So the SEC has become a softball conference.

When the NCAA super regionals were set a record-tying nine SEC programs remained and six were hosting, including the No. 5 Arkansas Razorbacks who will entertain No. 12 Duke.

With LSU going to Alabama, Mississippi State to Oklahoma and Georgia to Tennessee, the SEC will be vying for six of the Women’s College World Series slots.

While Nebraska is currently ranked No. 1, the SEC has No. 2 Alabama, No. 3 Texas, No. 4 Oklahoma, No. 5 Arkansas, No. 8 Tennessee, No. 10 Florida, No. 11 Georgia, No. 18 LSU and No. 20 Mississippi State in the top 25.

Texas A&M is No. 16 but was eliminated at home 9-1 by Arizona State.

Since 2016, when then-Athletic Director Jeff Long hired Courtney Deifel, the Razorbacks have had one losing season, her first, and have made the NCAA Tournament every year since with the exception of 2020 when the entire sports world came to a halt because of COVID-19.

This is Deifel’s fifth time taking the Razorbacks to the super regional round.

Deifel graduated from Cal-Berkeley with a degree in American business, but she immediately went into coaching.

She was a graduate assistant at Oklahoma, where she got her master’s degree, and then had subsequent assistant coaching stops at Maryland and Louisville. She returned to Maryland as the head coach in 2015.

After one season she jumped to the Razorbacks and has never looked back.

Arkansas is a feared competitor in a very tough SEC.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was named NBA Most Valuable Player for a second consecutive when the voting was announced Sunday.

He and his Oklahoma City Thunder are the defending NBA champions and on a course to repeat.

Gilgeous-Alexander connection to Arkansas goes deeper than having former Razorbacks and Fort Smith Northside standouts Isaiah Joe and Jaylin Williams as teammates.

A native of Hamilton, Canada, he finished his high school career at Hamilton Heights Christian Academy in Chattanooga, Tenn. He was a 4-star recruit who committed to Florida in November 2015, then decommitted 11 months later and finally picked Kentucky and, who else, John Calipari.

He started the season as a backup point guard, but by conference time was the starter. He was MVP of the SEC Tournament and he helped the Wildcats to the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16.

Gilgeous-Alexander, a one-and-done, was drafted with the 11th pick of the first round by the Charlotte Hornets, who almost immediately traded him to the Los Angeles Clippers.

He played there a season before being traded to Oklahoma City, where he became a star.

Gilgeous-Alexander has averaged more than 30 points per game in each of the past four seasons.

Now that the NCAA has officially announced its basketball tournaments will expand to 76, it appears baseball and football would like to have larger tournament numbers as well.

It has been guessed that the College Football Playoff’s current 12-team field will expand after this coming season to 24 teams.

More than likely that would end the Power Four conference championship games.

The Big Ten, winner of the last three CFP championships as well as the men’s and women’s basketball tournaments last April, apparently is the one pushing for the expansion to 24.

TV may balk but they won’t walk, they will ante up to stay in the game.

The possible expansion of the football playoffs has brought up the old realignment argument, except this time the theory is 24-36 major programs will start their own football league.

Over the months and possible years as this plays out, the advice here is follow the money.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Ryan Silverfield generated plenty of headlines after arriving at Arkansas for a variety of reasons.

It’s possible some fans didn’t really care because he failed to win a conference championship at Memphis. Others immediately grew skeptical because of his “All In” tagline that reminds them of Chad Morris.

There’s a percentage of the Razorbacks fanbase who haven’t given him a fair shake going into his first season. While there is what seems to be a vocal minority that believe he will go 2-10, a good chunk of people have been receptive of him because he’s backed up what was promised to do in recruiting.

As talking season ramps up, here are three reasons fans can have a smidge of optimism as Silverfield starts his tenure at Arkansas.

Past Few Years Have Seen Fumbles Way Too Much

The previous coaching regime produced plenty of good moments, but failed to capitilize on momentum often enough to elevate the program. That led to players not being dialed in on the field.

Whether it were turnovers, penalties, clock management or other game-altering decisions, Arkansas couldn’t get it done during critical moments.

There have been many instances through the years where Arkansas just needed a huge break, but failed to seize the opportunity. Countless losses to Texas A&M, Missouri, LSU, and Mississippi State were a result of ball security.

Think about the 2025 season, back-to-back weeks on the road against Ole Miss and Memphis, the Razorbacks were driving for the go-ahead score only to cough up the ball in crunch time. Then there was a blown second half leads against Auburn and Mississippi State due to turnovers or bad tackling.

Arkansas has lacked in the execution department far too long. Players have been talented enough over the past 14 years to get the program back on track, but it’s going to take a coach who accepts nothing but full effort each day to get this whole thing straight.

Being an improved team in situational football is fundamental but neccesary when it comes to establishing a winning culture.

“We’ll continue to implement situational football throughout spring,” Silverfield said last month. “I’ve kind of got a library of making sure we’re touching base on this stuff. Some of it can be so nuanced that you just say, ‘hey, this may be something worth talk about during OTAs or training camp.

“We’re going to get as much situational football, third down work, skelly, red zone stuff as we can throughout spring ball.”

Hogs Getting Defensive

There’s no reason to sugarcoat things in previous years, Arkansas was clearly passive when it came to coverage in the secondary.

Whether it was getting lost off a single move, or just letting a guy fly by on a go route, Silverfield knew major changes were in store to improve the Razorbacks defense.

While former defensive back Julian Neal proved serviceable on the backend in 2025, he couldn’t do it alone. Arkansas finished near the bottom nationally in pass defense, scoring defense and turnovers forced.

New defensive coordinator Ron Roberts focused on bringing in defensive backs who have history of forcing interceptions, fumbles and being engaged but disciplined open field tacklers. That’s an area the Razorbacks have struggled for several years.

It will be interesting to find out if inconsistent quarterback play is due to an improved secondary or KJ Jackson and AJ Hill are struggling to perform at the level needed in the SEC.

Friendly Home Schedule

Silverfield will be the first Arkansas coach since joining the SEC to play seven home games in the friendly confines of Razorback Stadium.

While some will say only two opponents on the schedule are beatable in North Alabama and Tulsa, there are other chances for Arkansas to re-establish homefield advantage this fall.

Week three gives Arkansas quite the test with Georgia in town, but other SEC opponents like Tennessee, Missouri, South Carolina, and LSU could give fans hope of a quick turnaround by scoring an upset or two.

Just paying attention to the minor details all while improving on defense can certainly be enough for the Razorbacks to steal a win here or there.

There were times last season if Arkansas players just gave a tad more effort, played with extra passion and discipline they could have avoided a few close losses.

Silverfield gets to start his tenure in Fayetteville without huge expectations, and build his team week by week throughout the season. That reason alone might be enough for fans to collectively get on board after all.

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