On this day in 1994, a quarter of a century ago, the University of Arkansas Razorbacks were preparing to play at Georgia. They were riding an eight-game winning streak and were ranked No. 1 in the country.
The Hogs opened that season at No. 3, but after their fourth game -- a win over regional program Memphis -- they became No. 1 and held that top spot for nine total weeks over two stints.
A 66-64 loss at Alabama would drop them to No. 4 after the Hogs' initial five-week stay. An 84-83 win over LSU in Walton Arena in the next game didn't impress the voters, but season rankings were good for only cussing discussing at that point in the season.
The Razorbacks then pounded Auburn on the road, but in a second consecutive road game fell to Mississippi State 72-71. Two losses by the sum total of three points. The Crimson Tide would finish second in the SEC West at 12-4, which would have been good enough to tie for first in the East. Mississippi State finished third in the West.
Having recovered to the No. 3 spot, the Mississippi State loss dropped the Razorbacks to No. 5. A week later, they were No. 6.
If memory serves, it was about that time Nolan Richardson started talking about no respect for his Razorbacks, but they were about to make a loud and proud statement.
The Razorbacks managed to edge back to No. 3 before traveling to Lexington and beating No. 4 Kentucky 90-82 in a game that could have been an instant classic because both teams played good enough to win.
The Hogs were No. 1 again, and they celebrated with a 99-87 win over No. 20 Florida. The Razorbacks would remain on top for the final four weeks of the regular season.
They went into the SEC Tournament as the No. 1 seed, only to get shocked by Kentucky -- which was ranked No. 10 -- 90-78 in the semifinals. The Wildcats tied Florida for the SEC East championship but lost on a tiebreaker.
It was a bit of a shocker, and it dropped the Hogs to No. 2. Even though they were still a No. 1 seed for the NCAA Tournament, the battle cry became "no respect."
It is an age-old ploy that has been used by tons of coaches over the years.
That 1993-94 season was the best in Arkansas basketball history. Corliss Williamson was a homegrown product, Dwight Stewart and Corey Beck were from Memphis, Clint McDaniel from Oklahoma, and Scotty Thurman from Louisiana. All those states border Arkansas.
In the next few weeks, there will be more about that championship season -- including the wins in Oklahoma City and Dallas that landed the Hogs in the championship game in Charlotte, N.C.
The SEC Network is re-airing a special titled 40 Minutes of Hell. It is a little dated, but it's still an entertaining 30 minutes, although some of the commentary is from ESPN folks who probably weren't alive during that season.
That season was the grand opening of Bud Walton Arena, and the Hogs honored their new home by not losing a game in it. In fact, they wouldn't lose a home game until midway through the next season.
Those Razorbacks never received the accolades of Michigan's Fab Five, partly because Michigan's class came in together. Beck and Stewart transferred to Arkansas after a year of junior college, and McDaniel came a year before Thurman and Williamson.
Of course, Arkansas' Favorite Five did something the Fab Five couldn't do -- win a national championship. On March 2, all the players and coaches who gave the Razorbacks their first and only basketball national championship will be honored.
Sports on 02/21/2019