

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The SEC released its new permanent baseball rivalries Thursday with Texas and Oklahoma joining the league next year. With a good old fashioned hate between Arkansas fans and their nemesis in Austin, Razorback fans were looking forward to seeing an old rival each season in every sport.

For the time being, that's put to a halt. The fabricated hate between the Hogs and Missouri will have to do.

The SEC, which appears to give the Razorbacks a shaft more times than not, have done it yet again. Arkansas will permanently face a Missouri baseball program that heavily lacks in both conference and postseason success since joining the SEC in 2013.

Former coach Steve Beiser had the Tigers program at a successful point with three straight 34 win seasons before an 11-5 start in 2020 before the season was cut short due to COVID-19. Despite the winning record, the Tigers have not been selected to the NCAA Tournament since winning Big 12 Conference Tournament in 2012. The Hogs hold a 23-15 record against the Tigers all-time and are a dominant 11-4 against since the team up north joined the conference.

As for Texas, the Razorbacks will face them on a rotating basis in baseball for the time being. Historically, the Hogs are far behind the Longhorns in the series. Texas leads 76-39 all time. But, things have changed since the Southwest Conference days as Arkansas holds an 8-4 edge dating back to when the rivalry was renewed in 2005.

Texas and Arkansas was a fierce rivalry in its heyday and the conference appears to be tone deaf for a money-making match-up. Too bad the meetings will have to be featured on a neutral field for now. A packed Baum-Walker Stadium that holds over 11,000 has seen record attendance easily surpass 13,000 in the past. That number would likely increase with an annual meeting between the two programs. Even Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn talked about how valuable the rivalry between the schools is during a press conference before last season.

"They're coming in the league in a couple of years, so I think they'll jump right back there to maybe the top — at least for our fans — of our biggest rivalry," Van Horn said. "I don't really get caught up in it because we play so many games against so many good programs. But I guarantee you our fans do, because just about everybody I've talked to said, 'Make sure you beat Texas while you're down in [Arlington].' "

Arkansas' other permanent rivalry against Ole Miss provides an adequate amount of hatred. The Razorbacks hold a 59-53 all-time series lead against the Rebels.

Texas gets to link back up with instate rival Texas A&M which shouldn't be much of a surprise. Continuing a watered down Red River rivalry against Oklahoma doesn't have the big time feel it does in football. The Sooners have been fairly middling in the college baseball scene besides a flash in the pan College World Series runner-up finish in 2022. Arkansas and Texas would have given fans on both sides reason to trash talk each other while depriving the country of a top five match-up each year.

According to the SEC, the permanent rivalries are based on factors such as geography, traditional opponents and strength of schedule.