Arkansas
US Supreme Court Punts Case Challenging Arkansas Congressional Map
WASHINGTON, D.C. — A case challenging Arkansas’ congressional districts will go back to the district court where the court will have to apply the new standards adopted in South Carolina’s recently decided racial gerrymandering case. After last month’s Supreme Court decision in the South Carolina case, this is the first racial gerrymandering case to be impacted by the Supreme Court’s decision.
In the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s decision in the South Carolina case, the plaintiffs in the case challenging Arkansas’ map will now have to reach a higher bar in order to bring a successful challenge to the state’s congressional map.
Throughout the 2020 redistricting cycle, Republicans used their map drawing power to strip Black voters of political influence, and Arkansas was no exception. Black voters challenged the state’s congressional map in court, but were not successful in getting the map blocked.
In June 2023, Black voters — in a previously dismissed lawsuit challenging Arkansas’ congressional map — appealed their case to the Supreme Court after a three-judge panel found that the plaintiffs did not show that “race was the ‘predominant factor’ behind the adoption of Arkansas’s new congressional map.” Their lawsuit, which they filed back in March 2022, argued that the state’s congressional map violates the U.S. and Arkansas Constitutions as well as Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. Currently, voters cannot bring Section 2 claims in Arkansas or any state within the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals — the only federal appeals court to explicitly remove private litigants’ ability to sue under Section 2.
The plaintiffs specifically allege that Black voters in Pulaski County, home to the state capital of Little Rock, were divided across three congressional districts rather than kept together in one district, the 2nd Congressional District. According to the plaintiffs, this was done “to discourage the incentive of the Black voters of the area to vote, and to reduce the significance of their votes.”
Unlike the majority of cases appealed to the Supreme Court, the Court was required to issue a decision in this case since the plaintiffs challenged the constitutionality of the map under the 14th and 15th Amendments.
Read the order here.
Learn more about the case here.
Kentucky had a need at wide receiver entering the only transfer portal window of the offseason. The Wildcats addressed the position again on Day 10. UK has added a second transfer to the room. This is a familiar name to those who follow recruiting.
Arkansas transfer Ja’Kayden Ferguson committed to the Wildcats after his visit to Lexington over the weekend. The wide receiver was a former UK commit who flipped to the Hogs during the 2025 recruiting cycle. Now Ferguson has flipped back to the Big Blue.
Ja’Kayden Ferguson was a three-star recruit out of Metro Houston who picked Kentucky following a June official visit ahead of the 2024 season. However, Ferguson decided to open up his recruitment five months later and flipped to Arkansas. The 6-foot-2 receiver appeared in six games for the Razorbacks as a true freshman and burned his redshirt. Ferguson played just 20 offensive snaps.
The SEC transfer becomes the eighth current full-time scholarship player in Kentucky’s current wide receivers room. Some more additions are expected.
Kentucky transfer commits
| Player | Position | High School | Former School | Year |
| Olaus Alinen | G/T (6-6, 322) | Windson (Conn.) The Loomis Chaffee School | Alabama | Redshirt Junior |
| Jesse Anderson | S (6-0, 180) | Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) Cardinal Gibbons | Pittsburgh | Redshirt Junior |
| Max Anderson | iOL (6-5, 311) | Frisco (Texas) High | Tennessee | Redshirt Sophomore |
| Elijah “Bo” Barnes | LB (6-1, 244) | Dallas (Texas) Skyline | Texas | Redshirt Freshman |
| Jovantae Barnes | RB (6-0, 211) | Las Vegas (Nev.) Desert Pines | Oklahoma | Redshirt Senior |
| Ahmad Breaux | iDL (6-3, 278) | Ruston (La.) High | LSU | Junior |
| Jordan Castell | S (6-2, 213) | Winter Garden (Fla.) West Orange | Florida | Senior |
| Xavier Daisy | WR (6-3, 210) | Norcross (Ga.) Greater Atlanta Christian School | UAB | Junior |
