New year, new job! This week, I’m starting a new role as managing editor of Hawgs Illustrated magazine. Will be doing some writing in addition to running the mag. Thrilled to be home in Fayetteville & back on the Arkansas beat. Excited to work with the great
@wholehogsports
team!
Woke up from my airplane nap in time to hear the pilot say “They’re sending us up the Hudson, which is pretty rare. Those of you on the right side of the plane will get a great view of Manhattan.” And guess which side i was on
Surprise — I’m home! I’ve moved back to Fayetteville and, starting next week, will be working as the new Arkansas athletics beat writer for
@usatodaysports
and
@TimesRecord
. I am so happy to be home and so excited to get started!
Hey everybody, that was my last game at Bud Walton. Tomorrow is my last day on the Arkansas beat. Starting Monday, I’m shifting over to a new role covering Clemson athletics for
@GreenvilleNews
. I’m so excited about this next step and so thankful for my time covering Arkansas!
Arkansas athletics operated at an $8.1 million surplus in FY2022, exceeding pre-pandemic numbers. The biggest gains came in ticket sales, where Arkansas’ women’s sports had an enormous year:
"It's like an all-time low and then an all-time high within one day."
Arkansas catcher Michael Turner lost his grandmother just days before the start of the NCAA Tournament. He's playing in his first College World Series with her in mind:
While Jeff Long was AD at Arkansas, his daughter graduated from Fayetteville HS and chose to attend Mizzou.
Now, with a daughter at Mizzou, Jeff takes the AD job at Kansas.
Much respect for this close-knit fam whose love language is trolling the hell out of each other.
Someone just asked Au'Diese Toney, Jaylin Williams and JD Notae if they know what they need to do to file their tax forms on NIL deals and they all looked like deer in the headlights.
Same.
Not to be dramatic, but this is a dream come true. I've wanted to be part of this program since I saw
@anne__rogers
do it years ago, and I'm honored to have been chosen by AWSM. AND to get to do it alongside my best friend in
@emleiker
? Best day ever. Thank you,
@AWSM_SportMedia
!
Pittman tore his bicep lifting up his bulldog, Lucy, filming one of his “Yessir” videos, which is one of the more interesting injury stories I’ve ever heard
Watching people who knew that this story was about widespread sexual harassment hold readers in suspense and tell them to get their popcorn ready like this was just some juicy gossip and not a serious story that impacted several people’s lives and livelihoods is .. something.
I have one of those personal news tweets... am I doing this right?
Starting in the fall, I’ll be helping
@Dave_Matter
with Mizzou coverage for
@stltoday
. I’m so grateful for the opportunity and I can’t wait to get started!
Arkansas offensive coordinator Kendal Briles on quarterback KJ Jefferson: "He is a winner. We know he's a winner... I wouldn't trade him for anyone in America when it comes to winning football games."
Spoke with LSU coach Jay Johnson after Arkansas' win tonight. He called Hagen Smith "one of the best pitchers I've ever faced in my entire career."
"I hope we get to face him again at some point. That would be good for our team."
One good thing from my 2020:
@StribSports
taking a chance on me. In summer ‘21, I’m headed to Minneapolis to intern with the Star-Tribune. I can’t wait to learn from
@pacecarr
and the rest of the amazing Strib team! Any and all recommendations in the Twin Cities welcome.
Arkansas defensive coordinator Barry Odom: "I'm happy with where I'm at. I love coaching the defense.... I think we're building something that's going to be sustainable for a long, long time, and I'm glad that I get a chance to be a part of that."
WR Andrew Armstrong on Bobby Petrino's offense: "Go, go, go, do everything fast. ... He won't yell at you as much as you think he does. ... I feel like Coach Petrino has done an astonishing job with us."
I’ve moved to Dallas! Starting next week, I’ll be spending the next few months covering Texas high school football as an intern
@SportsDayHS
. I can’t wait to get started. Accepting any/all DFW recommendations.
Clear eyes, full hearts and all that jazz.
Sam Pittman on fan presence and this week's game vs. South Carolina: "I think our crowd has proven that we have a good home field advantage. We need them here."
Pittman says Arkansas didn't sign any QBs in part because the staff feels confident in the QBs they're pursuing in 2023. Feels not signing one in 2022 could help convince 2023 kids. Says "time will tell" if that was the right choice
Say hello to the newly elected President of the Association of Women in Sports Media chapter at the State University to the east of The Great State of Kansas!!! Very Proud!! Congratulations!! You Rock Chalk!!
Sam Pittman on backup QB Malik Hornsby: "There's a misconception that we don't believe in Malik. We believe in KJ, and I think he's proven that we should. But we certainly have believed that Malik can go in there and we can win the game with him."
