Arkansas
Arkansas AD Once Damaged PGA, British Open Trophy While Disrespecting Golf Legend
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – It’s no secret that former Arkansas athletics director Jeff Long wasn’t exactly loved during his tenure with the Razorbacks. Yet, until now, the disdain shown by former alums, players and staff was a consistent bubble just beneath the surface out of the public eye.
Former Arkansas golfer and PGA legend John Daly spent Tuesday morning on 103.7 “The Buzz” making sure there was no doubt how disliked Long was and still is while talking about an incident of ultimate disrespect by the former Razorbacks AD. For him, the final straw ties directly to his beloved PGA and British Open trophies and the physical damage done to these revered artifacts at Long’s direction.
Arkansas athletics has always meant a lot to Daly, as have its historic artifacts. Former Hogs basketball coach Nolan Richardson once sent him a picture of the floor from the 1994 national championship game and former athletics director Frank Broyles once sent him the Razorback rug that resided in his office for a long time. Both are proudly on display in Daly’s office to this day.
So, in reciprocation of the historic items that had been provided to him, Daly decided shortly after former football coach Houston Nutt finished a rough season that he would show support by donating his PGA and British Open trophies to be put on display as a reminder of what Razorbacks athletes can accomplish.
As time went on, the trophies made their way to The Blessings, which serves as home to Arkansas men and women’s golf. Daly trusted they were in good care until he found out one day that definitely wasn’t the case.
He was scheduled to do an event with the Golf Channel alongside David Faherty and wanted to have his trophies be part of the festivities as well. So, he called up a driver he often uses from around the Fayetteville area whom he refers to as Limo Joe and asked if he could swing by the University of Arkansas to grab his trophies and bring them to him.
“And he looked all over the place for them,” Daly said. “Apparently Jeff Long didn’t like alumni stuff or whatever. The PGA trophy was in a closet and the top of it was broke. I had to get it fixed. The British Open trophy was out of the case, and it was thrown in a closet as well. It was half dented up. Limo, it took him literally three hours to find it. Jeff didn’t want any alumni stuff, so he threw it in a closet, and thank God, Limo found them, and I did the show.”
To add insult to injury, it turns out British Open trophies not only are borderline impossible to earn, they aren’t free when they are earned.
“But, you know, I had paid for that British Open trophy,” Daly said. “It cost me 7,500 pounds. The PGA I got for free, but you talk about disrespect what Jeff Long did. He had no clue what those trophies meant to me, but I had donated them to the University of Arkansas, and Limo found them in a closet.”
The damage to his trophies were simply the cherry on top of a long list of reasons why Daly never found a soft spot in his heart for Long. It takes more than that to develop the strong feelings he willingly shared without hesitation.
“Jeff Long was the worst thing that ever happened to the University of Arkansas,” Daly said. “I’m sorry. He sucked and he was a jerk.”
It was the first of six times Daly referred to Long as a jerk in a four minute span. And he didn’t limit his perception just to Long’s time at Arkansas.
“He’s the worst athletic director that ever came to Arkansas and the worst one that ever went to Pittsburgh, the worst one that ever went to Michigan State, and then he goes to Kansas and tries to fire the basketball coach,” Daly said. “Tried to get rid of the basketball coach that’s getting paid more than any basketball coach – well, maybe [Arkansas coach John Calipari] is now – but he just was mean. He didn’t like alumni.”
David Bazzel, a Razorbacks legend himself who was conducting the interview, referenced a conversation with former Arkansas communications director Rick Schaeffer that showed there were issues with Long from the beginning.
“[Schaeffer said] it was not a pleasant transition from Frank to Jeff, and that Jeff never communicated effectively with Frank,” Bazzel said. “It was just a tense situation, and he didn’t feel comfortable with following the legacy of Frank, and that there were tensions there right off the bat.
Daly had serious contention with how out of touch he felt Long was with the people of Arkansas. One particular sore point was one that made general fans see Long in a negative light without knowing much of what was going on behind the scenes.
“You know, when he was there, he made our stadium Pepsi,” Daly said. “Who in the hell drinks Pepsi in Arkansas?”
While there are always incidents of adults trying to smuggle in alcohol to Razorbacks games over the years, Daly painted a picture of desperate boys and girls trying to find creative ways to get past security with Coca-Cola products.
“All the time that he was there, the most things that kids smuggled in were Diet Coke and Coca-Cola,” Daly said. “You’re gonna make a kid take a Diet Coke and a Coca-Cola out of his boot or or her purse or his jeans or whatever? Oh my God, it’s like a crime. Somebody brought Coke and Diet coke to the University of Arkansas football stadium.”