| Ja’Kayden Ferguson | WR (6-2, 187) | Missouri City (Texas) Thurgood Marshall | Arkansas | Sophomore |
| Aaron Gates | Nickel (6-0, 198) | Jacksonville (Fla.) Trinity Christian | Florida | Redshirt Junior |
| Jamarrion Harkless | iDL (6-3, 315) | Lexington (Ky.) Frederick Douglass | Purdue | Redshirt Junior |
| Lance Heard | T (6-6, 330) | Monroe (La.) Neville | LSU | Tennessee | Senior |
| Mark Manfred III | CB (6-1, 175) | Marietta (Ga.) Sprayberry | Missouri | Redshirt Freshman |
| Kenny Minchey | QB (6-2, 208) | Hendersonville (Tenn.) Pope John Paul II | Notre Dame | Redshirt Junior |
| Antonio O’Berry | EDGE (6-6, 240) | Huber Heights (Ohio) Wayne | Tiffin (D-II) | Gardner-Webb | 6th-Year Senior |
| Coleton Price | iOL (6-3, 318) | Bowie (Texas) High | Baylor | Redshirt Senior |
| Spencer Radnoti | LS (6-3, 230) | Canton (Ga.) Cherokee | Georgia State | Redshirt Sophomore |
| Cyrus Reyes | S (6-1, 200) | Taylor (Texas) High | Mississippi State | Junior |
| Hasaan Sykes | CB (6-0, 185) | Tuckert (Ga.) High | Western Carolina | Junior |
| Tavion Wallace | LB (6-1, 239) | Baxley (Ga.) Appling County | Arkansas | Sophomore |
| Dominic Wiseman | iDL (6-2, 300) | Davenport (Iowa) High | South Alabama | Redshirt Senior |
| Adam Zouagui | K (5-11, 188) | Herndon (Va.) High | Davidson | South Florida | Senior |
Arkansas
No. 20 Lady Vols Basketball vs. Arkansas: How to Watch, Prediction, More | Rocky Top Insider
Lady Vols basketball is back in Knoxville for a matchup with Arkansas after a two-game road stand. Tennessee is not only looking to stay perfect in SEC play, but is hosting its annual ‘We Back Pat’ game.
Here’s everything to know about the matchup, from broadcast details to a prediction.
More From RTI: Everything Lady Vols HC Kim Caldwell, PG Mia Pauldo Said After Road Win At Mississippi State
How to Watch — No. 20 Lady Vols (11-3, 3-0 SEC) vs. Arkansas (11-7, 0-3 SEC)
- Start Time: 2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. CT
- Location: Food City Center (Knoxville, Tenn.)
- Watch: SECN+ | PxP: Andy Brock, Analyst: Kamera Harris
- Online Streaming: Watch ESPN
- Radio (Knoxville): The Vol Network/The Vol Network App
- Vol Network radio crew: PxP: Brian Rice, Studio Host: Jay Lifford
Betting Odds
None listed yet
ESPN Matchup Predictor
Lady Vols – 98.3%
Arkansas – 1.7%
What Kim Caldwell Said After Mississippi State
“Good to get a win on the road. We know it’s a tough environment and we know that we got to win on the road in the SEC. It was good to do that. I wasn’t really proud of the rebounding, but I thought we looked a lot better in a couple different categories so that was good.”
Last Five Games
Lady Vols:
- at Mississippi State, 90-90 W
- at Auburn, 73-56 W
- vs. Florida, 76-65 W
- vs. Southern Indiana, 89-44 W
- vs. Louisville (Brooklyn), 89-65 L
Arkansas:
- vs. South Carolina, 93-58 L
- at Alabama, 77-48 L
- vs. Vanderbilt, 88-71 L
- vs. Arkansas State, 81-72 L
- vs. Stephen F. Austin, 82-73 W
Where They Land In Rankings
Lady Vols:
AP Poll – No. 20
Coaches Poll – No. 22
Bart Torvik – No. 13
Arkansas:
AP Poll – Unranked
Coaches Poll – Unranked
Bart Torvik – No. 107
Stat Leaders
Lady Vols:
- Points: Talaysia Cooper – 14.9
- Rebounds: Zee Spearman – 7.3
- Assists: Talaysia Cooper – 4.3
Arkansas:
- Points: Taleyah Jones – 16.9
- Rebounds: Bonnie Deas – 9.7
- Assists: Bonnie Deas – 2.6
Prediction
It’s been a rough start for Arkansas’ new coach, Kelsi Musick. The team is 0-3 in SEC games, and though it’s been against three good teams, the Razorbacks haven’t been competitive in any.
While neither side has been strong, Arkansas’ defense has been the weakest point. Not only is it coming off a game in which it gave up 93 points to South Carolina, but Arkansas State hung 81 in its win over the Razorbacks on the road.
If the Lady Vols don’t get in their own way, then they should be fine. It hasn’t been perfect, and against three teams not necessarily in the mix to win the league, but Tennessee has looked much improved in the SEC slate compared to the lumps it took in the out-of-conference schedule.
I’d think UT jumps on Arkansas in the first quarter and takes a comfortable lead into the second quarter. From there, the lead should continue to grow behind forced turnovers in the press and easy baskets on the other end.
Lady Vols 85, Arkansas 61
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