Diamond Hogs’ 2009 schedule set

BY NATE ALLEN Northwest Arkansas Times

Posted on Tuesday, September 23, 2008

URL: http://www.wholehogsports.com/nwat/69427/

The baseball Razorbacks announced their most expansive home schedule ever.

At Monday’s fall meeting of the Swatters Club, the baseball boosters meeting at the Fayetteville Clarion, Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn announced 37 of the Razorbacks’ 56 games will be at Baum Stadium.

It appears not only the biggest home schedule, but the best.

“ If you’ve never had a season ticket, this might be the year, ” Van Horn said. “ This schedule is probably second to none nationally for home games and quality home games. Forty-two of our 56 games are either SEC, Big 12 or Pac-10. And that doesn’t include Missouri State who is always ready to get after us and Oral Roberts who last year beat us twice. ”

Pac-10 visitors to Baum Stadium include Washington State, California and Arizona State.

Big 12 visitors include Kansas, Nebraska and Oklahoma.

The Hogs have nonconference home and homes with Oral Roberts and Missouri State and will be visited on SEC weekends by Florida, Mississippi State, Vanderbilt, LSU and Ole Miss.

“ We open the season against Washington State, ” Van Horn said of a Feb. 20-22, three-game weekend series. “ No patsy get a few games under our belt before we play somebody good. Because they’ve got some arms and are very good. We also have Arizona State for two midweek night games in April. Also have Nebraska twice at home. Oklahoma is coming in late April for a Tuesday night ballgame and we’ve got Kansas coming in early (Feb. 24-25. )”

Van Horn announced the Arizona State series, which started last year in Tempe, Ariz., has been extended with Arkansas visiting Tempe in 2010 and the Sun Devils back to Baum in 2011.

Arkansas opens its SEC series hosting Florida on March 13-15.

On the SEC road, the Hogs visit Auburn, South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee and Alabama.

Other than the nearby trips to Tulsa and Springfield as part of the ORU and Missouri State home and homes, the Hogs visit Centenary for two nonconference games in Shreveport.