The University of Arkansas released its 2014 baseball schedule on Monday. The Hogs will play 28 games against teams that advanced to the 2013 NCAA Tournament and 35 games at Baum Stadium.
“This year’s schedule is going to be a good challenge,” Coach Van Horn said. “The way I feel about the schedule is we need to be challenged early and often so we can get ready for conference play.”
Arkansas opens the 2014 season with 10 consecutive games at home. The Razorbacks open the regular season on Friday, Feb. 14, against Appalachian State in the first game of a three-game series. Following the series vs. Appalachian State, Arkansas hosts Eastern Illinois (Feb. 21-23) and South Alabama (Feb. 28-March 2) in three-game series before wrapping up the 10-game home stand with a single game vs. IPFW on Monday, March 3.
Following the season-opening home stand, the Razorbacks will hit the road for seven consecutive games, starting with four games in Berkeley, Calif., in a tournament hosted by the University of California. The Razorbacks will face California on March 7 and March 10 with single games against San Francisco on March 8 and Tulane on March 9.
The trip to California will be the Razorbacks’ last tune-up before SEC play starts as Arkansas travels to Florida to open conference play March 14-16. Other 2014 SEC road series for Arkansas include Mississippi State (March 28-30), LSU (April 11-13), Ole Miss (May 2-4) and Missouri (May 15-17). The season-ending series vs. the Tigers will mark the first time Arkansas has faced Missouri since the Tigers joined the SEC in 2012.
Arkansas will also be challenged in its midweek games with several quality opponents on the schedule. The Razorbacks will host Nebraska in a two-game series at Baum Stadium April 1 and 2. The following midweek, Arkansas welcomes UNLV to Fayetteville for a pair of games on April 8 and 9. Other notable midweek non-conference games include a home game vs. Stephen F. Austin (April 15), a two-game home series vs. Northwestern State (April 22-23) and a road game at Missouri State (April 29).