After knocking off the Florida Gators in Round 2, the Ole Miss Rebels are now tasked with beating the two-seed, Arkansas Razorbacks in the quarterfinals.

In the new SEC Tournament format, the double bye holds even more weight as there is no longer double elimination rounds. The Razorbacks have the advantage and/or option to throw their ace against the Rebels second starter, which matters.

Back in early March these two teams squared off when Arkansas was the third ranked team in the country. After winning Hunter Elliott’s Friday night start 10-6, the Rebels pitching staff gave up 12 runs in each of the next two contests.

Riley Maddox was the starter in that contest and he gave up three runs across four innings while the bullpen gave up eight over the remaining five innings. It will likely be Maddox on the bump again today and Coach Mike Bianco will need Maddox to bring his best performance for one more resume building win.

The Razorbacks are 6-4 over their last four contests which includes a series win over Tennessee, a series loss against LSU and a sweep over then #1 Texas. Last season, Arkansas was known for their incredible pitching staff. In 2025, the Hogs just score… a lot.

In that 10 games stretch they have scored 70 runs, for an average of seven runs per contest. Ole Miss is 4-7 in SEC contests in which they give up 7 or more runs. The Rebs are also 6-4 on SEC Saturdays, typically Riley Maddox days. They are similarly 6-4 against SEC #1 starters.

What does all this mean? It’s a toss up. Maddox will have to limit the damage and go five to six innings. The Rebels offense needs to find its stride to keep up with a good Razorback offense.

Assuming weather cooperates, Ole Miss and Arkansas will play Friday at 3:00.