Today in Arkansas coaches sustaining weird injuries: Trey Wade landed on Eric Musselman’s left shoulder in practice recently and now he has to get an MRI
WATCH: Eric Musselman talks SEC Tournament preparation, jokingly roasts me for not reading all of his tweets, comments on Razorbacks' All-SEC selections:
Mizzou transfer Trevon Brazile was asked about differences between Mizzou and Arkansas practices.
"We get less water breaks," he jokes. "I won't say it's more intense, but I would say there's a little more engagement within practice.
Programming announcement: I am furloughed for the next week. I can’t work. When there’s news on the Arkansas beat this week, I can’t bring it to you. Thinking of my Gannett colleagues as we all deal with this enormous bummer.
We asked the deli lady at hy-vee if they had blocks of feta and she said “if youre making the tiktok pasta, you can substitute crumbles.”
Have never felt more seen
There are FOUR (count ‘em! four!) women as reporters on the Missourian sports desk this semester. Far more than I’ve seen at one time in my years here. Proud of all four of you and wish you the absolute best
Arkansas men's basketball is tied with Houston at 14 in the new AP poll, and JD Notae was named SEC Player of the Week. Good start to a big final week for the Hogs.
Wrote on
@EricPMusselman
for USA TODAY Sports’ college basketball preview edition. The Arkansas cover of this special issue is available for pre-order now and will be on stands nationwide soon! Order:
Byron Buxton on contract negotiations w/
#MNTwins
:“Obviously everybody knows I want to be here. Just one of those things, we didn't come to an agreement, but it's not the first time it's happened. We've been in numerous conversations before and it's not the end.”
@StribSports
After
@EricPMusselman
told me the charge wall is real, he revealed some “awards” he gives his team after wins. From a basketball version of a college football turnover chain to a bottle of Windex, here’s how Musselman’s prizes have helped team chemistry:
NEW: Arkansas basketball has promoted Eric Musselman's son, Michael, to director of basketball operations. He replaces Anthony Ruta, who was promoted to assistant coach earlier this offseason.
This.
Can tell you from experience how painful it is to watch someone you care about be thrown into uncertainty while everyone yells about how glad they are it happened. It’s humiliating and uncomfortable. Thinking about the Odoms today.
Clemson walk-on WR Blackmon Huckabee Jr. told me in August that his goal was to sing the anthem in his Tigers uniform before a game. He just got to do it today here on Military Appreciation Day, and he crushed it. More on Huckabee's musical talents:
Sunday night news dump (?): Today was my last day at the Greenville News and on the Clemson beat. It was a short ride, but I learned a ton and so enjoyed experiencing Clemson. Thankful to the folks at CU & the rest of the beat for welcoming me. Excited to share what’s next soon!
AND not only is it game day, it’s also a very very special person’s birthday !!
i love you
@jefflongKU
and I hope you get the gift you really want: a KU conference win. You are so old now but you’re still a kid at heart! i love you!!!
Sam Pittman addresses rumors about defensive coordinator Barry Odom on the Liberty Bowl teleconference. Says he is about to go into a recruit's home in Texas for a visit.
"Old boy sitting next to me is Barry Odom."
Eric Musselman: "Defensively, I thought we were phenomenal, and I don't use that word often."
Says 30 turnovers is the most Arkansas has forced since 2004.
Marla Burleson has hand-painted more than a dozen pairs of Nike shoes for Arkansas men’s basketball coach Eric Musselman. Here’s why — and how — she does it:
Sam Pittman: "I like the team. ... I like that they like each other. We have a better football team. Where we go, I think we're gonna go up because the kids in the room want to, and they're talented enough to do it. ... There's a lot of change, and it's been positive."
Well, this is bananas. My friends and I are the subject of a story in The Washington Post. So enjoyed talking to Jacob for this (was it an interview or a therapy session?) and very proud to have this support system of women in my life.
#Factsmatter
. In this moment of reckoning inside the news industry, it's wonderful to see the next generation of leaders stepping up right now all while dealing with a public health crisis and economic collapse.
I appreciate these women so much.
Sasha Goforth might have stepped away from playing the sport, but she hasn't left Arkansas women's basketball behind. On Goforth's choice and new perspective:
hi hello
@FedEx
i missed a package delivery two days in a row but delivery driver John in Columbia, MO went out of his way to make sure it didnt get returned to sender so i could get my dad’s present before i left town
so john effectively saved christmas & deserves the world :’)
My dad used to tell me to “never play small with your life.” It’s advice I think about almost every day. He’s my biggest cheerleader, the one who makes me laugh the most, and the person I want to be most like.
@jefflongKU
is a
#girldad
, and we’re lucky he’s ours.
hey guys i think i look really great and not at all uncomfortable in my new professional headshot
my head looks very proportional to my body its very nice dont u think
21 years ago today, my dad helped deliver me at a kentucky hospital. he really can do it all. it’s only fitting that today is also his day.
happy fathers day to the endlessly entertaining, always hardworking man i’m lucky to call Dad. you mean the world to me
@jefflongKU
❤️💙