FAYETTEVILLE — The College of Arkansas and Missouri State aren’t into altering baseball coaches.
The Razorbacks have had two coaches since 1970 with Norm DeBriyn and Dave Van Horn. Keith Guttin has been Missouri State’s coach since 1983.
So together with tonight’s Arkansas-Missouri State recreation at Hammons Subject in Springfield, Mo., the Razorbacks and Bears could have 3 coaches of their final 57 matchups over 41 seasons.
“You don’t actually see that very a lot any extra with the way in which guys transfer round,” Guttin mentioned. “However Norm and Dave are two legends down there in Arkansas, and I’ve simply occurred to remain right here for some time. So it’s all good.”
DeBriyn and Van Horn are Arkansas Sports activities Corridor of Fame inductees. Guttin is a Missouri Sports activities Corridor of Fame inductee.
Mixed, the three have 3,672 victories as NCAA Division I head coaches with 1,362 at Missouri State for Guttin since 1983, 1,161 at Arkansas for DeBriyn and from 1970-2002 and 1,149 for Van Horn since 1995 at Northwestern (La.) State, Nebraska and Arkansas.
The Razorbacks are 36-20 towards Guttin’s Bears in a sequence that features Arkansas profitable 2 of three in an excellent regional in 2015 and Missouri State profitable 2 of three in a regional in 2018.
“Everytime you play Arkansas, whether or not it was Norm DeBriyn or now Dave Van Horn, you’re enjoying a very good group that’s proficient and well-coached,” Guttin mentioned. “That’s no matter what 12 months or who’s teaching them. That by no means adjustments.”
The Razorbacks (30-10, 11-7 SEC) are ranked No. 6 within the USA At present coaches’ ballot, however they convey a three-game dropping streak — their longest of the season —into tonight’s recreation after being swept at Georgia final weekend.
The Bulldogs beat the Razorbacks 6-5, 7-3 and 9-8. Georgia scored 5 runs within the ninth inning of the sequence finale on Saturday to beat an 8-4 deficit and received on a grand slam by Connor Tate and a house run from Parks Harber within the final two at-bats.
Being swept at Georgia provides a way of urgency for the Razorbacks to win a mid-week nonconference recreation.
“After you lose like we did [Saturday] and lose three in a row on the street, it will be good to realize a bit of momentum earlier than [Texas] A&M is available in,” Van Horn mentioned of resuming SEC play towards the Aggies on Thursday night time at Baum-Walker Stadium. “As a result of A&M is enjoying rather well proper now.”
Texas A&M (25-15, 9-9), which performs Sam Houston State tonight, has received its final 4 SEC sequence towards Ole Miss, Auburn, Missouri and Kentucky.
Missouri State (22-16, 11-4 Missouri Valley Convention) is 9-2 in its final 11 video games with MVC sweeps of Bradley, Illinois-Chicago and Belmont and two losses to Missouri — 10-1 at dwelling and 7-6 on the street.
The Bears began 12-5 earlier than being swept at East Carolina — ranked No. 14 on this week’s coaches’ ballot — in a three-game sequence, which started a seven-game dropping streak for Missouri State.
“I feel we’re enjoying higher,” Guttin mentioned. “We began off OK on the season. Then we went to East Carolina and bought swept by a great ballclub, and that put us in a funk for about two weeks.
“We’ve type of been working our approach out of it. So I actually really feel a bit of bit higher now than I did just a few weeks in the past.”
Missouri State sophomore middle fielder Spencer Nivens is batting .369 with 10 dwelling runs and 38 RBI. He hit a two-run dwelling run within the Bears’ 6-4 victory at Arkansas final season.
“He’s had a great season each on the plate and in middle discipline,” Guttin mentioned. “He’s type of a group chief by instance. Only a stable participant.”
Freshman proper fielder Zach Stewart is batting .321 with 8 dwelling runs and 42 RBI for the Bears.
“He’s a man we thought may are available and influence the group offensively,” Guttin mentioned. “He hasn’t upset. He’s been as marketed.”
Van Horn’s Razorbacks are 20-10 towards Missouri State since 2003 when he changed DeBriyn.
“The Missouri State-Arkansas recreation is often a great mid-week recreation,” Van Horn mentioned. “It’s often very aggressive.
“Clearly, I feel Missouri State performs arduous. They’ve a great program. They work at it.”
Van Horn thought extremely sufficient of the Missouri State program to rent Nate Thompson as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator in 2018 after he was an assistant for Guttin from 2015-17.
“I’ve lots of respect for Nate,” Guttin mentioned. “The job he did right here and the job he’s doing there.”