The trophies now travel with Daly in his bus where they can receive proper care and respect. Still, they serve as a constant reminder of an AD who once had no use for them nor the man who brought attention to the Arkansas program by winning them.
“All I know is thank God we got [current athletics director] Hunter Yurachek,” Daly said. “That’s all I could say. I love him. He’s unbelievable for our program.”
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FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – No. 22 Arkansas (30-16, 11-10 SEC) and No. 17 Ole Miss (31-15, 11-10 SEC) clash in a pivotal SEC series this weekend at Baum-Walker Stadium. First pitch in the opener between the Razorbacks and Rebels is scheduled for 6 p.m. Friday, May 1, on SEC Network+ with Brett Dolan (play-by-play) and Troy Eklund (analyst) on the call.
Game two of the weekend series gets underway at 2 p.m. Saturday, May 2, on SEC Network+ with Dolan and Eklund in the broadcast booth. Arkansas and Ole Miss conclude the weekend with a 2 p.m. first pitch in the series finale Sunday, May 3, on SEC Network with Tom Hart (play-by-play) and Chris Burke (analyst) on the call from Baum-Walker Stadium.
The Razorbacks have won five consecutive weekend series against the Rebels (2021-25), including each of the last two weekend series played inside the friendly confines of Baum-Walker Stadium in 2022 and 2024. Arkansas and Ole Miss, both 11-10 in league play, are tied for sixth in the SEC standings with nine conference games remaining in the campaign.
Schedule
Friday, May 1
#17 Ole Miss vs. #22 Arkansas – 6 p.m. – SEC Network+ – Listen – Live Stats
Saturday, May 2
#17 Ole Miss vs. #22 Arkansas – 2 p.m. – SEC Network+ – Listen – Live Stats
Sunday, May 3
#17 Ole Miss vs. #22 Arkansas – 2 p.m. – SEC Network – Listen – Live Stats
On the Mound
Friday, May 1
Ole Miss – LHP Hunter Elliott (4-1, 4.82 ERA)
Arkansas – LHP Hunter Dietz (5-2, 3.62 ERA)
Saturday, May 2
Ole Miss – RHP Cade Townsend (4-1, 2.33 ERA)
Arkansas – LHP Cole Gibler (4-1, 2.91 ERA)
Sunday, May 3
Ole Miss – RHP Taylor Rabe (3-3, 4.24 ERA)
Arkansas – TBA
Tune In
Friday and Saturday’s games between No. 22 Arkansas and No. 17 Ole Miss will stream on SEC Network+ with Brett Dolan (play-by-play) and Troy Eklund (analyst) on the call. Sunday’s series finale, meanwhile, will televise nationally on SEC Network with Tom Hart (play-by-play) and Chris Burke (analyst) in the broadcast booth at Baum-Walker Stadium.
The entire weekend series between the Razorbacks and Rebels can also be heard on the Razorback Sports Network from Learfield, including locally in Fayetteville on 92.1 FM or through the Razorback app, with Phil Elson (play-by-play) and Bubba Carpenter (analyst) on the call from Baum-Walker Stadium. A full list of radio affiliates is available here.
History Lesson
Arkansas is 64-55 overall against Ole Miss since 1982, including a 29-23 record in games played in Fayetteville, Ark. In the Dave Van Horn era (2003-pres.), the Razorbacks are 39-45 overall and 17-19 at home against the Rebels.
The Hogs, 7-3 in their last 10 games and 13-7 in their last 20 games against Ole Miss, have not lost a home weekend series to the Rebels since 2019. In the last series between the two teams at Baum-Walker Stadium in 2024, Arkansas collected its first weekend series sweep of Ole Miss since 2002 and first sweep of the Rebels in Fayetteville since 1997.
Here’s The SEC Situation
With the second half of SEC play underway, Arkansas, currently 11-10 through 21 league games, must post a 7-2 record over its final nine games of the year to reach the 18-win mark in conference play for the ninth consecutive season.
Entering the 2026 campaign, the Razorbacks have won 18 or more SEC games in eight consecutive seasons (2017-25) and are one of only two teams in conference history to accomplish the aforementioned feat. LSU is the only other SEC program to record at least eight consecutive seasons of 18 or more SEC victories (10 from 1996-2005).
