Ask Mike: Revenue Sharing Begins, Athletic Dept. Exits & Why Cal & Nolan Are Close

Q. Our first question is from CajunHog who wants to know: Do you think we will go back to Omaha in 2026? If so why? We’re losing a lot of really good players off maybe the most talented team DVH has had.

A. Getting back to Omaha is a realistic goal. It doesn’t always happen but I will say that while DVH lost some good players, he’s returning a solid core of that team. Pending the draft he might lose more than he expects or he might get some players back that he expected to lose. Keep an eye on centerfielder Justin Thomas Jr. He could go or stay. Charles Davalan will probably go but maybe not. The only infielder that they know will go is shortstop Wehiwa Aloy. Reese Robinett will likely return at 1st. Cam Kozeal is back at 2nd. Bret Iredale is likely gone at 3rd but Nolan Souza returns from injury. He played 2nd before his injury but could move somewhere else or maybe be a D.H. Kuhio Aloy is back. He was the DH. Maybe he plays a position next season. And of course catcher Ryder Helfrick is back. He will be one of the top players in the country next season. On the mound, Gabe Gaeckle returns along with Cole Gibler and Carson Wiggins. That could be your weekend rotation next season.

Also Van Horn is off to a great start in the portal. Ball State transfer Dylan Grego is an outstanding defensive shortstop who bats both ways, hitting around .400 right or left. Lefthanded pitcher Ethan McElvain is transferring in from Vanderbilt and OU pitcher Jackson Kircher comes in after an impressive freshman season in Norman. He’s an Arkansas player out of Little Rock Christian Academy with a fastball that can reach 97 mph.

When all of this is over I believe that Arkansas will again have one of the top rosters in college baseball.

Q. Skeptic*On*The*Hill asks: How come Van Horn can have all these Golden Spikes winners but can’t win the College World Series? If you can have the best player you should have the best team.

A. Kind of a strange statement. I guess you’re implying that if you can land the best player in the country you should also be able to recruit the best overall team. That’s obviously not true. Of the 10 Golden Spikes winners over the last decade only one has been on the national championship team. In 2023 LSU’s Dylan Crews won it and the Tigers were the national champions. However while LSU is number two all time in College World Series titles with eight, the Tigers only have two Golden Spikes winners. Arkansas has no College World Series titles but three Golden Spikes winners. The two achievements don’t go hand in hand.

Q. EddyLynn says: You said last week that Revenue Sharing will help Arkansas baseball but hurt LSU. I got the impression that Courtney disagrees. Could y’all explain that in more detail?

A. Under the new arrangement of playing players directly out of an athletic department’s budget NIL money is supposed to be greatly reduced in all sports. LSU is well known for big moneys NIL deals with its player. Courtney thinks that schools will be able to get around that. If they can’t some will cheat. Based on my reading of the house vs the NCAA settlement I think baseball, which gets an extra 23 scholarships starting in the coming academic year, will largely be a sport where players sign because of the coaches, the history of the program, facilities or the school itself. The traditional non money reasons for why a kid will sign, returns.

Q JHOGG asks: What are your expectations for this year’s football team? With the big roster turn around every season because of the transfer portal you never know what to expect.

A. I don’t like to make predictions. Too many things can happen, good or bad, that changes things when you go from where a team stands on paper in the summer to how the season actually plays out. I like the fact that Taylen Green is coming back for his second season under Bobby Petrino. Petrino has said that Green has a much better understanding of the offense than in year one under him. I like the changes in the offensive line. I think they’ve got good options at running back and wide receiver. The D-line is a question mark but Arkansas should be strong at linebacker. I’m not sure about the secondary but overall I think this will be a better team than last season. The issue is, a road schedule loaded with Ole Miss, Tennessee, LSU and Texas. Also the non conference schedule is much tougher with Notre Dame and a road game against Memphis .

Q. OnParrHog says: This weekend I heard a rumor that they’re laying off staffers at the Broyles Center to meet the salary cap for revenue sharing. Are things that bad right now?

Q. Revenue sharing is new and Arkansas is going to have to make cuts in order to provide the maximum amount of revenue sharing money for athletes. The word is, they are going to trim 10% from their budget by cutting a number administrative staff positions. I have confirmed that one of the staffers being laid off is Kevin Trainor, a 30 year employee of the university. Kevin is well known to athletic boosters and contributors to the Razorback Foundation. He’s extremely well thought of on the academic side of the university. The SEC uses him to host the annual Media Days week in July of each year. He’s the current president of the College Sports Communicators board of directors. IMO Hunter Yurachek miscalculated in making Trainor a part of these staff cuts. A lot of Hogs fans I know and media members as well think that he is the most valuable member of the entire athletic department administrative staff.

Q. bphi11ips says: Based on ESPN’s FPI, Arkansas would be predicted second in the Big 12, fourth in the ACC, and sixth in the B1G. They would be twelfth in the SEC. Arkansas fans should keep this in mind when judging Pittman and HY. This is what they have to deal with every year. Arkansas is a solid football program in a great league.

A. This is spot on. This particular Razorback fan is one of the longest contributors to the football forum on Hogville. His posts are well thought out. He avoids a lot of the negative attack mentality you find on social media these days. A lot of fans think an athletic department can just snap its fingers and come up with millions of dollars to hire a new head coach and his staff while paying off the old coach with more millions. There is not an easy solution to the challenge of trying to get Arkansas football into the upper part of the SEC.

Q. Hogwild says: $10,279,300, that’s what Missouri spent this month on NIL, distributing an influx of cash to athletes before the landmark House v. NCAA settlement takes effect July 1 and imposes a de facto salary cap.

A. This is happening everywhere. To me it’s a sign that coaches realize that the days of huge NIL payments to players are coming to an end. They want to cash in while they can. The good news is that they accept the idea that big changes are coming.

Q. Hawgredneck says: Pittman seems to be losing the top in-state players but getting good players from other states. Does it really matter if you lose an Arkansas 4-star kid and get 4-star from Georgia?

A. No. I could spend all day naming players that became Razorbacks from out of state. If they come here, adopt the culture, and help the Hogs win, fans love them. Many end up staying here after their playing days are over. Arkansas is a very welcoming place.

Q. WVHogfan wants to know: Did you ever get to enjoy a Jennings Osborne tailgate feast before a game in LR?

A. Some of the people I worked with mentioned going over to his tailgate after we finished our Game Day Show on the golf course next to WMS. I never did. I was always in a hurry to get to the press box. The athletic department provided food there too but apparently it was nowhere near as good as what they got from Osborne’s tailgate. Courtney looked him up and the Internet has a compete story about this longtime Hog fan who passed away several years ago. Football tailgating was only part of what Osborne did. He was famous for his Christmas decorations in Little Rock and some of his creations even ended up at Disneyworld.

Q. Razorboo asks: Now that the 24-25 season is over what was your Razorback sports best surprise and greatest disappointment and what is one hope for the 25-26 year?

A. The biggest surprise was getting back to Omaha. No matter how good a team is it’s tough to get through the regionals and super regionals. The biggest disappointment was softball not getting to Oklahoma City. They were really good. Their two best pitchers coming down with food poising right before the super regionals was really bad luck. The one hope I have for this coming year? I really hope this football team surprises people.

Q. T. L. Slaten says: I don’t remember other Arkansas basketball coaches reaching out to Nolan the way Cal has. Not even Mike Anderson: Is there some reason why they are such good friends?

A. Cal went up against up against Nolan four times as a head coach, twice at UMASS where won both of those games. He’s always said that it was one of his top moments as a coach because he admired Nolan, his recruiting, his coaching and his style of play. Two other times, when Cal was at Memphis, Arkansas won. So the two coaches are 2-2 against each other. But what’s impressive to me is that Cal understands the importance of tying Nolan’s success at Arkansas to his own program. That’s smart. He wants his players to understand the history of Arkansas basketball. By all accounts, every time Nolan has been around Cal’s players they came away super impressed with what he had to say.

Q. Popular Porkster says: You said last week there was no curse on Arkansas athletics. Do you apply that to yourself? Why don’t you own up to your own curse on the golf course?

A. It’s true. Last week I was about to set a personal 9 hole record of 2 over par at PVAC. All I had to do was par numbers 8 and 9. I hit a great drive on 8 and was on the green in two. My putt ended up a foot and a half from the hole but as I walked toward the ball, it started to rain. I looked around and there were a few clouds but the sky was basically blue. Looking up I saw a dark cloud above me, the source of this unexpected rainfall. I stood there thinking maybe that the rain would stop but it continued. I finally putted but I was so distracted I missed it for a bogey. I still had number 9 to set a new record of three over. I hit another nice drive followed by a 7 iron to the green. This time I putted to within a foot. It was almost a tap in. I walked up to finish the 9 holes and the rain intensified. I was thinking, I will wait until the rain dies down but there was a guy behind me waiting to hit and he was getting soaked. So I had no choice but to putt. My hands were wet. The grip on my putter was wet. I started to go back to the cart and dry them off with a towel but I didn’t want to hold up the guy behind me so I putted and the ball took a sharp left turn and rolled by the cup. In all the confusion I failed to read the break around the cup.

Was I cursed? No, I’m just a dope. I was my fault.