Dazzlin’ Dietz
Plagued by injuries during the first two years of his collegiate career, Arkansas’ Hunter Dietz is now fully healthy and quickly proving why he is one of the top left-handers in college baseball. Through 11 starts on the mound this season, the Trinity, Fla., native owns a 5-2 record with a 3.62 ERA and an SEC-leading 92 strikeouts in 59.2 innings of work.
After beginning the season as the Razorbacks’ game two starter, Dietz will make his fourth consecutive series-opening start Friday night against the Rebels. The left-hander has turned in a team-leading six quality starts this year, the most by a Razorback pitcher in a season since LHP Zach Root logged a team-high seven quality starts during the 2025 campaign.
1. UT Arlington (Feb. 28) – 7.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 8 SO
2. Stetson (March 7) – 6.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 12 SO
3. South Carolina (March 21) – 6.2 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 12 SO
4. #18 Auburn (April 3) – 7.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 11 SO
5. #8 Alabama (April 10) – 6.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 9 SO
6. Missouri (April 23) – 7.0 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 8 SO
Dietz has also recorded three double-digit strikeout efforts, tied for eighth most in a season by a Razorback pitcher:
1. Stetson (March 7) – 12 SO
2. South Carolina (March 21) – 12 SO
3. #18 Auburn (April 3) – 11 SO
With his next double-digit strikeout game, Dietz will move into a tie for seventh most in a season by a Razorback pitcher:
1. 11 – Hagen Smith, 2024
T2. 8 – Nick Schmidt, 2006
T2. 8 – David Walling, 1999
T4. 6 – Trevor Stephan, 2017
T4. 6 – David Walling, 1998
6. 5 – Jess Todd, 2007
7. 4 – Isaiah Campbell, 2019
T8. 3 – Hunter Dietz, 2026
T8. 3 – Zach Root, 2025
T8. 3 – Mason Molina, 2024
T8. 3 – Blaine Knight, 2017
For complete coverage of Arkansas baseball, follow the Hogs on Twitter (@RazorbackBSB), Instagram (@RazorbackBSB) and Facebook (Arkansas Razorback Baseball).
Arkansas lawmakers have wrapped up their 2026 fiscal session, locking in how billions of dollars will be spent across the state in the year ahead.
The session, which began April 8, focused primarily on setting the state’s budget. It came to a close after Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed the Revenue Stabilization Act, finalizing a $6.7 billion spending plan for Fiscal Year 2027. The budget represents about a 3% increase from last year and will take effect July 1.
From the start of the session to its conclusion, lawmakers spent weeks negotiating how taxpayer dollars would be allocated across agencies, programs, and priorities.
“Because of their work, not only were we able to accomplish some of our top priorities this year, but they’ve set us up for what I think will be a great week next week,” Sanders said.
A significant portion of the budget is dedicated to education. That includes more than $300 million for the state’s Education Freedom Account program, also known as school vouchers, which allows families to use public funds for private education expenses. Lawmakers also set aside additional funding that could expand the program in the future.
Economic development was another major focus. The budget reserves up to $300 million for a potential large-scale project in West Memphis, aimed at bringing jobs and investment to the region.
Lawmakers also approved an increase in the state’s homestead property tax credit, raising it from $600 to $675.
Still, not every proposal made it through. Efforts to limit eligibility for the Education Freedom Account program failed during the session.
“This session sets the financial foundation for the year ahead, but there are more policy debates just around the corner,” Sanders said.
Those debates are expected to begin soon. Lawmakers are planning to return to the Capitol for a special session focused on tax cuts. The governor has proposed reducing the state income tax rate by 0.2 percent, a move that could return more than $180 million to Arkansans.
“We want it to be pretty singularly focused on providing relief to Arkansans, letting them keep more of their hard-earned money,” Sanders said.
If approved, the tax cuts would mark another step in the state’s ongoing effort to lower income taxes, with more decisions expected in the coming days.
Only a very low risk of storms continues in southern Arkansas on Wednesday evening, then shower chances are possible Wednesday evening and overnight in central and southern Arkansas.
A stray shower is possible on Thursday, but most will be dry with mostly cloudy skies and cooler-than-normal temperatures. Highs will reach the upper 60s in central Arkansas on Thursday.
More rain chances move in Friday, but chances are highest for southern Arkansas. A few stray storms are also possible in southern Arkansas on Friday into pre-dawn Saturday.
Conditions are dry this weekend, with temperatures warming throughout the weekend. More rain chances return next week, and the 80s are back by Sunday into Monday.
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